Isla Culion Historic Tour and Snorkeling with Kawil Tours

In 2009, my friend and I did a DIY tour of Culion Island: we took the public boat from Coron to Culion and just roamed around the town by ourselves, without any guide. We only knew that Culion Island was once a leper colony and that the church we visited was really old.

This time the walking tour around Culion Island was more rewarding, thanks to our local guide, Elee of Kawil Tours, who knew a lot about the island and its history and who shared stories of days gone by not mentioned in the markers around town (I don't remember seeing these markers in 2009). We visited the Culion Church, the bastion (with canons) beside the church, the little plaza with a statue of Major General Leonard Wood, and buildings of historic significance around town. (We did not get to visit the museum because it was closed on a Saturday.) It was supposed to be a walking tour, but the unrelenting summer sun forced us to take a tricycle (paid for by Kawil Tours) for the rest of the tour. (Kawil Tours also paid for the bottles of water and the halo-halo that we craved for during the scorching summer walk around town.)

Culion Island

La Immaculada Concepcion Church

The people of Culion looked up to Major General Leonard Wood

After leaving Culion Island, we dropped by Crowning Glory Reef, just a few minutes' boat ride from Culion Island, for snorkeling. Crowning Glory Reef is a Marine Protected Area and, wow, were the corals magnificent! I am the laziest person alive and do not like to exercise but the fierce current gave me a great workout (without my breaking a sweat haha!) and I had an awesome time doing so (I thought I'd never say this in relation to exercising!). Tip: If you know how to use and are comfortable using fins/flippers, bring and use them in case nature gives you the same challenge it gave us.

Crowning Glory Reef

Much as we wanted to stay and snorkel some more at Crowning Glory Reef, our strength ran low and we accepted defeat and went to our next and last stop: Lusong Gunboat Wreck. The wreck is in shallow waters and is clearly visible and perfect for snorkeling (no diving required!). Corals have grown on the wreck all the more making it a pretty site for snorkeling.

Lusong Gunboat Wreck

Dennis, one of the guides, freediving at Lusong Gunboat Wreck

Private Tour or Join In Tour? Join-in Culion Historical Tours through tour operators based in Coron will go from Php1200 to Php1800 per person inclusive of boat, guide, lifevest, and lunch. These join-in tours will visit Culion Island (Culion Church, Culion Museum, and other historical landmarks) and will drop by a marine park for some snorkeling. For our Culion tour, although quite expensive at Php11,600 for 5 pax (inclusive of boat, guides, lifevest, lunch, snorkel and mask, and other expenses at Culion Island such as tricycle rides, water, snacks), we opted to go on a private tour with the only tour operator based in Culion.

Where did we book our private Culion Tour?
Kawil Tours
book@kawiltours.com
facebook page

Would I recommend this tour operator? Yes. A big resounding yes. Especially if you are interested in the history of Culion, once a leper colony. Kawil Tours is based in Culion with owners/guides who grew up in Culion, and could therefore share accurate stories of the island. On top of that, the owners/guides are very accommodating and will really look after their guests. And although they are based in Culion, a 1.5-hour boatride from Coron, they came to pick us up at Coron Town on time.



Coron 2017
Coron Accommodation: Centro Coron
Starry Starry Night at Kingfisher Park
Coron Ultimate Tour with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours (DON'T!)
Coron Island Escapade Tour
Isla Culion Historic Tour and Snorkeling with Kawil Tours (you're here!)
Coron Accommodation: Zuric Pension Coron

Coron Island Escapade Tour

Though it's my third time in Coron,  I have never done the Coron Island Escapade Tour. The first time I was in Coron, in 2009, the day we decided to do to Coron Island Escapade Tour, the weather wasn't cooperating and no boats were allowed to sail. My second visit, in 2012, was too short and we could only do the Coron Ultimate Tour. For this trip, I demanded we reserve one day for this! Yes, demanded! I could not miss it the third time!!!

The long boat ride (1.5 hours) to these islands was worth it. The first stop was Malcapuya Island. We docked our boat on the back side of the island and made the short walk to the opposite side where the long stretch of white sand of Malcapuya and different shades of blue of the sea and sky made me want to stop time.

What's there to do in Malcapuya Island? The guide said there is a snorkeling area but I did not dare go as it looked too far and the waves a bit strong. My friends and I just settled under the shade of coconut trees (some took a nap in a hut), and after a bit heeded the call of the sea for a swim, while waiting for the guides to prepare lunch.

Malcapuya Island

The next stop, just a 10-minute boat ride from Malcapuya Island, was Banana Island, named so not because there were lots of banana trees (there were none) but because of the shape of the island. People were scattered under coconut trees and huts, some on hammocks, some cooling off in the sea, others busy floating face down looking at fish in the snorkeling area. (Tip: If you plan to go snorkeling in Banana Island, bring aqua shoes. The rocks along the shore of the snorkeling area are torture to bare feet.)

Banana Island

Another 10-minute boatride and we were in Bulog Dos, the third and last stop for the Coron Island Escapade Tour. My friends and I settled in the shallow water by the sandbar and just soaked without a care in the world for the duration of the stay.

Bulog Dos

Private tour or Join In tour? We knew the islands to be visited in the Coron Island Escapade Tour would be a ways away (1.5 hours by boat) and would be an expensive private tour, thus we decided to sign up for a join-in tour for Php1200 per person inclusive of boat, guides, lifejackets, lunch, and entrance fees. (Separate fee of Php 150 for snorkel and mask.)

Where did we book our join-in Coron Island Escapade Tour?

JY Travel and Tours
19 Real Street, Coron, Palawan
yong_cj@yahoo.com

Would I recommend this tour operator? Yes. The guides are enthusiastic and the tour leaves on time.

Any downside with a join-in tour? The itinerary is fixed and you cannot dictate how long you want to stay on each island. You'll just have to make the most of the time allotted by the guide for each island. But, private or join-in tour, the time to head back to the town of Coron is strictly followed as the Coast Guard is very strict.



Coron 2017
Coron Accommodation: Centro Coron
Starry Starry Night at Kingfisher Park
Coron Ultimate Tour with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours (DON'T!)
Coron Island Escapade Tour (you're here!)
Isla Culion Historic Tour and Snorkeling with Kawil Tours
Coron Accommodation: Zuric Pension Coron

Coron Ultimate Tour with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours (DON'T!)

Coron Ultimate Tour. The first time was in 2009, followed by 2012, and the third time when direct flights to Busuanga from Cebu have been brought back – 2017 (now). Why do this tour over and over and over again? Because it's beautiful.

The Coron Ultimate Tour visits Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon, Siete Pecados Marine Park, and one or two other spots (usually a beach for lunchtime) depending on the tour operator you have booked your tour with.

 Kayangan Lake

Kalachuchi Beach

 Kalachuchi Coral Eden

 Twin Lagoon

 Twin Lagoon: On the other side

 Siete Pecados Marine Park

What has changed over the years? The number of tourists!! It has definitely increased and I have noticed a good number of foreign tourists in this part of Palawan. (In Coron town, many hostels/guesthouses/pension houses and restaurants have also popped up.)

The path to Kayangan Lake is now made of concrete steps (it used to be just steps fashioned from rocks and soil). The viewdeck is still there but with a long tail of people queueing to have their photo taken. In Kayangan Lake itself, the boardwalk is longer, the lake still clear, but dotted with so many people forced to wear lifejackets (mandatory after two Czech tourists drowned while free diving in Kayangan Lake in March 2017) within the area allowed for swimming (no swimming beyond the roped area!).

The Twin Lagoon is still a fun place to swim as the area is wide. On one end is the sea where your boat can pick you up if you're too tired to go back to where you entered AND if you're willing to pay another fee! (Apparently you're only allowed to enter and exit where you had paid the entrance fee; in our case it was at the section where we either had to climb the steep wooden stairs or swim through the small opening to get to the other lagoon.)

Other than that, the water is still crystal clear and the spots still breathtaking (literally from all that swimming, and figuratively from its awesome beauty).

Private Tour or Join In Tour? Since we were just five in the group, a private tour (Php 2100 per person) would be more expensive than a join-in tour (Php 1500 per person). But still we opted for a private tour because we planned to leave early and go to Kayangan Lake first to avoid the crowds.

Where did we book our private Coron Ultimate Tour? Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours.

Would I recommend this tour operator? No. N–O, NO! We booked the tour a day prior and made a 50% downpayment. They told us pick up time would be from 8AM to 830AM. We were already waiting by 8AM (we wanted to start early). After sending some text messages and making some calls, the van arrived at 830AM. Fine, it was still within the time frame they had set. The van took us to the port (a 5-minute walk from where we were staying!) where, when the van driver finally found the right boatman, the boatman asked us for the itinerary. We didn't have it. It's the tour operator's responsibility to inform and hand over the itinerary to the boatman, not us. We boarded the boat and were made to wait because the tour operator still had not delivered the food for lunch and the snorkeling gear. 10 minutes of waiting...20...30...more text messages sent and calls made. When one of our friends have had enough, she took over the call and talked to the owner of Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours. My friend's anger fired up when the owner herself did not sound concerned and gave a lame reason that they had so many guests to attend to. (If they could not handle many guests they could have just declined the day we made the booking and we could have just booked through another tour operator–there are so many in Coron.) Many tour boats have already left and we were still at the port simmering. We left the port at around 930AM, after an hour of waiting.

Again, N–O, NO! Here's another tour group (two days after us) that had a terrible experience with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours (when I checked their facebook page again, they had already disabled and deleted all reviews).

Do go on the Coron Ultimate Tour, just NOT with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours. N–O, NO!



Coron 2017
Coron Accommodation: Centro Coron
Starry Starry Night at Kingfisher Park
Coron Ultimate Tour with Calamianes Expeditions and Ecotours (DON'T!) (you're here!)
Coron Island Escapade Tour
Isla Culion Historic Tour and Snorkeling with Kawil Tours
Coron Accommodation: Zuric Pension Coron