Port Barton to El Nido Expedition | Ultimate Adventure Tour

The route

A coastal passage nobody else runs

Most Palawan boats circle the islands around El Nido or Coron. This one goes up the coast instead: out of Port Barton Bay, past the outer islands of San Vicente, then north along a shoreline most travellers only ever see as a blur from the van window. There are no tourists out here. The other boats belong to fishermen.

No two departures are quite the same. Our team leader reads the sea each morning and picks the best of what the day offers: a reef where sea turtles feed, a sandbar that stands above the water for a few hours and then slips back under, a cove the wind has left perfectly still.

Make no mistake, this is a real adventure. You'll sleep in a camp on a deserted beach, live at boat speed for three days, and spend long stretches gloriously out of reach of any phone signal. That's not the price of the trip. That's the gift. It's not a trip for everyone, and that's fine: the ones who choose it never forget it.

Port Barton

El Nido

Outrigger boat moored on a wild beach along the Palawan coast

Expedition boats silhouetted at sunset in Palawan

Where we roam

Four stretches of coast,
each wilder than the last

The sea draws each departure fresh: the tide picks the sandbars, the wind picks the anchorages, and no two trips follow exactly the same line. What never changes is the journey itself, four stretches of coast strung together over three days, each with its own character. Here's where you're going.

Aerial view of a palm-lined beach and outrigger boats in Port Barton Bay

Where it starts

Port Barton Bay and the San Vicente islands

The first hours are home water: the reefs and sandbars scattered off Port Barton, then past them into the quieter outer islands of San Vicente that the day tours never reach. This is where the snorkeling starts, and where you'll likely meet your first sea turtle. The sandbars out here appear and vanish with the tide, so no two departures see quite the same ones.

Reefs & turtle waters Vanishing sandbars

Palm trees lining the empty coast near Long Beach, San Vicente

The long coast

Long Beach and the empty shoreline

San Vicente's Long Beach runs about 14 kilometres, the longest beach in the Philippines, and on most days you could count the people on it from the boat. We follow this coast north past fishing villages and river mouths. It's the stretch where guests tend to go quiet and just watch the shore slide by.

14 km of beach Fishing villages

Dolphins surfacing in the protected waters of Malampaya Sound

The wild stretch

Malampaya Sound and the Taytay coast

The waters around the mouth of Malampaya Sound are a protected sanctuary, home to Irrawaddy dolphins and to dugongs grazing the seagrass below. Sea eagles patrol the sky, the coastline carries no resorts and no phone signal, and out here the world narrows down to your boat, the forest, and the water. Keep your eyes open.

Dolphin & dugong waters Protected seascape

Karst island rising from Bacuit Bay near El Nido

The reveal

The southern gate of Bacuit Bay

On the last day the limestone starts. The cliffs of Bacuit Bay appear over the treeline long before town does, and you enter El Nido from the south, by sea, the way almost nobody arrives anymore. The final hours wind through the bay itself, stopping at a few chosen spots in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Limestone karst Arrive El Nido by sea

The map

The stretch of coast
we sail

Port Barton sits at the bottom of this map, El Nido at the top, and everything in between is where the expedition lives. These are the landmarks you'll sail past.

Flagship

Port Barton El Nido

Three days sailing south to north, finishing among the karst cliffs of Bacuit Bay.

3 days / 2 nights Fixed dates Max 18 guests

from ₱18,900 / person

Book online with a 30% deposit

See Dates & Book

El Nido Port Barton

The same coast sailed north to south, ending in the calm of Port Barton Bay.

3 days / 2 nights Fixed dates Max 18 guests

from ₱18,900 / person

Book online with a 30% deposit

See Dates & Book

Private

Private expedition

Your own boat, crew, and route, anywhere between Port Barton, El Nido, Coron, and Araceli.

3 to 8 days Year-round Your dates

On request

We design the trip together and send you a quote

Design Your Trip

Practical details

What's waiting on board,
and what to bring

By the time you step aboard, the expedition is already loaded: delicious meals to come, cold drinks, camping kit, snorkeling gear, and a crew that knows these waters. Your big backpack rides safe and dry in the hold. All you need at hand is a small bag, and here's what to put in it.

What's included

Everything you need for three days of island life.

Traditional outrigger boat with shade cover and cushioned seating
Captain, crew, and local guide
Delicious, authentic Filipino meals cooked fresh by the crew
Drinking water, coffee, and free rum and coke throughout the trip
Snorkeling gear: mask, snorkel, and fins
Camping equipment: tents, mats, and basic bedding
Secure, dry storage for your big backpack in the boat's hold
Life jackets (worn during all boat transfers)

What to bring

A small day bag is all you need within reach. Here's what goes in it.

Reef-safe sunscreen (SPF 50+, no oxybenzone)
Swimwear and a rash guard or light long-sleeve shirt
Change of dry clothes for evenings at camp
A dry bag or waterproof pouch for your phone and camera
Personal medication and insect repellent
Some cash in small bills (there are no ATMs between Port Barton and El Nido)
Headlamp or small flashlight for camp nights
Sandals or water shoes (not flip-flops for the rocky bits)

Book your spot

Ready for three days
in the wild?

Departures run on fixed dates from October to May, when the west coast is at its calmest. Outside the season we sail on request only, for private groups, when the forecast allows it.

The expedition runs both ways, and each direction is its own trip: sail out of Port Barton toward the karst cliffs of El Nido, or out of El Nido toward the quiet of Port Barton. Both are just below, and for those who want the sea to themselves, there's a private version too.

DOT accredited

Full refund on weather cancellations

Operating since 2015

from ₱18,900 / person

Meals, drinks, camping equipment, and crew included. No hidden fees.

Port Barton El Nido 3 days / 2 nights · arrive among the karst cliffs

El Nido Port Barton 3 days / 2 nights · finish in the calm of the bay

Private expedition Your own boat and crew, custom routes up to 8 days

Ask us anything

Google 4.8 · TripAdvisor 4.9 · sailing Palawan since 2015

Common questions

Before you book

The questions we get most. If yours isn't here, just ask us.

We keep the stops loose on purpose. The crew reads the tide, the wind, and the coast guard's morning advisory, then picks the best of what the day offers in each stretch of coast. Every departure moves through the four areas described above; the rest is the sea's daily surprise, and it's the good kind.

Safety starts with the boats: our outriggers are custom-built for exactly this kind of expedition. Every departure carries life jackets for everyone on board and a full first-aid kit, and the crew is experienced and trained in first aid. The coast guard reviews the conditions and clears every departure, and when they close the water, nobody sails. We've been running boats in Palawan since 2015, and we'd rather wait out the weather than push through it.

Honestly, it depends on the person and the day. During amihan season (November to May), the west coast is generally calm and most people do fine. June to October is the rough half of the year, which is why we barely sail then. If you know you get seasick easily, bring motion-sickness tablets (Bonamine is sold in any pharmacy in Puerto Princesa) and take one before boarding. We also stay fairly close to shore for most of the route, which helps.

Yes, and it's something special. A private expedition costs more, but the boat and crew are yours alone and you set the pace. You can also go far beyond the standard route: past El Nido all the way to Coron, on tailor-made journeys of up to 8 days that nobody else offers. Message us and we'll design it together.

You sleep in tents on a beach, and the camps have showers and toilets. We provide the tents, sleeping mats, and light blankets; the crew sets everything up and cooks. Which beach depends on the week and the weather. There's no electricity out there, so bring a power bank. It's simple, honest adventure camping, far from everything, and falling asleep to the waves with nobody else around is exactly what people remember most.

The coast guard reviews the conditions and clears every departure, and the crew watches the sky and the sea all day. Weather can still change quickly out here, and when it does, one rule decides everything: our guests' safety comes first, in every situation. That can mean waiting at camp for the sea to settle, adjusting the route, or in rare cases ending the trip early and arranging a van for the remaining distance. If weather cuts the trip short, we refund the unused portion.

If the coast guard closes the water or the forecast simply isn't safe, we contact you as early as possible and you choose what suits you best: move to another date, use your payment as credit for any of our other tours, or take a full refund.

Yes, and there is more than one way to do it. With a private expedition, your own boat and crew can carry on north from El Nido, through islands almost nobody visits, all the way to Coron. You can also pair this trip with our El Nido to Coron cruise and sail the two back to back, in either order, with a discount on the second cruise. Either way the route passes through El Nido. These journeys run on request; message us and we'll talk dates and boats.

Ultimate Adventure Tour from Port Barton to El Nido

A coastal passage nobody else runs

Four stretches of coast,
each wilder than the last