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Thursday, July 12, 2007
El Nido, Palawan

El Nido is located in the northernmost tip of mainland Palawan about 430 km southwest of Manila. The Bacuit Bay area of El Nido, where the El Nido Resorts are located, has been established by the Philippine government as a Marine Reserve. El Nido's majestic limestone cliffs are estimated to be 250 million years old. They stand guard over clear waters, with 200 species of tropical fishes, more than 100 species of corals, and three species of endangered sea turtles. El Nido's forests are host to more than 100 species of birds, a large number of which are endemic to Palawan.

The municipality covers the northernmost tip of mainland Palawan. It is composed of 45 islands and islets, each has its own unique geological formations. Like the rest of Palawan, it is part of the Eurasian Plate, a plate that is entirely separate from the Philippine Plate to which the rest of the Philippines belongs. The limestone cliffs here are similar to those that can be found in Ha Long Bay in Vietnam and Guillin in China, as well as Krabi in Thailand, all of which are part of the Eurasian Plate.

El Nido is a showcase of Palawan's geology and diverse wildlife It is one of the most important sites for biological diversity in the country and has been declared by the Philippine government as a protected area. Palawan is the last frontier nature frontier in the Philippines because of the virgin forests and wildlife.

Leisure Activities.

El Nido Resorts offer activities as diverse as the environment. Sunbathe in secret coves, kayak in hidden lagoons, explore isolated islands, hike through a tropical forest, have a picnic on a private beach, go on a mangrove river tour, snorkel or scuba dive with colorful tropical fishes among fringing and submerged coral reefs.

El Nido Resorts

Miniloc Island

It is where the first resort in El Nido, which first started as a diving station for Japanese and European tourists, can be found. It is a great place for snorkeling, scuba diving and kayaking. Its Big and Small Lagoons showcase a kaleidoscope of marine life in its orchid-lined limestone walls.

Miniloc Island Resort is situated in a cove with a backdrop of sheer limestone cliffs. The resort resembles a quaint fisherman's village, with Water Cottages built on stilts, Garden Cottages surrounded by tropical plants, and Cliff Cottages nestled in the hillside. Right off the pier,one can snorkel with tropical reef fishes. A short kayak ride away are the spectacular Big and Small Lagoons.

Lagen Island

The most luxurious exclusive resort in the area is situated in its cove, which is fringed by a lush forest and limestone walls. Its Leta-Leta Cave was an important burial site of the Late Neolithic Age, where a collection of stone and shell artifacts, and sophisticated pottery and nephrite adzes and axes were recovered. Other materials include stone ornaments and shell beads. It was excavated by Dr. Robert Fox in 1965.

Lagen Island Resort is set in a lush forest, with a magnificent view of the El Nido sunset. Also set in a cove, Lagen Island has Water Cottages built on stilts, Beachfront Cottages with a view of the entire cove, Forest Rooms and Forest Suites built on the fringes of a tropical forest. A short hike in the Lagen forest will take you through a canopy of giant trees and lead you to a private cove.

Pangalusian Island

It has one of the widest stretch of powdery white beaches in El Nido, which is very ideal for sun bathing, sunset viewing, and other beach activities.

Cudognun Point

It is an important anthropological site, where jewelry and pottery dating back to the Sung Dynasty (960-1279 BC) were yielded. The anthropologists believe that the cave dwellers were from Borneo, and travelled across the ancient land bridge that connected Palawan from Borneo.

Matinloc Island

Matinloc Island, the longest slim island in El Nido, has a secret beach that is inaccessible by boat and surrounded by steep rock walls. To reach it, divers must swim underwater through a narrow crevice in a rock wall. According to local legend, this beach inspired Alex Garland's novel The Beach.

Famous Diving Sites

El Nido is one of the wold class diving destination in the Philippines. El Nido dive sites are also the home of the exotic and colorful tropical marine life. With it's unexploited underwater scenery, divers will have a good look od the colorful tropical fishes and corals.

Dilumacad Island

This island is located 6 km west of El Nido. Dilumacad Island is known for a cave dive that can be found on the north side. The cave has an entrance wide enough for two divers to enter together and a 15-20m tunnel leads to a cavern at the centre. The bottom is quite sandy where you can see small exotic fish and crabs. The way out is norrow and one diver at a time. Outside, you can see larger fish.

El Nido Diving SpotsMatinloc Island

This island is located in the west of El Nido. This island has beautiful and interesting dive sites like the Banayan Point, Bikanayos Rock and Inbogal Point.

Banayan Point

Located on the southern tip of the Matinloc island. This marvelous dive site is great to see pelagics. The current can be strong and you can see tuna, jacks, mackerel and coral encrusted rocks.

Bikanayos Rock

This dive site is located on the western side of the Matinloc Island. This dive is also known as Picanayas. You can see whitetip sharks. Pelagics can often be seen here as well.

Inbogal Point

This site is located in the southwest of Binkanayos Rock. Beautiful gorgonians and green corals can be seen in this site. This dive site, you can see Jacks, tuna and mackerel are common and it is home to a unique species of angelfish.

Miniloc Island

This island is a cove surrounded by sheer limestone cliffs with a fine white sand beach lined with coconut trees, and clear waters teeming with marine life. The island is situated in the west of El Nido. There are a number of attractive dive sites like Tagbao Island, Biet Point and Twin Rocks.

Tagbao Island

This tiny island Located at the northwest point of Miniloc Island. This island is locally known as Tres Marias in reference to the three reefs that lie between the two islands. Snorkeling is best in here because it is shallow and you see a lot of reef fish, colourful corals and painted crayfish.

Biet Point

This dive site is located at the southern tip of the Miniloc island. In this beautiful dive site, you can see plenty of lettuce corals and sponges. Jacks, barracuda, squid, cuttlefish and angelfish can be encountered in here.

Twin Rocks

Located at the north side of the Miniloc Island. It is charactarized by a profusion of table corals, sea whips and sponges. You will see small stingray and angelfish here.

Transportation
By Air

The fastest and most direct way to El Nido is from Manila. The flight takes one hour and fifteen minutes, and lands directly at Lio airport, which is located about 4 kilometers from Poblacion (town proper). There are only two airlines that fly to El Nido, namely Southeast Asian Airlines (SEA Air) and the El Nido Resorts-owned Islands Transvoyager Incorporated (ITI).

Roads

The main roads of El Nido are organized around a set of radial and circumferential roads that radiate and circle in and around the town proper and its rural barangays. Its interconnected roads are connected to the major highway that leads Puerto Princesa City, Palawan's capital.

Seaports and piers

The main port in El Nido is located in Buena Suerte (Zone II), although a number of small and accessible wharfs are being used in other rural barangays. A number of ferry and other sea vessels owned by Atienza Shipping Lines and San Nicholas Shipping Lines have regular trips from Manila to El Nido town proper.

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posted by Philer @ 2:07 PM   1 comments
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Boracay Island

Boracay Island is located off the northwest corner of the island of Panay, and belongs to the Western Visayas island-group, or Region 6, of the Philippines. The island is approximately seven kilometers long, dog-bone shaped with the narrowest spot being less than one kilometer wide, and has a total land area of 10.32 square kilometers. It is one of the country's most popular touristdestinations. The island comprises the barangays of Manoc-Manoc, Balabag, and Yapak (3 of the 17 barangays which make up the municipality of Malay), and is under the administrative control of the Philippine Tourism Authority in coordination with the Provincial Government of Aklan.



South-facing Cagban Beach is located across a small strait from the jetty port at Caticlan on Panay island, and the Cagban jetty port serves as Boracay's main entry and exit point during most of the year. When wind and sea conditions dictate, east-facing Tambisaan Beach serves as an alternative entry and exit point.


Boracay's two primary tourism beaches, White Beach and Bulabog Beach, are located on opposite sides of the island's narrow central area. White Beach faces westwards and Bulabog Beach faces eastwards. The island also has several other beaches.

White Beach


Bulabog Beach




White Beach is the main tourism beach. It is a bit over four kilometers long and is lined with resorts, hotels, lodging houses, restaurants, and other tourism-related businesses. In the central portion, for about two kilometers, there is a footpath known as the Beachfront Path separating the beach itself from the establishments located along it. North and south of the Beachfront Path, beachfront establishments do literally front along the beach itself. Several roads and paths connect the Beachfront Path with Boracay's Main Road, a vehicular road which runs the length of the island. At the extreme northern end of White Beach, a footpath runs around the headland there and connects White Beach with Diniwid Beach.

Across the island from White Beach is Bulabog Beach, a secondary tourism beach and Boracay's main windsurfing and kiteboarding area.

Events

Boracay is one competitive venue for the Asian Windsurfing Tour, with the week-long Boracay International Funboard Cup competition usually being held on Bulabog Beach each January..



The well-known Ati-Atihan Festival takes place each January in Kalibo on nearby Panay island. A much smaller Ati-Atihan festival is celebrated on Boracay, usually in the second or third week of January.

Dragon boat races are held annually on Boracay under the auspices of the Philippine Dragon Boat Federation, with teams coming from around the Philippines and from other asian nations to compete. The races usually take place sometime in April or May.

Since 2003, the Philippine Ultimate Association has been organizing the Boracay Open Asian Beach Ultimate Tournament which is usually held during the summer.

The Olympic Council of Asia has announced that Boracay will host the 2014 Asian Beach Games.

Transportation

Air travel

Either from Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila or from Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Cebu, take flights to Boracay either via Kalibo (45 minutes away) or via Caticlan (30-40 minutes away). From Kalibo airport, air-conditioned vans and buses take passengers to the Caticlan Jetty Port, where boats provide transport to the island. Motorized tricyles will take passengers from Caticlan airport to the jetty port, 3 minutes away. From Caticlan jetty port, boat ride takes 15-20 minutes to get to Boracay.

By boat

Several ferries sail between Manila and Caticlan. The journey takes between 12 and 16 hours.

Ferries from Manila to Caticlan:

* MBRS Lines
* Negros Navigation
* SuperFerry

By Road

Buses and cars run from Manila to the southern provinces by means of the Strong Republic Nautical Highway. A nautical system conceptualized under the term of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Buses leave from the Philtranco terminal in Cubao and Pasay City throughout the day. The journey by bus takes approximately 12 hours. Caticlan is the fourth seaport encountered along the SRNH while traveling south from Manila.




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posted by Philer @ 2:59 PM   3 comments
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