The far beaches
El Nido Tour C: Hidden Beach, Secret Beach and Matinloc
The route that people who have already done Tour A tend to prefer. Its stops sit further out in Bacuit Bay, which makes them quieter and more dramatic — and also makes Tour C the first thing cancelled when the sea gets up.
Quick answer
El Nido Tour C visits Helicopter Island, Matinloc Shrine, Secret Beach, Hidden Beach and Tapiutan, and a private version costs $122. The stops are further out than Tour A’s, so there are fewer boats at each one — and rougher water is more likely to stop the trip.
Tour C, at a glance
- Private with buffet
- $1228 hours, your own bangka
- With Tour A in one day
- $757 hours by speedboat
- A + C plus Entalula
- $2747 hours, private
- Stops
- Fivefixed, further out in the bay
- Helicopter Island
- Named for its shapea long low island with a hump
- Matinloc Shrine
- A ruined chapelwith a viewpoint above it
- Secret Beach
- Entered by swimmingthrough a crack in the rock
- Hidden Beach
- Behind a rock wallinvisible until you are inside
- Weather
- The first route cancelledthe stops are the most exposed
- Free cancellation
- Yesup to 24 hours before
The five stops on Tour C
What is actually on the route
Further out than Tour A, and the two beaches are both entered through the rock.
- Helicopter Island
Officially Dilumacad. Named for its profile from the water — a long low island with a raised section that reads as a fuselage. Snorkelling stop with a beach.
- Matinloc Shrine
A ruined chapel on Matinloc island, with a short climb behind it to a viewpoint over Tapiutan Strait. The most photographed viewpoint on the route.
- Secret Beach
A pocket of sand enclosed by cliffs, entered by swimming through a crack in the rock. Conditions have to be calm, and it is often the first thing dropped.
- Hidden Beach
Behind a wall of limestone, invisible from the water until you are through the gap. Shallow, sheltered and usually the highlight.
- Tapiutan Island
Snorkelling in the strait between Matinloc and Tapiutan, and usually where lunch is served.
Why Tour C gets cancelled first
Exposure, and what to do about it
Book it early in your stay — it is the route the weather stops first.
The stops face open water. Tour A works inside sheltered arms of the bay; Tour C goes out to Matinloc and Tapiutan, where swell arrives from the west.
Secret Beach needs calm. You enter it by swimming through a gap in the rock, and with any real swell that is not done. Operators drop it and substitute another stop.
In the wet season this matters. Between roughly June and November, Tour C is the route most often cancelled outright.
What to do: book Tour C early in your stay rather than on your last day, so there is room to try again. And if you are choosing between A and C for a single day in marginal weather, A is the safer booking.
Tour A or Tour C, stop by stop — and which to do if you only do one.
Tour A or Tour C→Common questions
Tour C, answered
What are the stops on El Nido Tour C?
Helicopter Island, Matinloc Shrine, Secret Beach, Hidden Beach and Tapiutan Island.
How much is Tour C?
$122 for a private boat with a buffet lunch. Combined with Tour A by speedboat it is $75.
Is Tour C better than Tour A?
It is quieter and further out, and people who have already done A often prefer it. Tour A has the lagoons and is the safer first day.
What is Hidden Beach?
A beach behind a wall of limestone, invisible from the water until you pass through a gap in the rock.
Why is Secret Beach sometimes skipped?
You enter it by swimming through a crack in the rock, which needs calm water. In any real swell operators drop it.
Is Tour C cancelled often?
More often than the others, because its stops are the most exposed. Book it early in your stay rather than on your last day.
Go deeper
More on island hopping in El Nido
What it costs
From $23 to $438, plus the 400-peso eco fee.
The verdictWhich tour is best
All twelve ranked, by route rather than by letter.
The lagoonsTour A
Big, Small and Secret lagoons, Shimizu, Seven Commandos.
The quiet oneTour B
Snake Island, Pinagbuyutan, Entalula and two caves.
ComparedTour A or Tour C
Stop by stop, and which to do if you only do one.
Two daysDoing two tours
Which pair to combine, and how to fit them in.
