Awesome Coron (Part 1)

It's been 2 months, but I remember visiting Coron like it was just yesterday!

As I mentioned in my previous post, I wasn't a big fan of traveling around the Philippines for a long time. I've only been to Boracay once, while others my age have been there so many times. It has more to do with being parents at a young age, I think -- we were so eager to see other countries after not traveling for such a long time. Partially also because the cost of traveling locally was almost the same as the cost of traveling abroad. The cost of the hotels and the food were practically the same! 

I booked Coron several times through Cebu Pacific's piso fair, but because of work, we never pushed through. As I mentioned in my previous post about Shore to Shore, even this trip almost didn't push thru either. I am so glad, though, that it did.

We arrived late afternoon at Coron, and by the time we reached our hotel the sun had set. So what we saw were just the streets leading to our hotel, nothing else. We were brought directly to Micasa Lodge, where our travel agency booked us for 2 of the 4 nights.

Micasa Lodge was quite cute, actually. I didn't know what I was expecting, but their entrance was on the side of the building, leading to the lobby on the 2nd floor. Our room didn't have a window (it had a window facing a hallway), but it was very clean. Too bad I wasn't able to take a picture. It was very small, but you could tell the place was still very new. 

When we woke up the next morning for our free breakfast, this was what welcomed us. Our hotel's restaurant was at the 4th floor, so we enjoyed this view every morning. 

The pre-prepared breakfast at our hotel. You order this the night before, then they serve it to you when you give your room no. Actually very good!

Our travel agency booked us for Island Hopping right after breakfast. We were picked up from our hotel and delivered right to the office of our tour group.

Don't let the fascade fool you. We were professionally handled by their boat mean and English-speaking tour guide.

Here are the packages of the tour group, but ours was included in Shore to Shore's package already.

We were then walked to a boat where we waited with other tourists (mostly foreigners.) There was a problem with our boat though, so we were transferred immediately. They asked us to wear the orange safety jackets, which I really look for after the Puerto Galera accident I read about.


It should be noted that there are goggles and snorkeling gear available for rent by the port where the boats are, but I would suggest, as always, to bring your own sets. We always bring our own, for sanitary purposes. My tips for items to pack for Island Hopping are:
1. Water socks, if you're planning to snorkel. Though there aren't any painful rocks on any of the beaches, it would come in handy in case you want to step on the sea floor confidently, in shallow waters.
2. Tinapay (Bread). Lots of it. The fish swarm to the bread like crazy. Bring a lot because chances are, the people in your tour group won't bring any, and they would like to share.
3. Cold water. It gets quite hot, and there's some trekking that goes on. It's safe to keep yourself hydrated during the day.
4. Suntan lotion. We all know that it's important nowadays.
5. Like I said, your own snorkeling set.
6. Towel
7. Snacks or sandwich. Though the boatmen prepared a delicious lunch for our group, siempre, nagkakahiyaan kase sharing kayo. Hahaha!! Best to prepare your own snack for the boat in case lunch leaves you hungry. This goes especially for the foreigners, who might not like the fare that the boatmen prepare for you (fish, hotdogs, veggies.) Personally our lunch was delicious.
8. If you're bringing snacks, bring a small plastic bag where you can put your trash. They do not tolerate trash accidentally flying into the ocean.
9. A camera, and even better, an underwater camera. Or one of the underwater clear jackets for cameras. I failed to bring one in this trip, and totally regret is because I always take photos of fish.

As we rode the boat further and further away from shore, we saw the surrounding islands that were, well, really stunning. We had an itinerary for that day, and an English-speaking tour guide, and the first area we visited was called Siete Pecados, called so because it is composed of 7 small islands. The water there isn't very deep, about 10 ft probably at the deepest area. There was a lot of nice coral and fish here! And no scary animals (i.e. water snakes) like in Puerto Galera. Also, the water was insanely clean and clear. 

One of the small islands.

Another one close up! So pretty!

After thirty minutes or so of snorkeling, they took us to a lake, and based on the map, it's called Kalachuchi Spot (I could be mistaken, it's been 1 months!). The water here was just breathtakingly clear, the water very cool and shallow. We only spent a few minutes here because there was no fish or corals, it was just a chill spot with amazing water. 

You can see the mangroves by the edges of the water!

Off we go again!

(To be continued!)

Shore to Shore Travel Agency
Telephone numbers (63-2) 4758806-07
Mobile number (63-906) 9003019; (63-923) 8995554; (63-999) 6040017
Fax number (63-2) 5593079
Email address -  shore2shore.mlaofc@gmail.com