Hi all!
I am going to the phillipines for 5 weeks and am leaving on
june 1st. Will the weather be absolutely horrible for me?
I want to spend most of my time in Palawan and the islands
just north of there (Coron and surrounding islands) to do a
diving course. Will the weather ruin my trip? How rainy
is the rainy season exactly?
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A couple of months ago there was a name just like yours, with a lot of questions about the Philipines. If it was you, you do make the right choice. Palawan is by far the best option. Don't mind the weather to much. I was there the same period a year ago. Rainy season. All it means that it will rain problebly ones a day, late in the afternoon. So wake up early, do your things and take a beer when the rain starts for about an hour. It's very impressive when you see al this water falling down in huge amounts. One problem, the roads at Palawan will be impossible to drive. So you need to take a boat all the time, but then again it's an island, so big deal. Stay at Gloria's in El Nido, great lady, very nice and inexpensive cabins. Good fun, Jean-Pierre
I was in Palawan two summers ago about this time. No
problem with the rain for the most part, but it does make
travel overland a little tricky. The trip from El Nido down
to Puerto Princessa took almost eighteen hours on the
valiant jeepney "Princess Sybelle." I was glad to finally
be free of the damned contraption, but looking back on the
experience I realize it was one of the most exciting travel
adventures I've ever had. At about four occasions the road
was entirely washed out, so we stopped while the crew of six
Filipinos built a makeshift bridge to cross a runoff gully.
These guys are the last of the real he-men. The population
of the jeepney went from a crowded two dozen when we left El
Nido to a mindboggeling four score, plus chickens, rice,
fish and God-knows what else when we arrived in Puerto. If
you elect to take this route, bring a poncho, hat and plenty
of water and ride on the roof.
If you fly straight into El Nido, you'll miss the
underground river. I recommend you start in Puerto, jeepney
up to the underground river and then hire a boat up to El
Nido (500 pesos per person).
I didn't take chloroquine or fansadar and didn't have any
problem, but there are lots of mosquitoes in the rainy
season.
Charter a fishing boat for a day of snorkeling around El
Nido bay. There's a beautiful secluded resort on one of the
islands that's run by a European woman. Its way more
expensive than staying in El Nido (I think it gets mostly
honeymoon business), but you can stop in for a great lunch
during a day's snorkeling for about 300 pesos. Pricey, but
really worth it.
Jean-Pierre is right about Gloria, she is a lovely woman.
Her guest house also has a reasonable laundry service,
although it will take about two days for your clothes to
dry.
In Puerto Princessa, Kalui Restaurant is one of the very
best places I've found in Asia. Be sure to get dessert.
Except for typhoons, the rain goes on for 30 mins. to an
hour during the June-July months--and mostly because of
thunderstorms. So just check the local weather for storms
and typhoons. Because most of these typhoons form over the
Pacific, you'll get 2-3 days warning where a storm is
headed. That's enough for you to change your itinerary, get
out, or bunker in if necessary. And yes, rain does come
mostly in the afternoon. One general (although not
foolproof) rule: If it really gets humid so that even the
locals start noticing and complaining, you'll get a good
downpour within the next 12 hours or so.
But rain is less in the southern parts (Cebu, North
Mindanao). Rain is heavier up north (Sagada, Ilocos) et.
i'm going to Palawan too and i'm a little worried about the
weather. just got lucky i saw your post and all those
things about the weather.
Although the weather was good in El Nido, it rained the whole day in Port Barton. Later we found out this was because there was a Class 1 typhoon in Mindanao. It took us 19 hrs to get from PP to El Nido by jeepney which included sleeping in the jeepney in Tay Tay, something they don't tell you (they say it takes 10 hrs!!) but, when you mention it after the fact, they tell you it always happens! We had to evacuate the jeepney in order to be pulled out of the mud by a road grader (which included me falling in the mud while wearing what were white trousers!) Certainly an adventure. The drivers are very good and not reckless.
I also highly recommend taking the boat from the underground river (800 pesos) and staying at Gloria's in El Nido.
Port Barton is very beautiful too and the El Dorado Chicago Sunset Inn (over the bridge) had spotless rooms for 350 p.
Have fun.
how about Calauit Island? read something about it but not
heard about it from anyone. is it worth a visit?