This two day El Nido itinerary showcases the highlights of what this gorgeous spot in Palawan, Philippines, has to offer. If you have the time, you could easily spend a week exploring the area, but at a minimum, you will want two days to see the main sites. Make sure to include Palawan as part of a larger Philippines itinerary.
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History of El Nido
Archaeological evidence suggests that the area has been inhabited for at least 12,000 years. These early settlers were followed by waves of migration from the mainland. Prior to Spanish contact, Chinese traders frequented the archipelago to harvest edible bird’s nests from the limestone cliffs.
During the Spanish colonial era, the settlement was originally known as Bacuit. It remained a relatively isolated fishing village throughout the Spanish and American periods. Finally, in 1954, the town was officially renamed “El Nido,” the Spanish phrase for “The Nest.” Throughout the next year, explorers discovered the various hidden lagoons that have been the highlight of many people’s visits today.
When to Spend Two Days in El Nido
The best time to visit El Nido is during the dry season from December to May. During this time, the weather is warm, and there is little to no rain. January and February are the coolest months. If you are into diving, the best time for that is April to June when the water is the clearest.
How to Get to El Nido
It can be a bit of a trek to get to El Nido. El Nido has a very tiny airport with a single gate. You can catch flights here from Clark Airport (just north of Manila), Cebu, and a couple of other places in the Philippines. There is only one company, Cebu Pacific, that flies into El Nido.
Alternatively, you can fly into Puerto Princesa Airport, which is about a five-hour drive from El Nido. They have more frequent flights from many cities across the Philippines. We opted to fly into El Nido, catching a flight from Clark Airport. They were about $250 round trip.
Transportation in El Nido
If you stay in the main part of El Nido, you can easily walk to restaurants, the beach area, and shops. Many of the resorts are their own islands, so the hotel usually provides its own transport to the resort. With our stay, they picked us up at the airport and then took us on a boat to the island.
Where to Stay in El Nido
El Nido has many types of hotels to stay at. From budget hostels to luxurious resorts, they have options for all. TripAdvisor is a great place to start your hotel search. Check out the best hotels in El Nido here! You can always try searching Priceline Express Deals for a better price or try to price match a hotel.
We opted to stay at the Pangalasian Resort because we wanted a more luxurious and high-end experience for this trip. Originally, we had booked Minloc Island Resort, but it sustained damage in a cyclone, so we had to move resorts.
The following are other options for hotels to stay at, depending on the experience you want and the price range.
What to do During a Two Day El Nido Itinerary
The main thing to do in El Nido is to go island hopping. The area is filled with endless islands, beaches, lagoons, and more. During this two day El Nido itinerary, you will go on two different tours that showcase some of the highlights of the area.
There are four different tour options to choose from: Tour A, Tour B, Tour C, and Tour D. All four of these tours are regulated by the government to ensure the protection of the area and manage the crowd size. They are run by various tour companies, but have certain standards they must follow.
What was great about staying at the Pangulasian Resort is it included one tour each day. The tours we could choose from were similar to the following options in this itinerary. Additionally, our tours left earlier and beat all of the crowds to these places! It was a great option to
If your budget allows it, you can also book many of these tours as private tours. This enables you to leave earlier and beat the crowds at most of the stops.
Day 1: Tour A
Today, you will embark on Tour A, which takes visitors to the most popular spots that you will not want to miss during your two day El Nido itinerary. For this tour, you will spend the day on a boat that will take you to these different stops.
Big Lagoon
The Big Lagoon is a must-see during a two day El Nido itinerary. This long and narrow waterway had vibrant turquoise water framed by massive, dark limestone cliffs. Your boat will anchor right outside. Then you will get in a kayak to paddle your way inside of the lagoon.
Visitors can paddle around the lagoon and along the unofficial “kayak trail.” Once inside, there are also several spots you can go swimming. This is a protected area, so there are certain restrictions the groups must follow.
Note: If you stay at one of the El Nido Resorts, as we did, they take you first thing in the morning, so you beat the crowds of the tour group. We mostly had the lagoon to ourselves. When we left, there were a lot more people coming in, and it got very crowded.
Secret Lagoon
Next, head to Secret Lagoon, located on Minloc Island, and another must-do during a two day El Nido itinerary. The Secret Lagoon gets its name from the way you have to enter the lagoon, as the entrance is a bit hidden.
To get into the Secret Lagoon, visitors must swim up and then wade through the water. Then, you will crawl through a small and narrow hole in the wall. Once inside, the area widens up, and you will be in a small, circular natural pool surrounded by limestone cliffs.
You can take some time to swim around and take pictures. Once you are finished inside the Secret Lagoon, you can head right outside to a gorgeous white-sand beach that is a great spot to relax and take some pictures.
Seven Commandos Beach
The final stop on day one of your two day El Nido itinerary will be the Seven Commandos Beach. Here, visitors can unwind and use this as a place to relax after spending the morning kayaking and swimming. Visitors have the opportunity to buy some beverages at the island bar.
Note that since we stayed at one of the El Nido resorts, they took us to a private beach on Entalula Island for resort guests, versus the public Seven Commandos Beach. Here we had snorkel gear, lounge chairs, and towels to use as we enjoyed some time at the beach.
Teacher Tip: Make sure to bring water shoes for these spots as the rocks can be a bit slippery. You may also want a waterproof case for your phone.
Day 2: Tour D
For day two of this two day El Nido itinerary, you will embark on Tour D, which takes visitors to the Small Lagoon, Cadlao Lagoon, and Paradise Beach. These are some of the less-visited places, so the stops will be less busy than yesterday’s tour. Like day one, you will spend the day on a boat that will take you to these different stops.
Small Lagoon
The Small Lagoon is a similar experience to the Big Lagoon, but on a more intimate and smaller scale. Similar to the Big Lagoon, you will need a kayak to enter the area. You enter the lagoon via a small opening in the rock.
Once inside, the lagoon opens up into an emerald-colored basin that you can paddle around in and explore. You can opt to get in the water and there are some spots where you are able to go cliff jumping as well.
Cadlao Lagoon
Next, visitors will head to the Cadlao Lagoon, located on Cadlao Island. This is another lagoon experience similar to the Big Lagoon. The entrance starts shallow and then deepens into a larger pool. Most visitors here spend time snorkeling and swimming.
On our tour, they took us to a snorkel spot close by. In this spot, we were able to see a variety of fish and had about an hour to snorkel around the area.
Paradise Beach
To end this second day of a two day El Nido itinerary, you will stop at Paradise Beach, a small, secluded white sand beach. Here, you will find areas shaded by coconut trees with calm and shallow water to take a swim in. This is a great spot to enjoy the sun, partake in snorkeling, or bring a picnic lunch. The water surrounding the area has many colorful fish, and you may even spot a turtle.
One of the pros of this tour is that many of the spots are less visited than other locations. Therefore, you will have a lot more of the places to yourself and it offers a less chaotic day.
Note that on our tour from the El Nido Resorts, we visited Shimizu Island versus Cadlao Lagoon and Paradise Beach. This allowed for a longer opportunity for snorkeling for us and also a more secluded experience.
More Than Two Days in El Nido?
If you have more than two days in El Nido, you will want to check out tour B and tour C. Both give you options to explore more of what the island surrounding El Nido has to offer and make for a perfect addition to your two day El Nido itinerary.
Tour B focuses on caves and sandbars. As part of this tour, visitors stop at Snake Island, Cudugnon Cave, and Pinagbuyutan Island. Snake Island is a natural sandbar where you will get time to relax on the beach. Cudugnon Cave allows visitors to crawl through a small opening to enter a huge cavern. On Pinagbuyutan Island, visitors will view massive cliffs and have time to relax. This tour is usually less crowded, so it offers some peaceful stops.
Tour C visits hidden beaches and allows for some snorkeling opportunities. With this tour, visitors head to Hidden Beach and Secret Beach, Helicopter Island, and Matinloc Shrine. To get to Hidden Beach and Secret Beach, visitors will have to swim through narrow rock openings to get to the cove. Helicopter Island is a great place for snorkeling. The Matinloc Shrine is a popular panoramic spot. This is a great tour for those who want a lot of snorkeling opportunities.
Final Tips for a Two Day El Nido Itinerary
This two day El Nido itinerary gives you some of the best options to visit during your time in this magical area. We opted to spend four nights in El Nido, but also took time to relax at the resort. I thought two days was a good amount of time to spend on tours. In conjunction with a trip to El Nido, make sure to spend some time in Manila to get to know the capital city.
