Tao Expedition Philippines - Island hopping paradise in Palawan - El Nido to Coron, 5 days 4 nights.

Hello everyone, welcome to this short documentary where I will try to share with you how was our experience on board the TAO expedition from El Nido to Coron on December 2024. Spoiler alert, it was pretty incredible! As you can see on these images they brought the whole crew together for a briefing in El Nido offices and then we drove for about an hour north of the island heading to TAO farm which is probably one of the best camps they have. Just on arrival we already had an awesome team working on a delicious lunch. After some food we were invited to explore the farm where we could see how some of the money we paid for our expedition was actually invested. As you can see they raised their own food and animals. There was also school where the children of the community attended. This was what makes TAO different from any of the other companies that offer these kinds of trips. You can see your money reverting back to the actual communities that manage and live in these camps. What a great positive look! After that we went back to our huts to drop our luggage. As you can see they are super cool and cozy and in these camps in particular we even had a power outlet to charge our cameras and phones etc. The construction technique along all the TAO farms is consistent. Everything is built with bamboo and fishing cable. I personally love this tropical kind of eco style. We jumped in the boat and headed to our first beach, the beautiful Dracatoana. As you can see in these images it was a beautiful beach completely for ourselves, just the TAO crew. We explored the camp a little bit and we wished we could spend a night here. Maybe, maybe someday. played some basketball and got a well-deserved dinner after a day packed with action and sun. On the second day we woke up slowly after a good sleep in our huts. Everyone started to get together to have some breakfast and after that we got back to the boat ready to explore more. We did our first stop on a truly diminut island called Tackling Island where the sand was entirely made of white coral. Amazing! Take a look at the drone footage we captured. While we were on the way we could enjoy some relaxing time on the boat. It's just nice to walk around and see how life works on board the ship. The crew making sure we had everything we need and the passengers talking to each other and starting to forge some beautiful friendships. Actually this is one of the things that we like the most about this trip and that is the beautiful people that we had the chance to meet during this expedition. With some of them actually we really bonded and hopefully we can meet again soon. Sometime later we finally got to our destination Cagdano Island. The day cleared out a bit and the color of the sea exploded. What an incredible place to stop and take in all this untouched beauty. Something that really surprised us was how good the food was. At times it felt not only a boat expedition through the paradise beaches but also like a trip through the rich Filipino cuisine with plenty of fish, fruit and rice. After that we got to our second camp, had a shower, relaxed with the other travelers, shared some memories, ready to get dinner and had some sleep because it was an intense day. On day three as you can see we started with a delicious breakfast consisting of fruit, rice, eggplant and some eggs. They cooked everything using wood, heating this thick metal plate. I think that you couldn't go any more natural and sustainable than this. After that we jumped back into the boat, getting ready for one of the longest crossings on the entire expedition. As you can see halfway we stopped on a coral beach and collected some shells which later we crafted into beautiful necklaces and bracelets. Here you can see Wassai, our expedition leader, using a big shell to announce the name of the beach we just arrived on. How cool is that! Then if you, like me, are interested in all things boats, this expedition is a great way to learn. The crew is always happy to involve you in some of the maneuvers that a sailing boat requires. By the way, if they ask you if you want to help raise the anchor, be warned the rope is very long. On this day we navigated very close to different communities and we witnessed from the commodity of the boat how the rural life in those islands really unfolds. This is one of the unique things that this trip offers and that is to truly immerse you in the way of life of these beautiful coastal villages that otherwise would be very difficult to discover as a tourist. At some point we stopped into one of these local markets to buy some cuttlefish that our chef would cook for us later on that night. Honestly, it was delicious! This is good food! Nice! Cuttlefish! Good catch! Nice! After some more navigation through the jungle, we finally made it into our last stop for the day. An idyllic Tao camp in the middle of the jungle. Take a look at some of the footage. It really felt that we were transported to another world, completely safe from the stress and pressure we had to deal back home. Again, these camps are managed and run by locals living there with their families which give you privileged access to their ways of living. It's a truly humbling experience to witness how they live in harmony with the environment and how little they need to be happy. After this incredible day, we gathered all together to enjoy a delicious dinner and we shared with the rest of the expedition each other's experiences. There was really a lot to be shared! Okay, so this was day four. We woke up slowly, getting ready for what was next to come but also with a slight sense of really sadness knowing that the adventure was getting close to its conclusion but still determined to make the last days count. Once in the boat, we got the opportunity to fish with the crew and as you can see, some of us got lucky although the prize was then prepared into delicious sashimi and enjoyed by the rest of the expedition. This would be a day packed with incredible locations. First one, Macambele Island, a great beach for a snorkeling. Secondly, we would stop at the Penguelet Island, probably one of the beaches with the most pristine waters I've ever seen in my life. And our third and final stop would be the icing on the cake, Nge Nge Kamp. I'll expand on this later but first, take a look! So yeah, this place is actually real. It's called Nge Nge Kamp and it was the final stop of our trip prior to leaving the boat on Coron Harbor. As you can see, it's a diminutive private island where only tau operates and it looks pretty much like paradise. It has a couple of beaches, one gorgeous viewpoint with two towers, a kitchen and a bar that serves tropical cocktails until pretty late, I have to say. Apparently, you can actually extend your stay in this island and if it wasn't because we had our flights and hotels, for the rest of the trip, we would definitely have done it. This was, in my opinion, the best camp of the entire trip. Oh yeah, and as a final trip by the tau crew, we were delighted with an amazing fire show which, once again, they tried to involve some of us with different degrees of success. What a great way to finish the day! That was it. We woke up on the fifth day with the bittersweet feeling of knowing how incredibly fortunate you are to be in a place like this, with such an amazing group of people. But at the same time, the thought that this was going to be over very soon and we would have to go back to the real world.