Kamp Tapik - Sibaltan

Sibaltan feels like a hidden gem, tucked away from busy downtown El Nido in a remote fishing village. Travelers often see it as an ideal off-the-grid getaway, where you can disconnect and enjoy a slower pace of life.

The toilets are separate and everything is very basic. It felt a bit disorganized and poorly run. It’s at the far end of the beach, so you need a scooter to get around this area.

The setting had a relaxing, jungle-like feel, and the resort staff were very helpful. Food there was quite nice, but the Wi-Fi didn’t work, and there was no hot water. Electricity was only on from 6 pm to 6 am, so after swimming we had to shower cold, in the dark. Getting there was rough too. We reached Puerto Princesa at 7 pm and took a shuttle that was meant to be quicker, but it took seven hours because of lots of unnecessary stops. The van was tiny, with our legs cramped and every seat occupied, and the trip cost us 15 euros.

The location is beautiful, and the reviews are generally good, so maybe we were just unlucky. On arrival, though, the bungalow we’d booked had been given to someone else. The manager knew we had two children, aged two years and four months, but put us in a treetop bungalow for one night. It was very dirty, with what looked like a thousand ants moving through the room and lots of other dirt. The next day we moved to our booked bungalow, which was nice and tidy, but didn’t match the listing: it was supposed to have three beds and had only one. The restaurant had almost no stock, leaving little choice, and the portions were tiny when food was available. We tried to get some money back because we didn’t get the bungalow we wanted on the first night and then had fewer beds than advertised, but it didn’t work out.