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Coconut Garden Island Resort - Cacnipa Island (Updated 11th January, 2005)   Coconut Garden Island resort is worthy of being considered a separate destination. This beautiful low cost resort is located on Cacnipa Island, 15Km (45 minutes by boat) west of Port Barton. The owner, Henry, is a Swiss fellow. He runs a lovely resort and is very hospitable. There is a easy trail that leads around and over the island with some stunning seascapes and views of mainland Palawan. On one walk, I saw a native Bearcat which is an endangered mammal found only in Palawan. The cottages are clean and comfortable and vary in price from P280 for a dorm and shared bathroom to P870 (peak season) for a cottage with en suite and everything in between. Good discounts are available if you stay more than one night. The food is good, the free range pet parrot (picture of Corr with parrot) was fun and the staff are wonderful. There is good snorkeling off the beach directly in front of the resort. It is probably the best snorkeling to be found in and around Port Barton. During the summer months Henry spends hours each day raking the beach to clear the pebbles and break up the sand fly nests. He lights smoky fires each night on the beach to keep the surviving sand flies out of the area. I have not been bitten at his resort, so it must work. You can go directly to Sabang, Port Barton or El Nido from here. I normally take Henry’s bangka (boat) to Port Barton to arrange the trip I the day before I plan to leave.  Alternatively, arrange the trip before you leave Port Barton.  The boatmen will pick you up from the Island in the morning at a pre-arranged time. A down payment may be required on booking. Expect to pay P3,000 to $3,500 for a big BIG BOAT and P2,500 for the smaller Bangka. I would definitely take a big boat if going to El Nido as it is about a 5 hour trip. Cell phone  communications only came to Port Barton on the 26th December, 2004, so there are likely to be much easier ways to organize a boat from now on. Possibly pooling a boat may also now be easier as all resort owners know each other. With cell phone communication just having come to Sabang also, and it being available in El Nido, it may now be possible for boats to carry passengers on the return journey also. Charter boats normally return empty. Coconut Garden Island Resort is able to work through the Port Barton cell site by using an external high-antenna. The phone number is +63 91837 02395     <<Page 3 of 6: Sabang    Page 5 of 6: Port Barton >>

 

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