Philippines – Puerto Princesa, Secret City Beach

Puerto Princesa, Palawan, Philippines May 2016.  I spotted this beach from about 10 miles away while on yesterdays random boat trip. A reconnaissance photo zoomed in on and its apparent there is some kind of life there. A look at google maps revels a small patch of sand but no name to the place, not even a street name – intrigued and need to investigate!

After some stomping around in a few dead end dirt tracks, eventually  a sign and the mention of a ‘Pristine Beach’ – i’d like to think Filipino and Western definitions of pristine are one of the same! About 200 yards down a track, in places flooded with swamp water from mangroves either side, there is a well kind of beach i suppose at first look – the tide is rather high. “Oh, the beach is behind but you have to pay”, says the pretty young lady. I don’t pay to go on beaches ever – until now! Well, having stomped all this way I’d better see what kind of scenery I get for 75p.

A small, quite cute little beach and yes, it’s actually clean, but I disagree with the ‘pristine’ description! Mostly locals here with picnics and about 20 kids splashing around in the shallow waters. A very nice and cool spot but bring something to eat and drink as the hut serves just a basic range at extortionate prices.

Here’s a look at today’s ‘Secret City Beach’ scenery. About 35 minutes stomp from the city centre and worth the effort. Google Map