Port Barton Palawan Island Hopping Tour: Best Boat Trip 2024
Port Barton boat trip was a highlight of our times in the Philippines, controversially we preferred it to the more popular El Nido Boat Tour. Port Barton Boat Tour starts at Itaytay Beach and makes four stops around Port Barton Bay.
Your voyage will start at Twin Reef where you will spend an enjoyable snorkelling session exploring some of the best aquatic plants we’ve seen before moving on to Paradise Island. The Port Barton Boat Tour is a slower pace than the El Nido Tour so you will spend a good time exploring the island as well as enjoying a local feast for lunch. Once you’re full of pineapple you head to a turtle snorkelling spot, this was the busiest section and quickest stop of the tour but we did manage to see one turtle. Finally you head to Starfish Island and my favourite part of the tour; here you can observe multiple Chocolate Chip starfish (yes that’s their real name!).
Read on to find out everything you need to know about The Port Barton Boat Trip.
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Port Barton is surrounded by some of the richest marine life we saw in all of The Philippines. Book Your Port Barton Boat Trip Here!
Where Is Port Barton?
Port Barton is located on the Philippine island of Palawan, 3 hours north of Puerto Princesa and 3 hours south from El Nido. You can get a shared van and you can book your seat ahead.
Port Barton Boat trip leaves from the main beach Itaytay at 9am in the morning. You will be given a meeting point from your tour provider, we met at Happy Bar and were also given the name of our guide to make sure we got on the right boat.
How To Get To Port Barton?
To travel to Port Barton you can either fly into Puerto Princesa or El Nido Airport. From here you need to hire a shard van or private car to drive you to the local fishing village. The drive takes around 3 hours from either airport.
If you’re starting your journey from El Nido town your shared van will pick you up from El Nido TownSquare. The vans often make a toilet break on route and this is also a chance for you to grab some snacks.
Port Barton Palawan Island Hopping Tour Description
This was probably one of my favourite activities we did in the Philippines. It was definitely the best coral I had experienced during my time in the country plus the hospitality of our guide and the lunch he cooked topped off the day.
Each stop had its own charm so we go into more detail below about what to expect on your day trip.
How Much Does The Port Barton Boat Trip Cost?
The Port Barton Island Hopping rates are ₽1500 per person which is around £17, $22 or €20.
A stunning collection of gigantic coral, each area you explore will have you discovering different species, shapes and fish. A healthy site that’s a feast for the eyes.
Some species of coral we saw included:
Staghorn coral
Lettuce Leaf Coral
On the boat tour we spent around 20 minutes exploring the reef alongside around four other boats. The reef didn’t feel too crowded unlike some other sites in Palawan.
If you imagine a desert island, this is it. Powdery sand greets your feet as you climb out your wooden boat. Gentle lapping waves are the sound track as you start to explore paradise. Head to the back of the beach and find the stairs that lead you up to the peak of the island, here the views are stunning and well worth the short walk up.
After your walk, head to the back of the island to find the second beach. This was my favourite place on the island, less people venture here and we went for a swim in the clear waters to cool off.
What Do You Do On Paradise Island
Swimming and Hiking
A refreshing swim is a must here, the water is clear and the sand beneath your feet is soft. Take a walk up the hill to see the island from a bird eye view. The walk only takes 5 minutes and is well worth it.
Lunch
Our lunch on the Port Barton Boat Tour was incredible! We were served a full feast of grilled fish, fried noodles, barbequed chicken and the most ornate fruit platter we have ever seen. Eating with the view of the archipelago and new friends is what traveling is about! Plus you can buy fresh buko here right on the beach.
Explore A Hidden Beach
Don’t just explore the beach you dock on, head to the back of the island and you’ll discover a smaller hidden bay. This is where we choose to swim entirely alone for 20 minutes before our lunch. Having a slice of paradise to yourself is such a beautiful feeling.
Turtle Snorkeling Spot
The second snorkelling spot on the tour is where you can often spot turtles. We saw one turtle here and only stayed for around 15 minutes. This stop was a little more crowded than the others.
Your boat will pull up to a summit of sand where you can enter the shallow water and admire the beauty of this tiny isolated island. Submerge your head and you’ll be greeted with spotted starfish that look like they're straight out of a cartoon.
Important: Do not lift the starfish out of the water as this will damage them. Our guide told us we could flip them over as long as they stayed fully submerged. We decided not to touch them at all, leaving them be as this felt the right thing to do.
Best Places To Stay In Port Barton
Port Barton is a small, local fishing village with most of the accommodation concentrated in the centre of town. Wherever you stay bars, restaurants and the beach will be within walking distance, so you need to decide if you want to pay more for a beach side property or something more budget set further back.
We use Booking.com and HostelWorld for all of our stays around the world!
Below is a list of top accommodations we recommend for Port Barton, Palawan:
Top Things To Do In Port Barton
Perhaps less known than El Nido, Port Barton was one of our favourite towns in the whole of the Philippines. You get a local feel but the area is still set up for tourism, with bars, western and local restaurants and an amazing boat trip. Here we share our top things to do in Port Barton.
Top Pick: Port Barton Palawan Island Hopping Tour
This is a must in Port Barton! You get to visit two snorkelling spots including Twin Reef which has some of the best coral we’ve seen, Paradise Island where you get a local feast for lunch, snorkel with turtles and look for Chocolate Chip Starfish On A Tiny Sand Bar.
If you’re looking for a large strip of powdery sand, coconut trees and a refreshing place to swim you can get a boat taxi from Port Barton Bay (Itaytay Beach) to White Beach.
Off The Beaten Track: Pamuayan Falls
Jump on a scooter or hire a taxi and head to Pamuayan Falls where you can get back to nature and enjoy a swim in the falls natural pool.
Best Place To Eat: Joan’s Cuisine & Fat Cat
Joan’s Cuisine serves a mixture of budget friendly local dishes as well as a mouth-watering paella which is a must try. If you’re looking for western food head to Fat Cat for amazing pizza!
Essential Travel Items You Need
 | Lifestraw - Filtered Water Bottle Allowing you to fill up water whenever and wherever with peace of mind plus you’re helping the environment! |
 | Jungle Formula - High Deet Mosquito Spray The weak sprays will not work! Make sure to bring a high deet percentage spray made for the tropics. We also use Mosquito Wipes. |
 | Water Shoes - Lightweight with Protection Stay protected from Sea Urchins with these, also useful for snorkelling, waterfall hikes and more. We also love our Microfibre Towels and Dry Bag. |
 | Universal Travel Adaptor With Multiple USBs Life while travelling will never be the same again! Charge multiple devices all at once in any country... game changer. |
Top Tips For Travelling The Philippines
If you’re visiting the Philippines here are our top travel tips:
Book flights in advance - they can become expensive if you leave it last minute… oh and check your luggage allowance to skip expensive check in fees at the airport. Don't forget your Apple Airtags to track your bags
Agree on taxi prices upfront - when getting into a tuk-tuk, tricycle or taxi, make sure you agree on a price or they have a meter, so many tourists get ripped off with a huge price tag at the end of the ride.
Take it slow - don't feel the need to see all the islands, we recommend picking a few and doing them properly. See the island in full, find some locals and sing Karaoke..
Embrace the chaos and get stuck in, the locals are friendly and love to help and share information about their home!
For a checklist of what's needed to pack for your trip, read: How to Pack for Backpacking to South East Asia: Backpacking Essentials and Accessories
We love our DJI Mini for all of our drone shots!
Final Thoughts on The Port Barton Boat Tour
The Port Barton Snorkel trip was a highlight of the two months we spent in the Philippines. Getting to snorkel with an array of sea life, magnificent corals and bask on a local wooden boat made for the perfect day out. You also get to explore an island, and search for chocolate chip starfish which look like they're straight out of a cartoon. To top it all off the lunch was amazing with a fruit platter topped with a bird made out of a pineapple.
For ₽1500 we think the boat tour is well worth doing and as we mentioned in the introduction we preferred it to the more famous El Nido Boat Tour.
Travel Tools To Help You Plan
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Thank you for reading and enjoy your Philippine adventure. Reach out to us over on Instagram @KateandMikesTravels. We always love to hear from people who read our blogs!
For our Filipino friends: Maraming salamat sa pag babasa, hangang sa susunod nating pag kikita, mamimiss namin kayo, mabuhay ang pilipinas! Salamat
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