Puerto Princesa Underground River Blog (Palawan)
Puerto Princesa Underground River
Yes, what can I say about the Underground River in Puerto Princesa. This attraction might be one of the most touristic destinations in all of Palawan. A big reason for that is that in 2012, the 8.2km long Puerto Princesa Underground River has been officially included in the World's Seven Wonders of Nature. And yes, everybody wants to see it now…
Ran by the city governement
You will have to get a permit at the city hall in Puerto Princesa to be able to enter the Underground River, since the attraction is managed (read: exploited) by the city government.
First you wait at a very busy and touristic harbor site, for your reservation and your boat to be ready. Then you take your boat to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park where the Underground River is located.
Rushed
It's not exactly chill and easy-going up there on that island once you get there. Nevertheless the place itself is so beautiful and should really be very serene and peaceful if it wasn't so exploited. Also, whole process was quite rushed by the people and the boatmen since there are so many tourists to be handled and basically 'pushed through the tour' (is how I feel the government would feel about it)..
Tourists where going in and out of the underwater cave and I really felt like they were treating us as kettle there. I'm not the only critic and I read and saw other bloggers/vloggers on the internet who were quite disappointed about the Puerto Princesa Underground River experience as well.. And due to it's immense popularity, it's very much exploited in quite the literal sense.
Still beautiful
I will provide some photos underneath here along with a 4 minute video just to show you the experience with some music under it. That way you can see for yourself and decide if it's worth going to. If you don't mind being treated like kettle and be amongst too many other tourists then definitely go for it; the cave itself was very beautiful…
Totally worth it if you can cope with touristic environments. Click here for the full 9 min vlog and otherwise take the tour through the Puerto Princesa Underground River by watching the 4 min video below.
