Puerto Princesa has a reputation problem.
It’s the gateway to one of the most stunning island chains on the planet, which means most backpackers treat it as an obstacle between the airport and the good stuff – something to survive rather than enjoy. And honestly, they’re not entirely wrong. You’re not coming to Puerto Princesa for the beaches. You’re coming because your flight landed here and El Nido is six hours north.
As far as transit cities go though, Puerto Princesa is pretty impressive. Between its UNESCO-recognized underground river, jungles, and clear turquoise lagoons, this place has a lot to offer.
It’s a small city though, and if you’re only passing through briefly you don’t want to waste too much time figuring out where to stay in Puerto Princesa. This guide will give you the 411 so you can get to booking and launching the start of your Palawan adventures.
Rizal Avenue/Near the Airport
The beating heart of Puerto Princesa’s backpacker scene, Rizal Avenue is where you’ll find the best hostels, the tour operators, the cheap eats, and enough tricycles to get you anywhere in the city within minutes. The airport is practically on your doorstep, which in a transit city like PPS is basically the whole ballgame.
San Jose
San Jose is a mostly residential barangay sitting between the city centre and the north highway corridor – it’s the ultimate spot of convenience for transport links heading up north.
PPC Baywalk Park
A breezy, palm-lined waterfront promenade that shows Puerto Princesa at its most relaxed. Evenings are for grilled seafood, cold beers, and a sunset that gives even El Nido a run for its money.
Puerto Princesa’s Three Best Neighborhoods to Stay in
Not only is Puerto Princesa home to some pretty impressive attractions, but it’s also got some great neighbuorhoods (locally known as barangays) to choose from.
1. Rizal Avenue/Near the Airport: Best for Your First Time
If this is your first time in Puerto Princesa, just stay near Rizal Avenue and call it done. It’s the closest thing the city has to a backpacker hub – the main commercial strip, the tour operators, the tricycle hordes, the cheap eats – all of it radiates out from here, and the airport is so close you could practically roll your bag there.
Puerto Princesa isn’t a city you come to linger in, but rather to pass through on the way to somewhere better, and Rizal Avenue puts you exactly where you need to be to get out fast. The hostel scene here is legitimately solid for a transit city.
The area itself won’t blow your mind. It’s a Filipino city street; busy, loud, full of tricycles and sari-sari stores and the occasional karaoke bar firing up at noon. But there are decent local restaurants within walking distance, the night market is worth a wander, and if you’ve got an evening to kill before pushing on to Palawan’s actual highlights, you could do a lot worse.
- Best For: First-timers, transit travelers, backpackers who want everything on their doorstep
- The Vibe: Busy, loud, and unapologetically Filipino
- Proximity to Airport: Practically next door – 5 minutes by tricycle, walkable if you’re not tied down to tons of luggage
- Transport Level: Easy – tour pickups come to you, vans to El Nido and Port Barton book from here, and tricycles are constant
- Budget: Backpacker-friendly – dorms from around $10, cheap eats all around
- Crowds: Moderate to busy – it’s the main strip, so expect foot traffic, but nothing overwhelming
The Broke Backpacker is supported by you. Clicking through our links may earn us a small affiliate commission, and that's what allows us to keep producing free content 🙂 Learn more.
Top Things to Do in Rizal Avenue
- Visit the historic Blue Church, which was built in 1872. Also known as the Immaculate Conception Cathedral, this building is especially known for its blue stained-glass windows and façade.
- Stroll the Puerto Princesa City Baywalk, a popular spot for watching the sunset.
- Use it as a launchpad for day trips – you’re in a good spot for heading out early to places like the Puerto Princesa Underground River
Best Hostel: Reef Hostel
The pool alone at Reef Hostel earns it serious points – when you’re killing time in Puerto Princesa waiting for your van to El Nido, having somewhere to float and do absolutely nothing is more valuable than it sounds. Chuck in a ping pong table, a courtyard that actually gets people out of their dorms and talking to each other, and rooms clean enough to restore your faith in budget accommodation, and you’ve got a stopover spot that might make you voluntarily extend your one-night stay to two.
Best Hotel: Wanderlust Bed & Breakfast
Wanderlust Bed & Breakfast offers various types of units – including Budget, Premium, and Quadruple rooms. Offering a daily continental, vegetarian, or American breakfast, the hotel lies close to some of the top attractions in Puerto Princesa, including the Immaculate Conception Cathedral and the Palawan Museum. After an exciting day of sightseeing, you can always wind down with a soothing body treatment at the hotel’s spa.
Best Airbnb: Spacious 2-Bedroom Guesthouse
Cosy home comforts beckon at this charming holiday rental that’s perfectly suited for groups! Now, this space does have two bedrooms to sleep four comfortably. If you need to squeeze in a few more guests, though, you can always take advantage of the floor mattresses, single beds, and sofa-bed.
There’s a kitchen that’s well-outfitted with everything you’ll need to prepare a meal, but with some of Rizal Avenue’s best eateries practically on your doorstep, why bother cooking, right?
2. San Jose – Best to Stay for Onward Travel
If you’ve just landed in Puerto Princesa and are making your way north to the rest of Palawan, San Jose is a great spot to base yourself. It’s not too far from the bus station where you’d be setting off up to El Nido and beyond, making life pretty straightforward.
If your accommodation has a kitchen, be sure to head to the San Jose New Market, a popular market where you’ll find just about everything from fresh produce to local snacks or even collectibles and handcrafted souvenirs.
What I personally loved the most about San Jose – other than the cheap prices, of course – is that it’s an excellent destination for mingling with the locals. Maybe you can find a homestay and immerse yourself in a rich cultural experience. San Jose is exactly where you’ll experience Puerto Princesa in its most unvarnished form, away from those loud gaggles of overly excited tourists.
- Best For: Budget travelers looking for a slice of local life
- The Vibe: Residential and commercial highway strip
- Proximity to Airport: 15-20 minute drive
- Transport Level: Easy – highway location means tour vans and shuttles stop here regularly
- Budget: One of the cheapest areas in the city
- Crowds: Low to moderate – mostly locals and business travelers rather than backpackers
Photo: Jeck M. (Flickr)
Top Things to Do in San Jose:
- Stroll around the San Jose New Market, a super lively place that’s open daily from 5 a.m. to 8 p.m. I suggest heading there earlier in the morning to avoid the crowds.
- Relax in Mendoza Park, a beautiful green space that houses a 3-story City Gallery Tower, a pond, a fountain, and gorgeous Palawan cherry blossoms.
- Sign up for a guided tour that’ll take you through the most popular Puerto Princesa spots in just half a day
Best Hostel: Green Turtle Backpackers Guesthouse
A great option for budget travellers, this guesthouse comes with just about everything you need for one heck of a comfy stay!
Offering transportation to Port Barton and El Nido, the hostel also boasts a balcony hangout area where you can buy a beer and mingle with other backpackers.
Best Apartment: La Casa d Aitor Poolside Apartments
This is in a great central spot – very near to the main road, Andrews Supermarket and San Jose Market if you want to bring home some produce or souvenirs. Plus, you have the entire apartment to yourself, which means you can properly spread out, even if you are planning to spend only a night or two. It’s got a pool table and swimming pool, which I believe to be the only forms of entertainment you’d ever need to keep yourself busy.
Best Airbnb: Charming 3 Bedroom House for 8
This charming house offers three bedrooms to comfortably sleep up to eight guests. Once you end up splitting it per person, it works out to be ridiculously affordable! While you’ll be close to various eateries that serve the best Filipino food, rest assured that the space does offer a well-equipped kitchen that you can use to make your own meals.
3. PPC Baywalk Park – Best Area for Chill Vibes
Baywalk is a seafront promenade, it’s a local hangout spot especially in the evenings, and it’s the closest Puerto Princesa gets to a relaxed waterfront scene. Puerto Princesa isn’t going to win any awards as a beach destination, but the Baywalk is the city at its most likeable. The two-kilometre waterfront promenade is where the locals jog, families spread out, and vendors set up grills piled with fresh seafood and street food as the sun goes down. It’s free, it’s breezy, and a great way to kill time in the city.
Come late afternoon. Before 4pm it’s an exposed sun trap with about three stalls open; by 6pm the whole strip is alive and you can eat grilled prawns for next to nothing while watching fishing boats come in. There are rental bikes if you want to cover the length of it, a night market near the entrance worth a poke around, and the Firefly Watching boats on the Iwahig River depart from here too, which makes it a natural base for an evening out.
- Best For: Travelers with a free evening and anyone who wants a slower pace after a day of tours
- The Vibe: Breezy, local, and genuinely relaxed
- Proximity to Airport: A 10 minute tricycle ride away
- Transport Level: Easy enough – tricycles run here regularly, and it’s walkable from Plaza Cuartel and the cathedral
- Budget: Super cheap
- Crowds: Quiet during the day, livelier from 6pm onwards but never overwhelming
Top Things to Do in PPC Baywalk Park
- Watch the sunset over Honda Bay
- Grab grilled seafood and street food from the waterfront vendors
- Rent a bike and cycle the length of the promenade
- Browse the night market near the entrance
- Take a Firefly Watching boat tour on the Iwahig River departing from the Baywalk
- Stroll or jog along the palm-lined walkway
- Visit Plaza Cuartel war memorial just a short walk away
Best Hostel: Mojo Hostel
The upstairs social area has proper cocktail bar energy – lowkey, well-designed, the sort of spot you meant to sit in for one drink and somehow lose two hours to. Beds are genuinely comfortable, rooms are clean, and the front desk staff are the type who actually know their stuff when it comes to sorting tours.
Best Hotel: Inn Ka Kay Mame
This spot is great value for money. You’re a five-minute walk from SM Shopping Town, the Wi-Fi actually works, and there’s Netflix for those nights when you’ve had enough of being a traveler and just want to horizontal. The street does quite noisy, but it’s a small pay off for a location so central.
Best Airbnb: Lighthouse Pension
Having a little extra space, and the kitchenette, definitely feels like a slice of home after so long on the road. Perfect for travelers and backpackers, you can work or read on comfortable spaces or watch TV – it serves as a great rest stop to recharge your social battery before hopping over to the next part of the Philippines.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance for Puerto Princesa
Before you set off, getting good travel insurance is essential. You hope you don’t need it, but it’s not worth the risk.
ALWAYS sort out your backpacker insurance before your trip. There’s plenty to choose from in that department, but a good place to start is Safety Wing.
They offer month-to-month payments, no lock-in contracts, and require absolutely no itineraries: that’s the exact kind of insurance long-term travellers and digital nomads need.
SafetyWing is cheap, easy, and admin-free: just sign up lickety-split so you can get back to it!
Click the button below to learn more about SafetyWing’s setup or read our insider review for the full tasty scoop.
Which Part of Puerto Princesa Should You Choose?
When they say it’s more about the journey than the destination, it’s fair to say that Puerto Princesa is a good sum up of that. Sure, it’s not going to be one of the most stunning visits you’ll frequent in the Philippines, but as far as transit cities go, it could be a hell of a lot worse (trust me, I would know).
If you’re flying elsewhere in the Philippines, I’d stay near the airport by Rizal Avenue. If you’re hopping on a bus up Palawan, stick to San Jose to be close to the highway.
Honestly though, Puerto Princesa is so small that ‘area’ almost doesn’t matter. It’s more about picking the right accommodation than the right neighborhood. Enjoy friends!
Surprised you don’t have Fight Club Philippines in here, the first fitness resort and hostel in the Philippines. It is a unique destination and caters to backpackers who want a fitness holiday centered around combat sports like Western Boxing and Muay Thai. There is nothing else like it in the Philippines.