Palawan is not served by one airport. Four main airports take passenger flights, they sit at very different points of a long province, and one of them is not even on the same island as the others. Book the wrong one and you do not lose a short hop — you lose most of a travel day on the road, or an entire sea crossing.
PPS
Puerto Princesa International Airport
Mainland Palawan
Palawan’s main gateway, classified as an international airport by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines and sitting inside Puerto Princesa city itself. Everything on mainland Palawan starts here: the city, Sabang and the Underground River on the west coast, Honda Bay on the east, and the north road corridor through Port Barton and San Vicente to El Nido. It is also where the long southbound drive to Buliluyan Port for Balabac begins.
Reaches: The whole mainland, north and south
Best for: Any itinerary with more than one mainland stop.
A private airport in Barangay Villa Libertad, a short way north of El Nido town. It puts you on Bacuit Bay without driving the mainland corridor, which suits a short trip with El Nido as the only base. Two things to weigh: it is a small airstrip served by regional aircraft with tighter baggage allowances than a mainline flight, and it does nothing to shorten the trip to Coron — that is still a separate crossing.
Reaches: El Nido and Bacuit Bay
Best for: Short trips where El Nido is the only stop.
The province’s newest passenger airport, on the north-west mainland coast. It opened to general aviation on 22 June 2017 and to commercial flights by the end of that year, built as an alternative way into the north for the Long Beach and Port Barton side of the coast. Worth a look if San Vicente or Port Barton is your first night, and it makes a fly-in, drive-out northern itinerary possible.
Reaches: San Vicente, Long Beach and the Port Barton coast
Best for: Starting in San Vicente or Port Barton rather than Puerto Princesa.
The Calamianes gateway, on Busuanga Island and shared between the municipalities of Coron and Busuanga. It is named after Francisco B. Reyes, mayor of Coron from 1936 to 1939, who donated the land the airport complex stands on. The point that catches people out: USU is not on mainland Palawan, and no road connects it to PPS, ENI or SWL. Coron is reached by air or by sea, never by car from the mainland.
Reaches: Coron town, Busuanga and the Calamianes resorts
Best for: Coron, Busuanga stays and Calamianes island resorts.
The cheapest fare into Palawan is regularly the most expensive decision on the trip, because the province is long and the road legs between its gateways are real travel days. Work backwards from where you are sleeping on night one.
A mainland trip with several stops
Fly into PPS and drive north. It is the only gateway that reaches every mainland stop.
We do not publish flight times, fares or schedules for any of these airports: what operates changes by season, operator and date, and a figure that is stale by the time you read it is worse than no figure. What we can tell you is what each arrival reaches by road, and quote the transfer that follows it.
Common questions
How many airports does Palawan have?
Four main airports take passenger flights and they serve very different parts of the province: Puerto Princesa International Airport (PPS) in the city on the mainland, El Nido Airport or Lio (ENI) near El Nido, San Vicente Airport (SWL) on the north-west mainland coast, and Francisco B. Reyes Airport (USU) on Busuanga Island in the Calamianes. Taytay also has its own small provincial airfield, Cesar Lim Rodriguez Airport (RZP), on the mainland road between Puerto Princesa and El Nido; most travellers reach Taytay by road from PPS instead, and we quote RZP pickups too.
Should I fly into Puerto Princesa or El Nido?
It depends on how many stops you have. Puerto Princesa (PPS) is the mainland’s main gateway and the start of the road corridor to Sabang, Port Barton, San Vicente and El Nido, so it suits any multi-stop mainland trip. El Nido (ENI) is a small private airstrip a short way from El Nido town and is worth it when El Nido is your only base and the trip is short — it saves the mainland drive but carries tighter baggage limits.
Can I fly into Puerto Princesa and drive to Coron?
No. Coron town is on Busuanga Island in the Calamian group and mainland Palawan’s road network does not reach it. From a PPS arrival you would still need a sea or air crossing. If Coron is on your itinerary, fly into Francisco B. Reyes Airport (USU) or plan the crossing deliberately.
Which airport is closest to the Underground River?
Puerto Princesa International Airport (PPS). The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park is reached overland from the city to Sabang on the west coast, then by local boat from Sabang wharf. Park entry is controlled, so confirm your permit before treating the road transfer as a park booking.
Do you pick up from all four main airports?
Yes — private airport transfers from PPS, ENI, SWL and USU are all quoted, and so are pickups at Taytay’s small airfield (RZP). Send the airport code, your flight and the accommodation you are heading to, and the pickup is tied to your confirmed arrival rather than an assumed time. Where a Calamianes resort needs a boat hand-off after the road leg, that is planned into the same quote.
Still deciding on the flight?
Tell us the places you want to see and the nights you have, and we will tell you which gateway makes the itinerary work — then quote the private transfers from the terminal onward. It is easier to change an unbooked flight than to drive back down the length of Palawan.
