Coron sits at the northern end of the Palawan province, on Busuanga island in the Calamian group, and it is really two things with one name. Coron town is the working settlement with the pier, the market and the hotels. Coron island, a short boat ride south, is the jagged limestone one with the lagoons and the lakes, and it is ancestral domain of the Tagbanua people, who manage access to it and charge for it.
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There is one thing to say before the itinerary, because it is in the Foreign Office advisory and it names this town specifically. The FCDO records that British nationals have reported rape and sexual assaults in locations popular with backpackers, and the two it names are Coron and Siargao. That is a short, specific list and this post does not bury it. The safety section below sets out what the pattern is and what actually reduces it, and none of it is a reason to skip Coron.
What Is Here
Kayangan Lake, in the second photograph here, is the one on every poster: a brackish lake inside the limestone, reached by a steep climb over a ridge from the boat landing and down the other side, with a wooden walkway at the bottom. The view from the ridge over the cove where the boats moor is the photograph people actually mean when they say Coron. It is also crowded by mid-morning, so the first boat out matters.
The Twin Lagoons, in the photograph at the top of this page, are two bodies of water separated by a limestone wall with a gap at the bottom that you swim through at low tide or go over by ladder at high. The second lagoon is where fresh and salt water meet and the thermocline is strange to swim through.
Barracuda Lake is the other brackish lake and is a diver's site more than a swimmer's, with dramatic temperature layers. Siete Pecados is the snorkelling reef. Malcapuya and Banana are the white-sand island stops on the longer day trips. Maquinit hot springs, saltwater and genuinely hot, are twenty minutes from town and are best at the end of a cold diving day.
The wrecks are Coron's real distinction. In September 1944 American aircraft caught a Japanese supply fleet sheltering in these waters and sank it, and around a dozen ships still lie here in twelve to forty metres. Several are accessible to recreational divers and a few are genuine penetration dives. This is one of the best wreck sites in Asia and it is the reason a lot of people come.
Mount Tapyas above the town is seven hundred-odd steps to a cross and a view over the bay, which is the standard sunset walk.
Coron Against El Nido
They are both in Palawan, both limestone, and they are a day's travel apart rather than next door. El Nido is in the north of the main Palawan island, reached by road from Puerto Princesa or by air, and its lagoons are bigger and its beaches better. Coron is a separate island group reached by a different flight or a four-hour ferry, and it has the wrecks, the brackish lakes and the hot springs, which El Nido does not.
If you have a week and want both, the ferry between them runs but is weather-dependent and long. If you have to choose: El Nido for beaches and island-hopping, Coron for diving and for the lakes.
When to Go
The dry season is roughly late November to May and that is the season for Coron, with March to May the hottest and calmest and the best visibility for diving. The wet season from June to October brings rain and rough crossings, and boat trips are cancelled; Coron is in the typhoon belt and Typhoon Yolanda passed through the Calamianes in 2013.
Easter week and the Christmas and New Year period fill the town completely. Visibility on the wrecks is generally good year-round but best in the dry months.
Getting There
Fly to Francisco B. Reyes airport at Busuanga from Manila or Cebu, which takes about an hour and is the way most people come, then a forty-minute van transfer into Coron town. The alternative is the ferry from Puerto Princesa or El Nido, which takes four hours or more in open sea and is cancelled in bad weather.
On the island, everything is tricycle in town and boat everywhere else. The island-hopping boats are booked through your hotel or the operators along the waterfront, as either a joiner tour or a private charter. Scooters are rentable for Mount Tapyas and the hot springs.
Is Coron Safe for Women Travelers
UK FCDO: the Philippines carries both grades of warning and the geography is entirely southern. ALL TRAVEL is advised against to WESTERN AND CENTRAL MINDANAO and the SULU ARCHIPELAGO. ALL BUT ESSENTIAL TRAVEL is advised against to the remainder of Mindanao, EXCEPT FOR CAMIGUIN ISLAND, DINAGAT ISLAND AND SIARGAO ISLAND, which the FCDO names as exceptions. The reason given is terrorist activity and clashes between the military and insurgent groups in the south. NOTHING NORTH OF MINDANAO IS RESTRICTED: Luzon, the Visayas and Palawan carry no advise-against at all, which is to say that almost everything a visitor plans is available. Read the advisory yourself before you book, because it is the geography rather than the grade that decides a trip here.
Palawan carries no advised-against area at all, and the restricted geography is a thousand kilometres away in Mindanao.
The FCDO's sexual assault section for the Philippines names places, and it is short enough to quote in full: British nationals have reported RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULTS in some locations popular with backpackers, INCLUDING CORON AND SIARGAO. That is a short list and it is specific, so it should be read as information rather than as a reason to avoid either place. The pattern it describes is the backpacker-town pattern this library has met in Turkey, Egypt and the Dominican Republic: harm reported inside the holiday, by someone met during it, rather than by a stranger in an unlit street. The countermeasures follow from that and are concrete. Keep your own room key and room number private. Do not accept transport offered by someone who approaches you, particularly a man presenting himself as a boat or motorbike driver. Treat a drink you did not watch being poured as a drink you do not finish, which is also the methanol point below. And tell someone where you are going on an island day trip, because the boats leave mobile coverage within minutes.
Coron is one of the two places that paragraph names, so read it as being about here. What it describes is the backpacker-town pattern rather than street crime: a small place with a transient population, a lot of alcohol, boat crews and tricycle drivers who are around every day, and visitors who are relaxed and far from home. The countermeasures that actually work in that setting are specific. Book boats and transport through your accommodation rather than accepting an offer on the waterfront or from a driver who approaches you. Do not let anyone know your room number. Watch your drink being poured and do not accept one you did not see made, which is also the methanol point below. On a joiner boat, know who the operator is rather than just the boat. And do not walk back along the unlit waterfront or the road to Mount Tapyas alone at night; a tricycle costs almost nothing.
None of that is unusual advice and the reason to give it in detail is that the advisory named this town rather than the country.
On terrorism the wording is the strong form and it is not confined to the south. The FCDO states that terrorists are VERY LIKELY to try to carry out attacks in the Philippines, and that MULTIPLE TERRORIST GROUPS HAVE THE INTENT TO CARRY OUT ATTACKS ANYWHERE IN THE PHILIPPINES, INCLUDING IN THE CAPITAL MANILA. It names the Abu Sayyaf Group, Islamic State Philippines and the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters, and says attacks could be indiscriminate including in places visited by foreign nationals such as SHOPPING MALLS, ENTERTAINMENT ESTABLISHMENTS, PUBLIC TRANSPORT INCLUDING AIRPORTS AND THE METRO, and PLACES OF WORSHIP. There is a separate THREAT OF TERRORIST KIDNAPPING targeting foreign nationals in rural, urban and coastal areas throughout Mindanao, and the FCDO records that British nationals were among Westerners kidnapped in 2019. What that means in practice outside Mindanao is not avoidance but ordinary alertness in crowds, and knowing that a mall is a named category rather than a safe one.
Methanol in spirits is a named and current FCDO warning, and it kills. The advisory records an increase in cases of serious illness caused by alcoholic drinks containing methanol in popular travel destinations, states that EVEN SMALL AMOUNTS OF METHANOL CAN KILL, and says plainly that IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO IDENTIFY METHANOL IN ALCOHOLIC DRINKS BY TASTE OR SMELL. So the usual advice to trust your senses does not apply and the only real protection is the source: bottled beer and wine opened in front of you, sealed bottles rather than decanted spirits, and scepticism about free-pour cocktails and buckets on a beach. The signs to act on are drowsiness, confusion, blurred or lost vision, and vomiting hours after drinking, and the instruction is urgent medical attention rather than sleep.
The FCDO is unusually direct about the sea here. Swimming and surfing beaches are UNLIKELY TO HAVE LIFEGUARDS OR WARNING SIGNS, so the advisory tells you to get advice from your hotel or local residents before starting any activity, and it states that THE SEAS CAN BE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS AND BRITISH NATIONALS REGULARLY GET INTO TROUBLE IN THE WATER, OR EVEN DROWN. Note what is absent rather than present: there is no flag system to read and no sign to obey, so the judgement is yours and the only local information is a person. Ask, and if the answer is vague, do not swim.
On diving the advisory names the specific thing to ask about. It records that diving schools may have limited resources and DO NOT ALWAYS OBSERVE SAFETY AND MAINTENANCE STANDARDS, and tells you to check the operator's credentials, confirm your insurance covers diving, make sure safety equipment INCLUDING OXYGEN is on the boat, and ask about the ability to TRANSFER DIVERS TO A HYPERBARIC RECOMPRESSION CHAMBER. That last one is the question most people never ask and it is the one that decides an outcome, because the chambers are few and far apart across an archipelago of seven thousand islands.
The wrecks make that paragraph the most important one in this post for a lot of visitors. Wreck penetration is a different activity from reef diving and needs the training to match, several of these ships sit at depths that are near or beyond recreational limits, and the FCDO's question about transferring a diver to a hyperbaric chamber has a hard answer here: there is no chamber on Busuanga. A decompression emergency means a flight. Ask your operator what their arrangement is, in those words, before you book.
The ferry network has a poor safety record and the FCDO says so. It records that safety standards on taxis and buses can be low and that the ferry and passenger boat network has a POOR RECORD OF MARITIME SAFETY. Overloading is the usual cause and bad weather is the usual trigger, so the practical rules are to avoid travelling by boat when a storm is forecast, to refuse a boat that is visibly overloaded even at the cost of the day, and to know where the life jackets are before you leave the pier.
Two more. Kayangan Lake's climb is steep, wet and rocky in both directions and people turn ankles on it. And the Tagbanua manage Coron island as ancestral domain, with fees and some areas closed to visitors entirely; those closures are not negotiable and your boatman will know them.
The Coron Packing List
A sun layer that works wet
Our merino base layers are 100% Australian merino at 17.5 micron, and a long sleeve merino wool base layer for women is the right garment for an open boat: eight hours of equatorial sun on water with a tarpaulin at best for shade, and a layer that is repeatedly wet and dried on you. Wool handles that where cotton stays cold and heavy, and it covers the shoulders that burn first and worst.
Reef-safe sunscreen, and less of it
Reef safe sunscreen, and what the label actually means: oxybenzone and octinoxate, two common chemical UV filters, are associated with coral bleaching and damage to coral larvae, and they wash off swimmers and snorkellers directly onto the reef. Several reef destinations around the world have banned them outright. BUT NOTE THAT THE PHRASE REEF SAFE IS NOT REGULATED ANYWHERE, so it is a marketing claim and not a certification, and a bottle carrying it may still contain filters you would rather leave on shore. The practical version is to read the ingredients rather than the front of the bottle and choose a MINERAL sunscreen whose active ingredient is non-nanoparticle zinc oxide or titanium dioxide, which sits on the skin rather than being absorbed. Mineral formulas are thicker and leave a white cast, which is the trade-off and is why they are worth buying before you travel rather than grabbing whatever the resort shop has. THE BETTER ANSWER IS TO WEAR A LONG SLEEVED RASH TOP IN THE WATER AND USE LESS SUNSCREEN AT ALL: it protects your back and shoulders, which are what burn while you are face down looking at coral, it does not wash off, and nothing it does reaches the reef. Most reef operators now hire or sell them, and many ask you to use reef safer products.
A long sun hoodie is the better answer here than more cream, because Coron's days are snorkelling days and sunscreen washes off into the lagoons within minutes.
Reef shoes, which Kayangan genuinely requires
The climb to Kayangan is sharp limestone and the lagoon entries are rock. Reef shoes or sturdy sandals with grip are the single most useful footwear here. We hold no water-shoe entry with a confirmed product identity, so we are not linking one: buy whichever pair you trust.
A dry bag, which is not optional
A waterproof dry bag. Every day here is a boat day, the boats are open outriggers, spray over the bow is constant, and there is no dry place to put anything. This is the most-used item in the bag.
A hat with a cord, and sunglasses
A wide brim UPF 50 sun hat with a chin cord, because an uncorded hat is gone on the first crossing.
Water, and a filter if you dive
An insulated water bottle, because boat trips supply little and the heat is serious. Tap water is not for drinking; your hotel will have filtered supply.
Mosquito repellent for dusk
DEET insect repellent. Dengue is present and the waterfront at dusk is where you will be bitten.
The small things
Pesos in cash, and enough: Coron's ATMs are few and run out, card acceptance is thin, and the island fees, boats and tricycles are all cash. A quick dry travel towel. Motion sickness tablets for the crossings. And a torch, because power cuts are routine.
Recommended Tours and Experiences
Essential Resources for Women in Coron
Emergency numbers: 911 is the national emergency line for police, fire and ambulance and works in English. Coron has a municipal police station in the town centre and the Philippine National Police maintains Women and Children Protection Desks at every station, staffed by women officers, which is the right place to report a sexual offence. Given that the FCDO names this town in its sexual assault section, it is worth knowing that before you need it, and worth knowing that an incident involving a boat or tour operator should also be reported to the municipal tourism office, which licenses them. The Philippine Coast Guard station at Coron decides whether boats sail and coordinates sea rescue.
US State Department travel advisory: the Philippines advisory. Read the current level there directly rather than relying on a figure printed in any guide.
UK FCDO travel advice: gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/philippines, and read the safety and security page rather than only the landing page, because that is where the substance sits.
Main hospital: Coron has a district hospital and private clinics suited to ordinary problems, and that is the limit of local capability. There is no hyperbaric chamber on Busuanga, so a decompression emergency requires a flight to Manila or Cebu, and the nearest chambers are in those two places. For anything serious the answer is a flight, about an hour to Manila, and the flights are weather-dependent in the wet season. That combination of wreck diving at depth and no chamber on the island is the central medical fact of a Coron trip: check that your insurance covers diving to the depth you intend and air evacuation from a remote domestic island, both named, and ask your dive operator what their evacuation arrangement is and who pays for the flight up front.
Official health authority: the Philippine Department of Health. Dengue is present and the mosquito bites in daylight as well as at dusk; the more important point for divers is that the nearest hyperbaric chamber is in Manila or Cebu rather than anywhere in the Calamianes
US Embassy: the United States Embassy in Manila.
Official tourism authority: the Philippine Department of Tourism. The Department of Tourism and the Coron municipal tourism office license the boat and dive operators, which is the register to check before booking off the waterfront, and the office is also where a complaint about an operator should go
The FCDO names Coron in its sexual assault section. Book boats and transport through your accommodation.
There is no hyperbaric chamber on the island. Ask your dive operator about evacuation before you book.
Solo women safety assessment: Coron is a rewarding destination for a woman travelling alone and it is also one of only two places the FCDO names by name in its sexual assault section, so this assessment is longer than most and the naming is the reason. THE ADVISORY RECORDS that British nationals have reported RAPE AND SEXUAL ASSAULTS in some locations popular with backpackers, INCLUDING CORON AND SIARGAO. That is specific and it is information rather than a reason to stay away. What it describes is the backpacker-town pattern this library has met in Turkey, Egypt and the Dominican Republic: a small transient place, a lot of alcohol, boat crews and drivers who are there every day, and visitors a long way from home. The countermeasures are concrete. Book boats and transport through your accommodation rather than accepting an approach on the waterfront or from a driver. Keep your room number private. Watch your drink poured and refuse one you did not see made. On a joiner boat know who the licensed operator is, not just the boat. Take a tricycle rather than walking the unlit waterfront or the Mount Tapyas road at night. Report an incident to the Women and Children Protection Desk and, if an operator is involved, to the municipal tourism office that licenses them. PALAWAN CARRIES NO ADVISED-AGAINST AREA; the restricted zones are in Mindanao, a thousand kilometres south. On terrorism the wording is the strong form nationally. METHANOL IN SPIRITS IS A NAMED FCDO WARNING: small amounts kill and it cannot be detected by taste or smell, so bottled beer opened in front of you is the rule. THE WATER AND THE DIVING ARE THE OTHER HALF. Beaches here are UNLIKELY TO HAVE LIFEGUARDS OR WARNING SIGNS and the FCDO states the seas can be extremely dangerous with British nationals regularly drowning. On diving it warns that schools may not observe safety and maintenance standards and says to check credentials, insurance, oxygen on the boat and the ability to TRANSFER DIVERS TO A HYPERBARIC CHAMBER: THERE IS NO CHAMBER ON BUSUANGA and the nearest are in Manila or Cebu, which makes that question decisive here, especially for wreck penetration at depth. The ferry network has a poor maritime safety record. The Kayangan climb is steep, sharp limestone in both directions. The Tagbanua manage Coron island as ancestral domain and some areas are closed, which is not negotiable. 911 works in English; the district hospital handles ordinary problems and anything serious is a flight.
Reading On
Coron and El Nido are the two Palawan destinations and they are not the same trip. The El Nido packing list covers the lagoons in the north of the main island, and the Palawan packing list the province as a whole including Puerto Princesa and the underground river. For the Visayas, the Cebu packing list covers the city where the region's hyperbaric chamber is and the Bohol packing list the Chocolate Hills and Panglao diving. The Manila packing list covers the capital the flights leave from. The Philippines travel guide for women and the Philippines packing list carry the country-level advice, including the typhoon season and the Mindanao geography. For why wool rather than cotton on an open boat that soaks you and dries you repeatedly, read the guide to merino wool base layers for women. Every destination we cover is indexed at the travel packing guide for women, and the base layers are at the Roman Trail collection.
If the outer journey is calling you, the inner one usually is too. Explore SoulMap at romantrail.com/blogs/soulmap.
