Drone Journey to Coron and El Nido

Words and Photos by Qing Yoong

Coron, a diving paradise, is just an hour’s flight away from Manila.

Packing a Phantom 4 drone camera, and bare necessities we landed on Busuanga Airport.

In a breeze, we were headed to our lodging as vans are all ready to fetch passengers outside the arrival hall. There was no need to haggle the price as the standard rate is charged for travelling into Coron town for about 150 pesos.

The best way to enjoy Coron is to go on the day tour. The most popular tour is the Coron Island Ultimate Tour.

We get to visit 7 different locations with different things to see; from white sandy beaches to ship wrecks and coral gardens. My favourite location, however, is the Twin Lagoon where one would be required to swim through a small opening from the first lagoon into the second lagoon.

As fresh water and salt water meets here, do not be surprised if you suddenly feel a gush of cold water against your skin as you make your way through the narrow opening.

I took the opportunity to unpack and assembled my drone camera for some aerial photographs on the boat itself. Launching the drone is easy after having operated it in the past six months.

I flew it high over the hills that gave me a bird’s eye view of two bays separated by a hill. Pristine clear waters that you can see the bottom sea floors.

Coron is well-known as one of the finest diving sites in the world. There are about a dozen Japanese sunken World War 2 shipwrecks. To reach the shipwrecks at this depth more than 10 meters, you are advised to have an advanced diver’s licence. Dive masters are handy to keep divers at bay and in safety.

Before embarking on this diving trip with a buddy, I was of two minds whether to either go to Coron and skip El Nido. I think I made a wise decision to visit both.

El Nido is about three hours away by speedboat. El Nido is a more popular choice for younger travellers as the nightlife is more vibrant and and the day activities are more adventurous.

There are more restaurants to dine in and pubs to hang out for drinks too. Certainly you would have sensed what’s coming from me. El Nido is comparatively more expensive.

At every street corner, you would be able to find travel booths offering day tours. The most popular choices would be either Tour A or Tour C.

The highlight for Tour A would be the Small Lagoon & Big Lagoon and the Secret Lagoon where you will be taken to a secret entrance hidden behind the cliffs. Tour C has a bit more oomph as it takes you to a Hidden Beach.

Enough said about my trip, I will let my photographs tell the story.