Most travelers don’t plan to fall in love with Puerto Princesa. They plan to sleep there.
You fly in, you rest, and the next morning you’re on a van to the Underground River, a boat to Coron, or if you’re going where most tourists don’t, a ferry to Balabac. Puerto Princesa is where Palawan begins. Not where it happens.
Continue reading
Balabac does not adjust to travelers. Travelers adjust to Balabac.
I didn’t fully understand that until I was standing at Buliluyan Port at 7:30 in the morning, five hours of van ride finally behind me, watching a rooster wander past my luggage like it owned the place.
I went to Balabac in February 2026 on a 3-day, 2-night trip. I’m not a travel writer. I’m someone who spent weeks looking for a genuinely honest guide before I booked and couldn’t find one. Every article I read showed the same sandbars, the same sea turtles, the same glowing five-star summary.
None of them mentioned the toilets.
Continue reading