Coron has two attractions that rarely share a trip report. One is a bay holding Japanese supply ships sunk in the closing years of the Second World War, now sitting under coral at depths a normal certified diver can reach. The other is Kayangan Lake, a clear, cliff-ringed lake that the Tagbanua people look after as ancestral domain. Everything leaves from Coron Town on Busuanga Island, and the planning is mostly about fees, tides and how many days you have.
If you only have time for one thing, do the lake and Twin Lagoon on a day tour and skip diving. If you dive, give the wrecks two days and keep a third for the island loop. Three days and two nights is the minimum for the lake, and four or five suits a trip with two dive days.
This guide covers the wrecks worth knowing, what a dive day and each island fee costs in pesos, how to reach Busuanga, and which months give calm seas and clear water. Fees are collected on the spot and change, so treat the figures below as a planning range and confirm them when you book.
The wrecks of Coron Bay
On 24 September 1944, aircraft from US Task Force 38 attacked Japanese ships sheltering in Coron Bay. The raid was short, and it left somewhere between ten and twelve vessels on the bottom. Most now lie upright or on their sides between about 5 and 43 metres, covered in coral and busy with fish. That range matters, because it means you can start with shallow wrecks and work down as your experience grows.
The boat ride from Coron Town to the wrecks takes 30 to 60 minutes by dive banca. Operators ask for a valid certification card for anything below 18 metres, and penetration dives need proper wreck training. Bring your card and your logbook.
Shallow wrecks for snorkellers and new divers
The Lusong Gunboat sits at 2 to 15 metres, and at low tide its bow breaks the surface, so snorkellers can see it without a tank. The East Tangat Gunboat runs from 4 to 20 metres and is a popular first wreck dive. Olympia Maru, a 122-metre freighter at 3 to 19 metres, is the usual next step, with holds that a guide can lead you into on a good-visibility day.
Mid-depth wrecks
Okikawa Maru is the big one, a 168-metre oil tanker at 10 to 26 metres with its hull and bridge largely intact. Kogyo Maru lies at 16 to 34 metres and carries construction materials, including a bulldozer you can still make out in the hold and anti-aircraft guns on deck. Akitsushima, a seaplane tender with crane wreckage, sits deeper at 22 to 38 metres.
Irako, the deep one
Irako, a 147-metre refrigeration ship at 28 to 43 metres, is for experienced divers only. The cooking stoves in its galley are still recognisable. Few shops run deep trips, so reserve a boat for it early.
Book a two-tank wreck day first. Most shops offer nitrox for about PHP 200 to 400 extra a tank, and you should ask for it when you book, since not every boat carries it every day. Uncertified visitors can try a Discover Scuba dive with an instructor, limited to roughly 10 to 12 metres on the shallower wrecks.
What a dive day costs
You usually pay per dive day instead of per wreck. A two-tank fun dive day runs about PHP 2,500 to 4,000, with boat, tanks, weights, guide and lunch included, and rental gear adds PHP 500 to 800 if you do not have your own. An introductory dive without a licence costs PHP 3,000 to 4,000. A three-day Open Water course is PHP 15,000 to 19,000, and the wrecks are usually included on days two and three. A wreck specialty course adds PHP 5,000 to 7,000 and needs an Advanced certification.
Non-divers can do a joiner Reefs and Wrecks snorkel tour for PHP 1,700 to 2,300 a person. Add small marine park fees of about PHP 100 each at stops such as Skeleton Wreck and the Lusong area, and PHP 100 to 150 at Siete Pecados. Booking directly with a shop in town instead of through a resort keeps the bill predictable, and most shops near the port offer hotel pickup.
One safety rule has nothing to do with cost. Leave 18 hours between a day of deep wreck dives and any flight. Put your island tour on the day before an early flight, not a dive day.
Kayangan Lake: the climb, the fee and the rules
Kayangan Lake is managed by the Tagbanua, and entry is PHP 300 a person, paid in cash. From the boat landing you climb about 300 concrete steps, then reach clear water edged by limestone walls that continue below the surface. Life vests are required, fins are not allowed, drones need a permit, and single-use plastic is not allowed. Guides check bags, so pack accordingly.
The postcard view of the lake is taken from the viewpoint on the hill, not from the water. Climb up for the photo, then come down for a swim toward the far end. Do not enter the small cave there. It looks inviting, but narrow limestone passages without a light and a guide are a poor idea, and the guides will call you back anyway. There are no toilets at the lake, so use the ones at the beach stops.
The lake gets crowded from about 10 AM to 1 PM, when the day-tour boats arrive together. Join a tour that leaves around 7:30 AM, or hire a private boat that can be at the dock by 8. Opening hours are roughly 8 AM to 5 PM, with the last boat out around 4:30 PM, and visitors cannot stay overnight on Coron Island, so you sleep on Busuanga.
Twin Lagoon and the rest of the loop
Twin Lagoon is two lagoons joined by a gap under a limestone wall. At low tide you swim through a gap about two metres wide, and at high tide you climb over a wooden ladder. Inside, warm brackish water sits above cooler water, and you feel the temperature change as you kick. Entry is about PHP 200 a person.
Barracuda Lake, often on the same route, costs PHP 200 to 250, and beach stops such as Banana Island and Banol run PHP 100 to 200 each. A joiner Ultimate tour that covers Kayangan, Twin Lagoon, Barracuda Lake and a buffet lunch costs PHP 1,500 to 2,300, though entrance fees are often collected separately in cash on the day. Carry PHP 800 to 1,000 per person in small bills just in case. A private boat for six to eight people costs PHP 8,000 to 15,000 plus fees.
Getting to Busuanga
Coron Town is reached through Busuanga Airport (USU), about 30 to 45 minutes from town by road. Manila is the busiest gateway, with flights through most of the day taking roughly an hour. One-way fares range from about PHP 1,750 on a promo to PHP 5,000 or more at short notice. Cebu also has a nonstop service to Busuanga taking about 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 35 minutes, with promo fares from around PHP 2,000 and regular fares of PHP 3,500 to 5,500.
A shared van from the airport costs PHP 150 to 350 a person, and a private van PHP 1,500 to 2,500 in total. A one-time Calamianes environmental fee of about PHP 200 is collected on arrival, so keep the receipt, because some checkpoints ask to see it. If you are also visiting El Nido, a fast ferry links the two towns when it is running. Our Palawan comparison guide explains how to join the two bases.
Budget at a glance
Hotels run PHP 1,500 to 3,000 for a fan room, PHP 3,500 to 7,000 for air-conditioning near the port and PHP 8,000 or more on the beachfront. A local meal costs PHP 150 to 350, and a western one PHP 400 to 700. A motorbike rental is PHP 500 to 700 a day if you want the Maquinit hot springs. Bring cash. ATMs in town have long queues and charge about PHP 250 a withdrawal, and island fee collectors do not take GCash.
Best months and rules of the water
December to March gives the clearest water on the wrecks, often 15 to 30 metres, with calm seas under the northeast monsoon. The wider dry window runs from October to June. March to May is the hottest and sunniest and has the best light at Kayangan, though more boats too. July to September brings the southwest monsoon, with more rain, visibility closer to 5 to 15 metres and a higher chance that tours are cancelled. You can still dive then, but expect greener water and swell.
Dive boats fill two or three days ahead from December to March. Wear a rash guard at the lake, since it covers both the sun and the chafe from a life vest, and use reef-safe sunscreen or none at all. If you get seasick, take a tablet 30 minutes before the boat leaves, because Coron Bay can turn choppy around noon.
So which Coron trip suits you?
If you do not dive, spend one joiner day on Kayangan Lake, Twin Lagoon and Barracuda Lake, and add a sunset climb up Mount Tapyas for the view over the bay. If you dive, spend the first non-diving morning at the lake in the early light, then book two wreck days, with Irako last once your buoyancy feels settled, and leave a rest day before flying out.
Divers who have done shallower reefs, such as the ones in our Puerto Galera diving guide, will find Coron a natural next step, because the wrecks start shallow and get serious only when you want them to. For a very different dive, our Malapascua thresher shark guide covers the opposite kind of trip. Go between December and March, carry cash for the Tagbanua fees and book your dive days early.