Everything you need to know about the Puerto Princesa to El Nido transfer via the Underground River
When getting from Puerto Princesa to El Nido, you can stop at one of the 7 wonders of nature if you pick the right transfer! In this post, I share my experience booking and going on this transfer as part of my 2-week Philippines itinerary.
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Booking the Puerto Princesa to El Nido transfer
Unfortunately, there aren’t many tour operators offering the Puerto Princesa to El Nido route with a stop at the Underground River. Most of the transfer options I found online either looked like scams or were not accepting bookings.
After tons of research, I came across Palawan Days and booked my Puerto Princesa to El Nido transfer with them. Their price tag of 3.690 pesos included hotel pickup and dropoff, the underground river tour, and a buffet lunch. They require a 30% payment at the time of booking and accept the remaining 70% in cash (pesos only) at the time of boarding. If you prefer, you can pay the full price online via credit card.
A few days before the scheduled transfer, Palawan Days communicated with me via e-mail to arrange the pick-up and drop-off details.
My experience with the Palawan Days transfer
The Palawan Days teams picked me up at around 8:00 AM in my hotel. Their van was in great condition and was air-conditioned. There were only two other tourists in the van, so I could comfortably lay down and nap until we arrived at the meeting point for the Underground River tour!
Logistics of visiting the Underground River in Palawan
Upon arriving, our tour guide arranged our tickets and I assumed we would quickly go into the underground river. I could not be more wrong, as I learned that the entrance to the Underground River was actually a boat ride away, and the seats on the boat run on a first come first serve basis.
We spent a good hour waiting for our time to enter the boat. Happily, the wait was not too bad because there were a few snack and souvenir shops near the pier. These shops were life savers: they allowed me to enjoy air conditioning and grab lots of ice cream.
When we finally entered the boat to head to the Underground River, we were impressed by the views: it looked like Halong Bay in Vietnam!
At the end of the ~20-minute boat ride, we were dropped off at a stunning beach just by the underground river’s entrance. There, we geared up with helmets, life jackets, and an audio guide.
Going inside the Underground River in Palawan
The only way to get inside the cave is in a narrow and unmotorized wooden boat.
To avoid disturbing wildlife, no one is allowed to speak inside the cave, so we get all the information we need from the audioguide provided at the entrance. A fun fact is that they instructed us to keep our mouths shut because there is always the risk of accidentally eating bat poop. As a matter of fact, we were all under a light rain of bat poop. I know this sounds gross, but that bat poop smells and feels like water!
Buffet lunch near the Underground River
The Palawan Days Puerto Princesa to El Nido transfer included a buffet lunch that did not disappoint. For anyone interested, the restaurant offered some food and upgrades at an additional cost.
Other activities near the Underground River
We were supposed to head straight to El Nido after the underground river tour. We had a bit of a detour because the other two tourists on the transfer asked if we could have an additional stop at a zipline nearby. Our driver and guide were kind enough to take them to the zipline before we headed to El Nido!
Arrival in El Nido
We arrived in El Nido at about 7 PM and were dropped off at our hotel. Getting there, we were impressed by the incredible food scene in El Nido! There were various delicious restaurants, with my favorite being the Japanese restaurant Osaka Castle.
Overall, my experience on this tour was fantastic! I highly recommend taking this Puerto Princesa to El Nido transfer versus the regular transfer that does not stop at the underground river. If you need to pass through that route anyway, you might as well quickly stop to enjoy one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the world!
There you have it, the best way to get from Puerto Princesa to El Nido! To optimize your schedule in Palawan, I recommend visiting the underground river during the transfer as opposed to during a day trip!
