Review: Tao Philippines Expedition, Coron to El Nido
When we were planning three months of travel, friends who had been to the Philippines and been on a Tao expedition told us it was the best thing they’d done. So we were sold, and booked our own trip. I had high hopes, but everything about Tao exceeded my expectations 100 times over. It’s not an exaggeration when people say it’s a life-changing experience. I learned so much about myself, other people, life, what it means to participate in the world around me… All this cheesy stuff that people who go travelling and ‘find themselves’ say. But with Tao, it’s true!
Here’s what happens on a Tao Expedition in the Philippines.
Tao Day 1
The night before we left on our expedition Tao hosted a briefing at their office where we got to meet everyone, learn more about the trip, and what we needed to bring. We were told to arrive at the port of Coron for 8am the next morning, though with the coastguard and various other officials needing to check our boat we might not leave until 10am.
But we were lucky and actually left before 9am. A late breakfast with coffee and ginger tea was served. And after an hour of sailing – during which time everyone mingled and got to know each other – we were at our first stop.
Lusong Gunboat Japanese Wreck
In a choppy sea with a fairly strong current, we snorkelled at a Japanese shipwreck from 1944. Unlike the other Japanese shipwreck that we saw on the Super Ultimate Tour in Coron, this one was much closer to the surface with corals and other marine life growing all over the sides. You could swim right up and touch it, and there were hundreds of fish swimming in and out of the wreck. Luckily, the waves here didn’t set the standard for the rest of the trip and as we moved on, the waters became calmer, smoother, and bluer.
Patsy island
After an hour’s journey we stopped at Patsy Island for lunch. A sandbar connects two remote islands that you can walk across when the tide is right. This was our first taste of the secluded paradise that we expected from Tao. Long tables were set out for lunch where we ate and incredible buffet of noodles, pumpkin and greens, sunshine salad, rice, and watermelon.
There was a volleyball net, warm shallow waters for snorkelling, and bamboo deck chairs lined up along the shore. Another group was camping here on the route from El Nido to Coron, so we only stopped for an hour or so before making our way onwards.
Evergreen
Our last stop before basecamp was called Evergreen. It’s a small, secluded beach that we could swim to from the boat, but I got a kayak since I wanted to sit on the sand and read while everyone else explored the reef. There was a lot of sea grass here and when I did eventually go in to snorkel I saw a puffer fish amongst the reeds.
Kuring camp
We spent the night at Kuring camp which is a tiny village further in land than the rest of the islands we visited during Tao. It has no beach and the water is a mix of salt and fresh water, so it’s dark and more river-like than the clear blue seas we had been in before. The water here is also full of jellyfish – and we saw a few box jellyfish as we were disembarking along the jetty. So there’s no swimming allowed, but a cocktail in the freshwater pool made up for it while we waited for the shower queue to die down.
Our first night was quiet as we stayed in a small community with locals living nearby, so we couldn’t make much noise. And without much electricity, the lights were turned off by 10pm. This didn’t matter so much though, as we had to be up and on the boat for 7:30am to cross the largest channel of the trip the next morning.
It was a warm, humid night and dogs, chickens, and fishing boats disturbed our sleep a couple of times. If you’re expecting rural camping to be a silent experience, think again! But falling asleep to the sounds of the jungle was a relaxing end to a great day.
Tao Day 2
After coffee by the water we set off early. Each morning the crew made delicious rice, eggs, fresh fruit, and different kinds of Filipino dishes like eggplant omelettes for breakfast which we ate on the deck.
During the journey, two of the guys in our group were fishing off the back of the boat and caught two small tuna. Within 15 minutes the chefs had turned it into sashimi and served it up with wasabi. As we were all starting to feel like friends and the small talk phase was over, this was one of the first tastes of the amazing and spontaneous memories that we’d be making on this trip.
The crew also taught us how to make shell necklaces and bracelets which was a fun way to pass the time, learn something new, engage with the Tao team, and end up with a memento from the trip to take home with us.
First stop
It doesn’t take long for you to get into the Tao way of life where you stop asking questions about what you’re doing, how long you’re stopping or how long a journey takes, or even where you are. So I don’t even know what the name of our first stop on day 2 is!
What I do remember is that we went snorkelling at another reef where we saw loads of bright blue starfish, a sawfish, and huge areas of coral.
Second and third stops
The next stop was a beach where we stopped for lunch on the boat. This was the first time we shared a spot with other groups from different boat tours. We snorkelled, played volleyball and spike ball, and generally chilled… a theme for the whole week.
The next beach we were meant to stop at also had a couple of other boats at it so we moved on to a different snorkelling spot where I saw a stingray. The Tao guys really try to make the experience as unique as possible and will generally try to avoid areas where other boats have stopped so that we get to experience each island to ourselves.
Linapacan Island
We arrived earlier at our camp on night two and after choosing our beachside beds for the night we watched the most incredible sunset over the islands.
This camp had a larger barn-style hut where we had dinner which was quickly followed by karaoke. Filipinos really love karaoke. They also love rum and gin, and most of us ended up drinking too much and feeling pretty rough the next morning. We got to stay up later on our second night, and there was a campfire after the electricit was switched off at 11, putting an end to the karaoke. Relaxing in the sun all day is surprisingly tiring and most people were in bed by midnight.
Tao Day 3
Waking up at 6am and then spending the morning on a boat isn’t ideal for hangovers. So even after a breakfast of oats and fruit served inside a fresh coconut I decided to skip our first snorkel and beach spot at Cobra Island and relaxed alone on the boat instead.
Duckling Island
After lunch we stopped at Duckling Island, a tiny area that’s apparently home to lots of small birds (which is probably the reason I remember the name). It was another great place to snorkel and even though we often saw the same types of fish at each stop, it didn’t get boring to see them up close.
Stop Three
Our third stop of the day was snorkelling at a small island that’s used as a camp by a lot of tour groups. At some point, I lost the feeling of fomo that came with not doing each activity we stopped for and I became more selective about when I snorkelled and when I chose to just relax (and stay dry!). But the commune here made for a great view from the boat.
Tao Farm (Dipnay)
At about 4pm we arrived at Tao Farm, at the north end of Palawan island close to the small town of Dipnay. The farm was largely destroyed by a recent typhoon so we didn’t get to experience this side of the site in the same way it originally was. But it’s where anyone working for Tao is trained before they graduate onto the boats.
This is by far the biggest camp we stopped at. It has room for two groups to camp, a huge dining area surrounding an open kitchen, two bars, volleyball nets, swings, a towering pagoda, table tennis, paddle boards, a version of Filipino pool that I never fully understood, and more to entertain yourself with.
If you’re taking the journey from Coron to El Nido you spend two nights here. If you’re going from El Nido to Coron you stay at the camp opposite on Darocotan Island and come over here for lunch or breakfast. That route spends two nights at camp Ngey Ngey near Coron, which we didn’t go to on our route.
Night one at Tao Farm
Not everyone on the trip stays for the full five days. So for our four-day-three-night friends this was their final Tao sunset. We watched it together from the beach (or in the sea with a beer), and played with some of the local kids from the village before dinner.
Dinner at Tao Farm… in London this meal would have cost at least £100. We were gathered around a large, open plan kitchen area where we were served a five course meal that could rival Michelin-starred restaurants.
All the food on Tao is incredible and the chefs who are trained here are taught skills beyond just cooking. They know how to present and explain the dishes they’re serving up, giving them transferable skills if they choose to leave Tao. The chef talked us through each course in impressive detail, from how the ingredients are grown and prepared, to how they are used in traditional Filipino cooking as well as in the dish we were about to eat.
The first course was a summer rolls with fresh peanut sauce, followed by a ginger and herb-infused broth. The main course was pork adobo or lentil and aubergine curry for veggies, with flattened and fried plantain, a shredded papaya salad, and rice (every Filipino meal comes with rice!) and dessert was a deliciously soft and rich chocolate cake made from Filipino cocoa, followed up with ginger tea.
There’s no karaoke at Tao Farm. But there was a fire show, plenty of games, and a well-stocked bar that serves a range of cocktails and wine as well as the jungle juice, gin, and beer you’ll find at all the other camps.
Tao Day 4
After breakfast we took a power boat across the water to Darocotan Island, which is right opposite Tao Farm. The beach is shared with a luxury resort where we heard there might be swimming pigs, but a kayak around the bay didn’t show up any signs of them. It was here that we had another incredible lunch of salad, veggies, rice, and barracuda. There’s also a shipwreck here that’s great for snorkelling and spotting clown fish.
After four final hours of relaxing, kayaking, snorkelling, and swimming – a major theme of Tao – we took the powerboat back to Tao Farm and the four-day people got ready to leave. After just three nights together it’s really surprising how emotional it feels to say goodbye.
15 people left our group that day and 11 of us stayed. So the evening felt so much quieter without them. We had made plans to meet in El Nido though so the mood wasn’t sombre and actually, at dinner, it felt nice to be in a smaller group. It meant that our final night at Tao was very relaxed but more intimate than the previous evenings where there were so many different people to mingle with.
Tao Day 5
After breakfast we took a hike up the mountain that Tao Dipnay sits at the base of. We were told sandals were fine but sturdier shoes would definitely have been better! It’s challenging in places and very warm in the sun, but overall not a hard walk. It starts with a very steep uphill with large steps, and the way back down is also steep and points and can be slippery under flip flops. But despite the inadequate footwear it was a fun experience and seeing the island from the top was breathtaking.
The walk was lined with banana and coconut trees and bamboo. And as we came down on the opposite side of the camp to where we slept, we got to see the Tao garden where a lot of the vegetables used in the cooking are grown. It was also here that we finally saw a Filipino pig!
After lunch and a few more hours relaxing at the beach, it was time to go. You leave Tao Farm by walking about 10 minutes along the beach to Dipnay, where there’s a small port. A bus drove us the hour into El Nido, where we paid our tabs, said goodbye, and went to get ready for our reunion at one of the beach bars in town.
If you’re umming and ahhing about whether to do Tao, or even whether to go with a different company, my advice is just book it! It’s not a decision you’ll regret and for us this was a 10/10 experience. I can’t think of anything I would change about it, even if things didn’t run 100% smoothly. That’s just life, and on Tao you really learn to take things as they come and enjoy the moment.
Find out everything you need to know about a Tao expedition – including what to pack – here.
And if a day trip is more your thing, you might like the Coron Super Ultimate Tour.