San Vicente offers a variety of reasons to visit at the municipal level: the Malagnang Festival, island activities, river exploration by boat and waterfalls in several barangays. For planning, it is worth first considering whether a cultural event, island activities or nature observation is your main priority. These themes also differ in timing: the festival usually takes place on certain days in June; the other highlights relate to the landscape and possible activities.

Cultural events and a local connection

The Malagnang Festival is celebrated annually from June 19 to 21 in the municipality of San Vicente; these are the usual dates. Residents and visitors take part in various events, competitions and cultural programs. If you would like to plan your trip around a cultural event, these festival days may be a helpful guide. Check the dates before you depart rather than treating them as a fixed part of your itinerary. There is also a different kind of local connection besides the festival: in February 2020, the Palawan provincial government declared Barangay Alimanguan in San Vicente the “Surfing Capital of Palawan.” While the festival takes place on recurring days in June, the title is dated to February 2020. This distinguishes an annual cultural event from a dated designation.

Islands and activities

The islands in the municipality of San Vicente are popular with tourists. Swimming and boating are common activities there; many of the islands are also suitable for snorkeling because of their corals. This means there are several ways to enjoy the islands: swimming, going out by boat or snorkeling. For the last activity, an important qualification is that many islands are suitable, not necessarily all of them. If you make the islands a focus of your trip, you can keep this distinction in mind when choosing the activity you want.

Rivers, mangroves and waterfalls

The rivers are another natural highlight. Residents and tourists can explore them in a small boat. Along the way, bats, various bird species and other wildlife can be observed in the mangroves. River trips and wildlife observation go hand in hand here, making this experience different from the activities around the islands. Waterfalls add to the municipality’s landscape. They are located in the barangays of Caruray, Port Barton, Kemdeng and New Agutaya. These four barangays provide a geographic reference for waterfalls within the municipality, while mangrove observation is linked to exploring the rivers. This lets you distinguish between rivers and mangroves on the one hand, and waterfalls on the other, when planning your trip.

Boat rental from El Nido

For getting there, renting a boat from El Nido is a separate consideration from exploring the rivers: from El Nido, you can rent a boat to Port Barton or Poblacion in San Vicente. The trip goes to one of these two destinations; the small boats on the rivers are for exploring the waterways within the municipality. If you are considering this boat rental for your trip, check whether it is currently available before setting out. This distinction helps ensure that you do not plan travel to the destination and a nature activity as though they were the same boat trip.

Discover more destinations: Ferrol, Bulalacao, San Andres, Roxas, San Fernando, Gloria, Naujan, Romblon

For the regional travel overview: Mimaropa.