Taraw Cliff at dawn, Las Cabanas at dusk

A sharp, guided scramble up the limestone cliff that towers over town, and an evening of cocktails and colour on El Nido’s favourite sunset beach.

Area

El Nido & Bacuit Bay

Start from

El Nido town

Distance

walking distance plus about 6 km to Las Cabanas

Time needed

1 day (split morning and evening)

Best season

November – May

Difficulty

Hard

Transport

On foot with a guide for Taraw; tricycle or scooter to Las Cabanas

Tickets & rules

Guided climb fee for Taraw Cliff; zipline ticket optional

Why go

Taraw Cliff is the giant grey wall directly behind El Nido town, and every visitor looks up at it while eating breakfast. Climbing it is a genuinely demanding undertaking: a guided route over razor-sharp limestone, sometimes with fixed ropes and steel rungs, rising through scrubby forest to a summit with the whole of Bacuit Bay laid out below. At dawn the islands are blue silhouettes and the town is still asleep.

It is not for everyone. You need a good head for heights and the patience to move carefully over rock that will cut skin at the lightest touch. But the reward is the best view in El Nido and a sense of the town that you can’t get from the water, its tin roofs, church tower and fishing boats all in one frame.

By evening, rest your legs at Las Cabanas, a long beach south of town that faces west across a scatter of islands. The sky goes orange, then pink, then a violet that I never managed to capture properly on film. Bars along the sand play music, and a zipline carries people over the water to Depeldet Island and back.

The story

Limestone like Taraw’s is a fragile habitat. The cliffs shelter endemic plants, swiftlets and bats, and the local government has tightened rules on access several times. Unguided climbing is discouraged, and in some periods the cliff has been closed outright. Doing it with a registered guide also helps ensure the money stays in town.

The town below was a quiet fishing settlement until backpackers began arriving in the 1980s and 1990s, sleeping in simple cottages and island-hopping with local fishermen. The first resorts in the bay opened around then, and over the following decades El Nido grew from a handful of streets into one of the country’s best-known destinations.

Las Cabanas used to be a long, nearly empty strand reached by a dirt track. Today it has bars, hotels and a zipline, but the sunsets are unchanged, and the islands in front of it, including Depeldet and Pinagbuyutan’s distant dome, frame the light much as they did when the first travellers sat here with cold beer from a cooler.

Getting there

Ask at accredited agencies in town about guided Taraw climbs and whether the route is open; start times are usually before sunrise. Wear proper shoes with grip and long trousers or sturdy shorts.

Las Cabanas is a 15–20 minute tricycle ride south of town. Arrange a return fare in advance or note the number of a driver, as tricycles thin out after sunset.

A suggested plan

1. 5:00Meet the guide in town and begin the climb by headlamp.
2. 6:00Sunrise on the summit, with the bay slowly turning from grey to blue.
3. 8:30Back in town for breakfast and a long rest in the heat of the day.
4. 16:30Tricycle to Las Cabanas; swim or try the zipline to Depeldet.
5. 18:00Sunset from the sand, then dinner back in town or on the beach.

Where to stay

Stay in El Nido town for the early Taraw start; you need to be at the trailhead before dawn. Marimegmeg near Las Cabanas is the better base if sunsets matter more to you than early mornings.

Good to know

• Wear gloves for the climb; limestone edges cut easily.
• Carry at least a litre of water even for the short route.
• Arrive at Las Cabanas an hour before sunset to find a good spot.