El Nido to Coron Expedition
(98.7% rated us ‘Excellent’)
About the El Nido to Coron Expedition (4D/3N)
The El Nido to Coron expedition is a four-day, three-night boat trip that crosses northern Palawan, setting out from El Nido and finishing in Coron. You spend the days island-hopping at an unhurried pace, snorkelling and kayaking between the remote beaches where you sleep on a different island each night, and the crew cooks every meal freshly. Run by Big Dream Boatman, it’s made for people who want to travel through Palawan’s islands, not simply skip across them.
| Route | El Nido → Coron |
| Duration | 4 days / 3 nights |
| Departs | Meet 86'd Gourmet Cafe & Bar, El Nido, 9:00 AM; board San Fernando Roro Port, sail ~11:00 AM |
| Arrives | Coron Port (PPA) ~3:00–4:00 PM, day 4 |
| Group size | Around 6–24 guests depending on boat capacity and seasonality |
| Includes | 3 meals a day, beach cottage/glamping, snorkel/kayak/SUP gear, island fees, drinks |
| Reserve | 40% deposit |
| Season | October–July |
What is the El Nido to Coron expedition like?
Imagine a group of travellers and an easy-going, passionate crew casting off together to find islands the El Nido and Coron day tours never reach. How you fill each day is up to you: snorkel, kayak, paddleboard or a round of beach volleyball for the restless, or a book and a slow walk for everyone else. As the sun drops, the boat noses into a sheltered island, and dinner stretches into stories around the camp before a night under the stars.
What does each day of the tour look like?
Every departure finds its own route, because the weather, the sea and the group decide the day’s stops, yet the rhythm across the four days holds steady. Here is an example itinerary:
Day 1. Out of El Nido. You meet the crew at 86’d Gourmet Cafe & Bar in El Nido at 9:00 AM, transfer to San Fernando Roro Port and board for an 11:00 start, with a warm-up snorkel, a beach stop and lunch afloat before the first island camp at dusk.
Day 2. Into the quiet islands. The day drifts between remote stops, reefs to snorkel, kayaks and paddleboards to take out, sandbars and beach volleyball, before another secluded camp for the night.
Day 3. Villages and open sea. As the course pushes on toward Coron, you drop in on small fishing communities, log more reef time and share the day’s fresh catch, then close the last night with a campfire and some karaoke.
Day 4. Into Coron. A stop or two in the morning leads the boat into Coron Port around mid-afternoon (3:00–4:00 PM), where the trip ends and Coron town is right on the doorstep.
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“Fresh native cuisine and rustic and comfortable cabins, cottages and glamping are Big Dream Boatman’s signature experiences. Travel with them and you’ll get to know the region’s hidden gems” Lonely Planet
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Trip Advisor’s Best Philippines Expedition
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“Big Dream Boatman wants to showcase the hidden gems of Palawan to travelers... By day, travelers can go spearfishing, snorkeling, learn about indigenous traditions, explore fishing villages and get to know the crew.” CNN
Why Travel With Big Dream Boatman?
If the cheapest possible crossing from El Nido to Coron is what you’re after, this probably isn’t it. What we do offer is the best value experience on the route, and that ambition, to be the best expedition provider in Palawan, is a large part of why we have held the number one spot on TripAdvisor since 2019. Here is what sits behind it:
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Four days, not three. That extra day and night over most trips on this route changes the whole feel of it: nothing gets rushed, and there is room to actually absorb where you are.
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Your wallet stays in the dry bag. Everything is covered from the moment you board, with tips for the crew at the end the only exception, so there is nothing to think about but the trip itself. All inclusive here also means enough to go round, and nobody ends up competing for the last plate or the last drink.
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Boats sized for the number on board. We run only the highest quality boats available in Palawan: nets along the side to stretch out on through the day, beanbags, and comfortable seating with room for everybody. You won’t find thirty people squeezed onto a fifteen-person boat.
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Kit that works, at no extra charge. High quality snorkels, masks and paddleboards come with the trip. There is nothing to hire once you are aboard and nothing held together with tape.
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The widest variety of camps. We offer more sleeping arrangements and styles than anyone else running this route, and while the camps themselves stay simple, that means six inch deluxe mattresses rather than one inch foam sheets, a hut you are not sharing with strangers, security on site, and a proper set of amenities.
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Eight guests per guide. Service sits at the centre of what we do: a barman, a chef and an assistant chef on board, and enough guides both to look after your safety and to actually get to know you. A mechanic travels with the boat to cut the odds of trouble, an emergency response team covers the worst case, and every member of staff is trained to the highest level. Crewing this generously also means nobody is running on empty, so the passion the company is built on reaches you rather than getting used up.
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The Boat
Most of the trip happens here. Mornings belong to the open upper deck as El Nido’s cliffs drop away behind you; by the afternoon people have migrated to the side nets slung out over the water, or to the beanbags in the shade.
There is a toilet on board and cushioned seating with room to actually stretch out, and the masks, snorkels, fins, kayaks and paddleboards live within arm’s reach, so you are in the water about a minute after the engine cuts.
With somewhere between 6 and 24 people aboard depending on the boat and the season, it stays sociable without ever tipping into a crowd, by the second morning you know everyone’s name.
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Accommodation
Every night lands on a different island. The boat noses in as the light goes, you wade or paddle the last few metres ashore, and dinner appears on the sand not long after.
You sleep in a bamboo cottage or a glamping tent pitched straight onto the beach, with a mosquito net, a fan and a mattress you will actually sleep on. Freshwater showers and manual-flush toilets are on site.
The generator runs until around 3:00 AM, so evenings are when phones and power banks get charged. After that it is a headlamp, the sound of the water a few metres away, and a sky with nothing competing with it, rustic, and for most guests that is precisely the appeal.
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The Team
Ask anyone who has done this trip what stayed with them and it is rarely the beaches. It is the chef who caters to your dietary needs, the guide who talks you through your first proper drop-off, the captain reading water nobody else can see, and the boatman and mechanic keeping all of it moving.
They are the most passionate, kind-hearted and hard-working people we know, and they are the reason four days at sea hold together as well as they do.
It is also why most guests step off in Coron having swapped numbers with half the crew. You come aboard as a booking and you leave as part of the family.
Is the El Nido to Coron Expedition worth it?
For the traveller who loves adventure it’s designed for, yes, and its record backs that up. Rated #1 in Coron, Big Dream Boatman has won TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice every year since 2019, drawn from over 1,900 verified reviews. What lifts it above a day tour is simply time: four days at sea means reaching camps, reefs and beaches the quick boats miss, and that tends to be what guests write home about. Their reviews sit on our TripAdvisor page if you’d like to judge for yourself.
Price & Details
4 Days, 3 Nights
All Meals Included
Drinks including limited local beers and rum
Authentic island accomodationSelect your preferred date
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Dates not quite fit?
- Deposit Requirement: A 40% deposit is required to secure your booking.
- Remaining Balance: The balance payment link will be sent via email by our team. Please ensure the remaining payment is settled at least 7 days before your trip.
- Taxes & Discounts: All prices are tax-inclusive. Any applicable discounts will be reflected during checkout.
- Cancellation Policy: Cancellations made 30 days or more before the expedition date are eligible for a refund of the deposit, less $50 cancellation fee per person. For cancellations within 30 days of the expedition date, the deposit becomes non-refundable.
- Transfer Policy: Guests may transfer their booking to a different departure date, subject to availability. Transfers requested more than 30 days before the scheduled trip can be made free of charge. Transfers requested within 30 days of the scheduled trip will incur a $50 transfer fee per booking. All transfer requests are subject to availability and are not guaranteed until confirmed by our Reservations Team.
El Nido to Coron
Frequently Asked Questions
What is included in the price?
Almost everything is covered from the moment you board, so the only money you need on the trip is a little cash for the environmental fee and whatever you choose to tip the crew at the end. That covers three freshly cooked meals a day, local beer, rum and cocktails, three nights in island beach camps, every mask, snorkel, fin, kayak and paddleboard on the boat, and the island entrance fees along the way. There is always more than enough to go round, so nobody is rationing the last plate.
How is this different from the El Nido to Coron ferry?
A ferry is transport, this is the trip itself. Fast ferries cross between the two towns in a few hours, and if you only need to be in Coron by tonight, take one. The expedition spends four days on the same stretch of water instead, stopping to snorkel, swim and sleep on islands the ferry passes at speed, so getting to Coron is the by-product rather than the point.
Where does the expedition actually sail?
Through the scatter of islands and open water that sits between El Nido and Coron: mostly uninhabited islands, coral reefs, sandbars, empty beaches and the occasional fishing village. We do not publish a fixed list of stops, because the right anchorage on any given day depends on the wind, the swell and how the group is feeling. The crew picks from a route they have run hundreds of times, which is why no two departures are quite the same.
Is this a boat trip or a guided tour?
Both, and the distinction matters less than what you actually get. It is a guided island-hopping tour that happens to be delivered by boat, with a crew running it, and unlike most multi-day boat trips you sleep in native cottages on the beach rather than on deck. What it is not is a scheduled ferry service.
How do I book, and what deposit do I pay?
Booking is online only, through the dates and prices above, and a 40 percent deposit secures your place. The balance is due before departure and we send a payment link by email. Availability updates in real time on this page, and peak dates go months ahead, so the earlier you pick your date the more choice you have.
Are there toilets and showers?
Yes, on the boat and at every camp. The boat has a toilet on board, and each island camp has freshwater showers and manual flush toilets. They are simple rather than luxurious, but they are clean and they are there every night.
What should I bring?
A dry bag of your own is the one thing you should not skip, and pack valuables inside it carefully, because no dry bag is completely waterproof. Beyond that: reef-safe sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses, swimwear, water shoes, toiletries, insect repellent, and any personal or motion sickness medication you might want. There is a first aid box on board, but bring your own supply. We provide one towel per guest. Large bags travel under the boat and only come out in an emergency, so live out of a small day bag for the four days.
Can you cater to dietary requirements?
Yes, including vegan, vegetarian and pescetarian. After you book we send a short form so the chef knows what you need before the trip starts. One honest caveat: ingredients are bought fresh from local markets each morning, so the choice is narrower than a restaurant kitchen would offer. You are welcome to bring your own snacks.
When is the best time to sail from El Nido to Coron?
Mid November to April is the driest and calmest window, and it is also the busiest. Trips run from around October to July in total. October, and May through July, are quieter shoulder periods with a higher chance of rain but noticeably fewer people at the good spots. August and September are wet season and we do not run. Palawan weather does not read the calendar, so treat all of this as a guide rather than a promise.
Should I go El Nido to Coron, or the other way round?
It comes down to where you want to be standing when the boat docks, because the four days in between are the same either way. Finishing in Coron drops you next to the lakes, the wreck diving and the Busuanga flights out, which suits people heading onward or home. If you would rather finish among the lagoons of Bacuit Bay, the same expedition runs in reverse as our Coron to El Nido expedition.
Who is this trip for?
Active travellers who are comfortable with beach camps, simple facilities and full days on the water. Guests need to be between 12 and 60 and in good health. Beyond that it suits almost anyone: solo travellers, couples, groups of friends and families with older children all fit the small group format, and most people arrive not knowing anybody.
