Taytai on Palawan - how to get there, what to see, where to stay

General information about Taitai - recreation, infrastructure, beaches

Taytay (Taytay, also pronounced Teitay and Teitay) is a small town in the north of Palawan Island on the east coast, washed by the waters of the Sulu Sea (Taytay on the map). From Puerto Princesa to Tatei 200 kilometers, from El Nido – 70 kilometers.

It is difficult to call Taitai a tourist-developed and attractive place to recover on vacation, but there are still several reasons to visit it. So, here is the most famous and important historical landmark of the whole of Palawan, Fort Santa Isabel, which is definitely worth a visit to every lover of historical places. Taytay is also conveniently located on the road between Puerto Princesa and El Nido, and if you are traveling by car or motorbike, then it may well be an intermediate point on your route for overnight and rest. Well, there is also a special charm of a provincial town, whose residents go about their business, and pay attention to tourists simply as dear guests, without trying to impose unnecessary tourist services at every step. By the way, there are very few foreign tourists here, literally a few. But there are a lot of local tourists here.

There is not much to do in Taitai for more than one day and one night. In one day, or rather even for a few hours, you will be able to visit all its few city attractions, and in the evening you can enjoy spending time in the food court near the walls of the ancient fort.

There is no beach holiday here as such, although there are still a couple of beaches:

• Kuta Beach near the fortress

  This is a tiny beach only a dozen meters wide in the city limits under the walls of the fortress on the left side (Kuta beach on the map). There is sand on the shore, there are several tables with benches installed on it, but it is unlikely that you will be able to swim and relax here. Actually, that's why it's always empty, only rare tourists come to it to take a couple of photos and go for a walk further.

  

  

• Perongyawan Beach (Purongyawan Beach)

  Perongyavan is located just a kilometer from the center in a straight line, but to get to it, you will have to make a considerable detour along the road ( perongyawan beach on the map). You will have to drive / walk more than 3 kilometers, and with a large height difference across the mountain. We are not sure if it is worth it, because when we visited it, it looked very sad: a narrow strip of sand; garbage on the shore; a homemade sign that you need to pay 20 pesos for entering the beach (0.33 USD, see Philippine currency and its exchange rate). You can also rent a gazebo for relaxing for 350 pesos (5.7 USD), If you still decide to relax here. Maybe he looks better at other times, but we saw him like this:

  

  

Tourist and urban infrastructure are poorly developed here, it is more of a village than a city. There is a market and a bunch of small shops where you can buy everything you need, but there are no modern supermarkets here. Payment everywhere is only in cash. We did not find any currency exchange here, but there are ATMs.

There is no official motorcycle rental here, but you can rent transport through hotels or locals. But they ask for a fairly high price by local standards - from 600 pesos per day (9.77 USD). So if you want to rent a motorcycle for a few days and ride around the neighborhood, it will be more profitable to do it in El Nido or even Puerto Princesa, and use it to get here.

Hotels in Taitai and where to stay

There are about a dozen accommodation options in Teitei, mostly simple hotels and guest houses, called pension house here. This is not to say that they are crowded and upon arrival you will not find a place to spend the night. But if you need to stay at a low price, it is better to really book accommodation in advance, otherwise only expensive options may remain on the spot. We stayed in an inexpensive Pem's Pension & Restaurant, and we can safely recommend it for a short stay. Even the most budget room here is presented in the form of a separate house on the territory, equipped with its own bathroom and located just a couple of minutes walk from the fort and within walking distance of other local attractions.

You can also pick up and book other accommodation options in Taitai on these sites:

• 🛌 Search hotels in Taitai on Trip.com
• 🛌 Search for hotels in Taitai on Ostrovok.ru
• 🛌 Search for hotels in Taitai on Yandex.travel

Weather in Taitai and tourist seasons

You can visit Taitai at any time of the year. It is always warm and sunny here, and since this is not a beach resort, it is quite possible to visit the town on rainy days between beach holidays and island tours in El Nido, Puerto Princesa or other beach resorts in Palawan. However, you need to know that the rainy season (low) and the dry season (high) stand out here.

• The dry season runs from January to May. This is the best time to visit, because the probability of typhoons and rains is small, the sky is clear most of the time, it is not very hot. Well, the "driest" and best months are January-March.
• The rainy season lasts here most of the year from June to December. At this time, you can also go on vacation, but it rains and clouds more often, and there is a high probability of typhoons. Typhoons very rarely directly affect Palawan, they can spoil the weather for several days. But in fact, the rainy season is not at all the same as many people used to think after visiting other Southeast Asian countries. Precipitation is short-lived, usually in the evenings, and within an hour after them there is no trace. And even if the sky is covered with clouds, this does not interfere with sunbathing at all.

Typhoons or tropical storms hit the Philippines several times a year, for example, in 2019 it happened 21 times. They occur mainly during the rainy season and affect the north of the island. In general, they do not interfere much with the rest on Palawan, but during the most ferocious typhoons, the movement of ferries completely stops for 1-3 days, and sometimes even evacuation is announced. It is not yet possible to predict the appearance of storms and typhoons for a long period, so just follow the forecasts before the trip, and make a decision immediately before departure. Read more about the seasons in the Philippines and when it's better to go here...

Seasons in Taitai by month, when is the best time to go

Current weather in Taitai and forecast

How to get to Taitai

They rarely go to Taytay on purpose, most often they stop in it on the way from Puerto Princesa to El Nido or back. All buses running between these tourist cities pass through Taitai. These are RoRobus and Cherry Bus buses, as well as tourist minivans. During the day they go almost every hour, there are also night flights. The cost from Puerto Princesa is about 400 pesos (6.51 USD), you can get from El Nido for 100 (1.63 USD). Learn more about how to get to Palawan here, and how to get to the island here.

Buses do not enter the city center, but make a stop at a small bus station near the ring at the entrance to the city. From it to the center, hotels and the fortress are two and a half kilometers on foot, or you can take a tricycle from 60 pesos after bargaining.

You can also go Taytay during the day from El Nido by rented transport or with excursions in minivans. It will take 1-2 hours to travel one way. By the way, in Taitai fuel is much cheaper than in El Nido, so we advise you to refuel here in full at one of the gas stations on the ring at the entrance to the city. For example, during our visit, 1 liter of gasoline at local gas stations cost 55 pesos(0.9 USD), while in El Nido 78 pesos (1.27 USD).

Attractions in Taitai and what to see

There are very few attractions in the town of Taitai, but, as we mentioned above, it is here that one of the most famous and few historical sights of the whole of Palawan is located – Fort Santa Isabel. To visit the fort and other interesting places in the city, you will need only a few hours, and everything can be bypassed on foot. Here's what you can see in Taitai:

• Fort Santa Isabel (Santa Isabel fort) is an ancient Spanish fort of the XVIII century, and now an open–air museum. The cost of the visit is 80 pesos (1.3 USD). Learn more about Fort Santa Isabel here...
• Santa Monica Parish Church is an old Catholic church that was undergoing reconstruction at the time of our visit in 2023.
• Taytay inscription on the mountain – the name of the city, made in the style of "Hollywood" in large letters on the hill, is highlighted in the evening.
• Food court next to the fort (Pagetekan food court) is the only place in Taitai where you can spend time in the evening and have a delicious meal. Rice dishes here cost from 150 pesos, dinner with a drink will cost from 200 pesos.