Palawan
INTRO
Many people have heard of Palawan as "The Philippines' Last Frontier" or as the "nature sanctuary of the world". That is so, because that area is a breathtaking bouquet of dark green tropical rainforests, blue waters full of thousands of different fishes and colorful marine life, fauna and flora that can't be seen anywhere else in the world. This is definitely a place unique with its megadiversity.
City Profile
City: Palawan
Country: Philippines
Area: 14,896.3 km2
Population: 755,412
Governor: Mario Joel T. Reyes
Language: Tagalog, Ilonggo, Tausug, Batak, Tagbanua, Palawanun, Cuyunon
LOCATION
Palawan's 1,786 islands are located in the Western Visayas Region, with China Sea in the west and Sulu Sea in the east. It also lies between Borneo on the southwest and Mindoro on the north. Puerto Princesa is the capital and Palawan's main city, where are centered the main docks and seaports.
TIME TO VISIT
In the eastern part and western part there are two different types of climate. In the east only 4 months are rain-free, while the west coast has 50-50, which means 6 months wet season, 6 months dry. November and December are the months with highest humidity, and if you want to come with a boat it is best to sea travel between April and June, when the ocean is calm. Generally summer months are tourists' rush hour.
POPULATION
Palawan's inhabitants are an amazing mix of many cultures and races - more than 84 and all of them living peacefully in this far away land. The statistics from May 2000, shows that there are around 737,000 citizens. Although all that diversity the native people still predominate the populace.
ISLANDS AND MAIN CITIES
- Puerto Princesa - Palawan's main city and capital of the area Puerto Princesa is as green and as fresh as the other parts of the archipelago. It is famous with its caves that look like natural cathedrals and the amazing places for diving.
- Balabac Island - located 30 km south from Palawan, the island is known for its rare birds and beautiful cone sea shells.
- Cuyo Islands - it is a group of 47 small islands and they say it is like a tiny world. They are very far away from any land, 17 hours with ferry from the capital Puerto Princesa. There are plenty of fun things to do but you have to bear in mind the undeveloped tourist infrastructure.
- Pamalican - it is a part of Cuyo islands and is very very small, only 2.5 kilometers long. If you manage to step on its beaches you will definitely feel like the last person in the world.
- Sangat Island - a small island which main income comes from tourism and that's why most part of the island is transformed into a resort with expensive villas and rentable cottages.
- Busuanga Island - it is in a group of island called Calamian Group and it is the largest one, in fact the second largest after Palawan. In the World War II, some Japanese wrecks were sunk there so many tourists dive to see them.
SIGHTS & ATTRACTIONS
- Puerto de Santa Isabel - it represents a fort built in 1667, situated 215 km from Puerto Pricesa. Reachable by bus, it is under the protection of Palawan's National Museum
- Port Miller & Lighthouse Tower - Port Miller is a water tank which purpose is to preserve potable water to the locals. The lighthouse tower still can be seen but there is a new one as well.
- Tabon Museum - it is recommended to visit the Tabon Museum before the Tabon Caves. You will hear valuable information about the pre-history of the caves, some archeological facts and you will see a massive collection of ancient artifacts. It is located 155 km from the capital and it can be reached by bus or tricycle.
- Tabon Caves - the caves are also known as the cradle of Philippine Civilization, because of the discovery of the remains of crude man and his tools. There are some big chambers there which can give you a vision how the ancient people have once lived. http://www.pcsd.ph/photo_gallery/wonders/Tabon%20Cave%20%20profile.htm
- Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park - The park is located in Bahile, and features an underground river long 8.4 km, which is the longest of such kind. That amazing river makes a magnificent crystal lagoon where can be seen astonishing cave formations and stalactite pillars in different shapes. http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/puertoprincesa.html
- Palawan Butterfly Garden - a garden preserving some very rare species, found only in Southeast Asia. The garden is situated in Santa Monica, close to Puerto Princesa.
AIRPORTS
There are several airports in Palawan: Taytay Airport (on island Taytay), El Nido Airport, Busuanga Airport, Cuyo Airport and one in Puerto Princesa. Puerto Princesa Airport and that one in Busuanga are the biggest ones serving very large areas.
- Puerto Princesa Airport is served by many airlines, including Philoppine Airlines, Air Philippines, Asian Spirit, Pacific Air. Ther are daily flights from and to Manila, as the roundtrip ticket costs around P3,100.00.
- Busuanga Airport (Coron Arport) - the airport has two names because it serves the area of Busuanga as well as the area of Coron. There are two airlines that operate daily flights to Busuanga from Manila - SEAIR, with small planes and flight approximately 1hr 5 mins. The other airline is ASIAN SPIRIT which has even smaller planes and cheapest tickets.
LOCAL TRANSPORTATION
- Ferries and boats - of course there are the only way getting from island to island in that area. Usually you can travel with a group or by your own, but with a group it costs less. There are very regular, but the safety and ticket cost vary.
- Car rental - there are offices for car rental in the major islands, but as well as the metered taxis, they are expensive and not very trustful.
- The jeepneys were once jeeps, but now they are very convenient to go from one tourist sight to another. They are faster then the buses and not as cheap as the taxis.
- Thishaws and tricycles. You can also get a trishaws and tricycles, which are the cheapest and the easiest to use. But the best way to have fun is simply to swim or dive.
HISTORY
It is assumed that the Spaniards helped the locals structured their alphabet, and develop their trading system and political order. But the Spaniards had just the Northern Province, while the southern portion remained under the Sulu's Sultanate in 16th century. Later, the Americans first established the area as a province of Paragua with Cuyo as a capital. However in 1905 the capital was moved to Puerto Princesa and the name was changed to Palawan.
CITY LINKS
- PALAWAN ADVENTIST HOSPITAL http://adventistyearbook.org/default.aspx?page=ViewEntity&EntityID=13425
- Palawan sun - Puerto Princesa newspaper: http://www.mondotimes.com/1/world/ph/218/4711/11974
- Hotels and resorts in Palawan - http://www.asiatravel.com/palawan.html
- Scuba diving in Palawan - http://www.travelsmart.net/ph/Diving_Sites/Palawan.htm
- A useful link about Palawan - http://www.palawan.com/about.php?PHPSESSID=38d19e2db1a198bac5287a5d34d164c9
UNIVERSITY LINKS
- Palawan State University - http://www.4icu.org/reviews/8986.htm
- Western Philippines University - http://www.wpu.edu.ph/index.html