From El Nido to Sabang: Private Underground River Day Tour with Lunch

You leave El Nido before dawn, the van humming along a coastal highway while islands slide past like low, slow clouds. The day stretches long — 16 to 20 hours — and the rhythm of the road sets the mood: a steady commute north through Palawan’s arcing coastline, then a switch to dirt ribboning toward Sabang. At Sabang Wharf a small banca waits; the sea is flat, and the guide’s voice lowers as the boat pushes into the embrace of the bay. The entrance to the Puerto Princesa Underground River is a dark crescent at the cliff’s base, and as you float inside the cave, the world narrows to the tap of the guide’s paddle, the drip of limestone, and the long shadows of stalactites that seem to reach down like fingers.