Island hopping from Busuanga: Black Island, Pass Island & Lolo’s Island

Island hopping from western Busuanga is a different experience from the Coron circuit. Fewer boats, shorter crossings, and on most trips you are the only party there. These are the places we take guests, what each one is actually like, and how to plan a day on the water.

Black Island

Officially Malajon Island, and the most cinematic thing within reach. Sheer limestone cliffs rise straight out of the water, a white beach runs along one side, and a cave at the base opens into a pool you can swim into. The snorkelling along the wall is the best on this coast — good coral, decent visibility, and reef fish in numbers.

The crossing takes around an hour from our wharf, depending on the sea. Leave early and you will usually have the beach to yourself for the first couple of hours; day boats from Coron, when they come at all, arrive much later. Bring reef shoes for the cave entrance, which is sharp underfoot.

Pass Island

The postcard. A low sandbar island with powdery white sand, palms for shade, and shallow turquoise water that stays swimmable for a long way out. Less dramatic than Black Island and better for actually lounging — this is the one for families, for long lunches, and for anyone who wants to do nothing in beautiful surroundings.

It is a comfortable boat ride from us and works well combined with Black Island in a single day: the cave and snorkelling in the morning, lunch and swimming at Pass in the afternoon.

Lolo's Island and the mangroves

Our own stretch. Rather than a boat, you take a kayak — free for guests — and paddle through mangrove channels to a small island the family has always called Lolo's. It is shallow, sheltered, and completely silent apart from birds. The channels are shaded, so this is the trip that still works when the open sea does not, and it is unbothered by wind.

Go again after dark with a guide and the same mangroves fill with fireflies. It is the single thing guests write to us about most often, and there is no boat engine involved at all.

Further afield

• Dugong watching — a boat trip to where the sea cows graze on seagrass beds. Genuinely wild animals, so genuinely not guaranteed, but the encounters when they happen are extraordinary. Early morning, calm water, no chasing.
• Calauit Safari Park — not island hopping, but nearby and unlike anything else in the Philippines: African giraffes and zebras, descendants of a 1970s translocation, alongside endemic Palawan wildlife.
• The Coron circuit — Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon and the Japanese wrecks are on the far side of the island. Spectacular, busy, and best done as a full day before or after your stay rather than from here.

How to plan the days

For a three-night stay we would suggest one full boat day, one mangrove morning, and one day where you do not leave the property at all. Guests almost always arrive with a longer list than they end up wanting. The pull of the pool and a book is stronger than people expect.

For a week, add a dugong morning, the firefly paddle after dark, and either Calauit or a Coron day. There is no need to schedule any of it in advance — we plan each day the evening before, once we have seen the forecast.

Practical notes

• Boats leave from our own wharf, so there is no transfer to a port.
• Snorkelling gear and fishing poles are included; bring your own mask if you are particular about fit.
• Reef-safe sunscreen, please — the coral at Black Island is worth protecting.
• A dry bag is worth packing. Spray on the crossings is normal.
• Some trips carry park or entrance fees, which we will tell you about up front rather than at the end.

The full list of what there is to do is on the Experience page, and if you would rather have it all arranged in advance, our island packages bundle the boat days with the stay. Tell us what you want to see and we will build the days around the weather.

Sixteen rooms, one private stretch of coast

All meals included, transfers arranged, and the run of the island. We recommend at least two nights.