When queuing at the airport check-in counters in Manila to take my flight home to Puerto Princesa City in Palawan, one of the things that I instinctively do is to look for friends who might be on the same flight I'm taking (well..this is especially so when I've got lots of bags sitting on my pushcart..LOL) This would seem mundane to some but the prospect of seeing a familiar face in the line never fails to excite me. The opportunity to re-connect with old friends even for just a brief moment is always a nice, happy occasion. And as I scan the vicinity for friends another group of passengers almost always get my attention--the vacationers especially those of the younger set.
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| Sta. Lourdes Pier, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
You can't miss them; they're all geared up for vacation. Their attire gives them away--flip-flops, board shorts, sunglasses, the fanciest dSLR's and the latest iteration of the Ipod. I can almost hear their excitement to get on board the plane, land at the Puerto Princesa International Airport and hit the beach. Pronto..
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| Pandan Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
Fortunately, as if by a happy coincidence, many of the beaches that Puerto Princesa City has to offer are located very near the city. There are small islands and sandbars scattered around Honda Bay, and the jump-off point to the bay is the Sta. Lourdes Pier, located just 20 to 30 minutes drive from the city center. This makes it so easy for visitors to visit an island, swim or snorkel, hop on to the next one, swim some more, move on to the next island until one is completely satisfied, limbs drooping with exhaustion. Thus, island hopping at Honda Bay has become an attraction in Palawan that never fails to delight visitors.
There are plenty of islands in Honda Bay but the more prominent ones are Pandan Island; then there's Starfish Island, named so because there are plenty of starfish on it. Then there's Bat Island, again, named after its nocturnal inhabitants. Snake Island don't have snakes, I hope, but it was named so because it resembles a snake slithering on the water when viewed from the air. The luxury resort Dos Palmas is also located at Honda Bay and will be the subject of a future post.
When we were planning our island hopping trip to Honda Bay we were tipped off by the Moana Hotel staff to bring our own food along. So, early in the morning the next day we rented our snorkels at the hotel, went to the market and hauled some fresh fish and veggies, fruits, bread and our drinks and headed to Sta. Lourdes. The boat was rented for about P700 and can carry a maximum if six persons. First stop was the Pambato Reef, a coral reef so popular around Honda Bay. The corals were so stunning that it hardly mattered to me that I was using a rented snorkel! I just wished it was previously worn by a beautiful blonde tourist before I got it.
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| Beach on Starfish Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
We then went to Starfish Island for a swim. The beach was lovely, the sand was not so fine but it was beautiful nonetheless. True to its name, there was plenty of starfish around.
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| Starfish Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
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| Shed on Starfish Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
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| An old structure on Starfish Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
Next destination was Snake Island as it was about noontime now, and we have yet to cook our food. It was a pleasant surprise to know that one of our companions was an excellent cook. There is a mini store at the island that sell some foodstuffs and some necessities. At the back is the kitchen that we used for cooking our food on borrowed utensils, all for a small fee.
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| The beach on Snake Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
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| Sheds for eating lunch on Snake Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
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| Boat on Snake Island with Palawan mainland in the background. (Photo by LDocena) |
After the sumptuous lunch it was time to hit the beach. The water was so clear and refreshing. One attraction at Snake Island is "fish feeding" and we took bread and started feeding the fish which was now so plentiful. It was truly a unique experience. I decided to up the fun by biting the bread and instead of just holding them by hand. As I submerged my head, hundreds of fish would gang up on my lips. Totally cool experience..
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| Fish feeding on Snake Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
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| Fish feeding with the mouth on Snake Island (Photo by LDocena) |
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| Lady vendor on Snake Island, Honda Bay, Palawan (Photo by LDocena) |
At about 4 o'clock in the afternoon we started packing for our trip back to the mainland.
Nice blog. How I wish I can visit this place !
ReplyDeletehi, how do i get there? i mean is there a readily available banca that we can rent out to tour the islands you mentioned? and for how much? coz mostly i see tour packages being offered with the hotels but how about if we go directly to these banca operators or something, would we be able to save on cost? pls advise thanks.
ReplyDeletehi,
ReplyDeletethanks for dropping by. when we went there we went directly to the pier and made arrangements for our boat. P700, good for six persons max. to be able to save further, you can cook your own food. we went to the market first and brought some fish and recados. there is a small store on snake island where you can borrow (rent) utensils..
Wow. It is so coll to be surrounded by fishes while swimming. I think that is a a very wonderful experience.
ReplyDeletepalawan hotels