CORON in Palawan has always been a dream destination of mine, and it was without hesitation that I joined a media familiarization tour to this much-hyped destination. Our media team flew there with the utmost convenience, comfort and style on board SkyJet Airlines’ 80-seater, four-engine British Aerospace 146-100 jet, which is similar to the VIP jet used by Queen Elizabeth, Prince Charles, Prince William and the rest of the British royal family.
Our home for our three-day stay was to be the Asia Grand View Hotel. Its 20 distinct, comfortable, clean and elegant rooms, inspired by the contemporary Asian arts and Palawan crafts, have airconditioning, fan, comfortable firm beds, quality linen, nice flat-screen cable TV, DVD player, intercom, mini-bar, in-room safe, walk-in closet and balcony. The private bathrooms are roomy, with centralized water heater and wooden sliding door. The family-friendly Bayview Bar & Restaurant, probably the coolest place in Coron town, has a view deck with an excellent, picturesque view of the town and Coron Bay. Here, you’ll know where the hotel got its name. It is especially enchanting during cocktail hours when guests can gather to watch the breathtaking sunset.
Our short stay in the town included some hotel-sponsored activities to Coron’s notable sights. In the late afternoon we were driven to the town’s port, where we took a short 30-minute boat ride to Lake Kayangan, one of seven enchanting lakes in the center of Coron Island. Upon arrival at the boat landing area, we made a 10 to 15 minute, steep and somewhat challenging climb up an uneven, 150-step paved stairway up a hill to a small cave. Here, we had a breathtaking view of the iconic, awe-inspiring and truly beautiful cove entrance, probably the most photographed site in Coron.
Justifiably, the view from the top is something to look forward to and we took our time taking photographs. From here, it is another 174 steps down to the lake. Upon arrival at the lake, we donned our mask and snorkel and observed schools of small (2 to 3 inches), odd-looking needle-nose fish and shrimp swimming about the awesome rock formations, which was like a moonscape.
Come dusk, we proceeded to Maquinit Hot Springs for a dip in its unique hot sulfuric, mineral-rich and waist-deep saltwater pools, believed to be one of the rarest hot springs in the country and one of only a few in Asia and in the world. Its waters are reputed to cure skin ailments. Water temperature here can rise to a scorchingly hot 32ºC to 40ºC, especially between 10 am and 3 pm. It is cooler during sunset, the time we arrived. It was almost unbearable at my first dip at the volcanically heated water of the two main pools, but I soon got used to it. On our second day, we had lunch at the clean, quiet and very picturesque Pass Island, which probably has the best beach you can find in all of Coron, with powdery white sand, warm crystal-clear blue waters, palm trees, mangroves on the other side of the island, and a protected coral reef—with different sea life and a colony of giant clams—which we enjoyed snorkeling.
We continued our snorkeling at the Bintuan Coral Gardens and in front of Lusong Island, where the stern of the popular Lusong Gunboat wreck breaks the surface. This shallow wreck dive, ideal for beginners, is nicely covered with hard coral and offers a wide variety of fish life. The last leg of our tour was a visit to Sangat Island Dive Resort, which occupies a major portion of the southwestern cusp of postcard-perfect Sangat Island. The island has a 300-meter (m) long white-sand beach surrounded by towering limestone cliffs and majestic coconut palms.
The island’s tropical waters, teeming with colorful aquatic life, is also home to 11 historically important World War II ship wrecks, including the aforementioned Lusong Gunboat wreck. The resort has an internationally renowned scuba diving center.
On our third and last day in Coron, some of us went up flights of some 724 concrete steps to reach the top of the 210-m. (689-feet) high Mount Tapyas, the second highest in Coron, which has a giant steel cross (lighted at night) at its peak. At its spacious view deck, we watched the sun rise and had a breathtaking panoramic 360-degree view of the whole of Coron town, some of the offshore islands and the surrounding mountains, especially the mountain that they call the “Sleeping Giant.”