El Nido Island Hopping ToursEl Nido Private Boat Tour: What You Are Actually Buying
An el nido private boat tour costs ₱6,000 to ₱11,600 for the whole bangka against ₱1,200 to ₱1,800 a head on a joiner, and the thing it buys is not luxury. It is the clock. Chartering lets you leave at 07:30 instead of 08:45, run a route in reverse, and reach the Big Lagoon or Secret Beach before the fleet that pulls out of the town beach an hour behind you. That head start is worth the money for some travellers and worth nothing for others, and this page is about telling the two apart.
About the private option
Faster than a bangka between stops, which is how two lettered routes fit into one day
Per person on this listing, rated 4.8 from 30 reviews. A whole-bangka charter in town runs ₱6,000 to ₱11,600
The joiner fleet leaves between 08:30 and 09:00. A charter can be on the water at 07:30
Big Lagoon, Hidden Beach and the best of both routes in a seven-hour day
The ₱400 eco fee, the roughly ₱200 Big Lagoon entrance and the ₱300 kayak are charged the same as on any joiner boat
Up to 24 hours before departure
Check dates for the private speedboat
Live calendar for the private Tour A and C day out of El Nido.
What a Private Boat Actually Buys You
The Hour That Changes the Day
Before you price a charter, know what the shared alternative costs: the four lettered El Nido island hopping tours run ₱1,200 to ₱1,800 a head and cover the same stops.
Every joiner bangka in El Nido leaves the town beach inside the same twenty-minute window, between 08:30 and 09:00, and they all work the same four routes. That is why the first stop of the day is crowded and why the queue at the Secret Lagoon crack can cost you twenty minutes for a two-minute swim.
A charter leaves when you tell it to. On the water at 07:30 you are inside the Big Lagoon before the first joiner boat has tied up outside it. The kayak concession is open, the water has nobody in it, and the light is better than it will be all day.
This is the honest sales pitch for private boats in El Nido, and every operator who is straight with you will make it. It is not a nicer boat, a better lunch or a different set of islands. It is a head start.
Running the Route Backwards
The second thing a charter buys is order. Joiner boats run the stops in the standard sequence because that is what the fleet does and nobody wants to arrive at a beach against the flow. A private crew will reverse it.
On Tour B that means Pinagbuyutan first thing with nobody on it. On Tour C it means the Matinloc Shrine early and Helicopter Island at the end, after the day boats have gone home. On Tour A it means Seven Commandos at opening and the Big Lagoon before it fills.
Say so at booking rather than on the beach. Crews will usually do it, but the captain needs to know before he has planned the fuel and the lunch stop.
What It Does Not Buy
A private boat does not get you past the rules. Engines are still banned inside the Big Lagoon, so you still tie up at the mouth, still pay roughly ₱300 for a kayak and about ₱200 to enter. The ₱400 Eco-Tourism Development Fee still applies, once, valid ten days.
It does not combine lagoons either. The Big Lagoon sits on Tour A and the Small Lagoon on Tour D, and that split is a town ordinance rather than an operator preference, so no amount of money puts both on one morning.
And it does not guarantee weather. If the harbour master closes the Tapiutan Strait, your charter stays in the sheltered bay like everyone else's boat.
Joiner, Private Bangka or Speedboat
Three ways to spend a day in Bacuit Bay. Peso figures are the going rate in El Nido town; dollar figures use ₱61.06 to the dollar on 5 August 2026.
| Option | Cost | Group | Book | Departure | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joiner bangka | ₱1,200-1,800 each | 12, 15 or 25 passengers | 08:30-09:00 with the fleet | Solo travellers and couples on a budget | |
| Private bangka charter | ₱6,000-11,600 the boat | Your group only | Your call, from about 07:00 | Groups of five or more, families, photographers | |
| Private speedboat | $81.84 each | Small, fast | Early, and quick between stops | Two routes in one day, or a short trip |
Add the ₱400 eco fee and any lagoon, kayak or shrine charges to every column. All of them are cash, collected on the day.
A Private Tour A and C Day
Order is set by the captain on the morning according to wind and where the fleet is. A private boat's advantage is that it can change its mind; a joiner boat cannot.
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07:00
Eco fee and pickup
₱400 in cash at the office if it is your first tour, then down to the beach while the joiner crews are still loading.
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07:30
Big Lagoon
Tie up at the mouth, kayak in, roughly ₱300 for the kayak and ₱200 to enter. An hour before the fleet arrives.
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09:00
Shimizu or Seven Commandos
Snorkelling and a beach stop while the Tour A boats are still queuing behind you at the lagoon.
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10:30
Across to Matinloc
The speedboat crosses the Tapiutan Strait in a fraction of a bangka's time, which is where the day is won.
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11:15
Hidden Beach
Swim in around the rock screen. Life jackets on, nothing left loose on the deck.
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12:30
Lunch
On a beach, cooked or brought depending on the operator. The longest stop of the day.
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14:00
Helicopter Island
The best snorkelling in the bay, taken late when the day boats have moved on.
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15:30
Back to town
Seven hours door to door, against the eight a single joiner route takes.
Costs, and Who It Makes Sense For
Where the Break-Even Sits
A whole-bangka charter at ₱6,000 to ₱11,600 against a joiner ticket at ₱1,200 to ₱1,800 puts the break-even at roughly five to six people on the cheaper charters and closer to eight on the pricier ones. Below that you are paying a premium; above it, chartering is simply cheaper per head as well as better.
So the maths is easy for a family of six or two couples travelling together. It is harder for a pair, where the same day costs three or four times a joiner ticket for the same islands.
The private speedboat listing here sidesteps the maths by selling per person: $81.84 each for a seven-hour day covering Tour A and Tour C highlights, rated 4.8 from 30 reviews. That is about three joiner tickets, and it buys you two routes rather than one.
Who Should Charter
Solo travellers and couples on a normal budget should take a joiner. The stops are identical, the lunch is the same food cooked by the same kind of crew, and the money is better spent on a second day on the water than on having the first one to yourself.
- Groups of five or more, where the per-head cost drops below a joiner ticket
- Families with small children, who need to eat, nap and leave a stop on their own schedule
- Photographers, who need the reverse route and the early light more than they need the price
- Anyone with one day only, because the head start decides how much of that day is spent queuing
- Travellers who get seasick, who can pick their weather window rather than the fleet's
Booking a Charter in Town
Every office on Calle Real and Rizal Street will quote a charter. Prices move with the size of the boat, the season and how the day is going, and there is more negotiation on a private boat than on a standardised joiner rate.
Agree three things in writing before you pay: the departure time, the stop order, and whether lunch is included and for how many. The first two are the whole reason you are chartering and the third is where quotes quietly differ.
Booking online instead gives you a fixed price and free cancellation up to 24 hours out, which matters in the June to October monsoon when a Tour C crossing can be called off the night before. What it does not give you is the flexible route, so if a custom itinerary is the point, book on the beach and put the time and the order in the message before you hand over cash.
Where a Private Day Can Reach
A charter works the same Bacuit Bay stops as the joiner fleet. What changes is the order and the hour, and on a speedboat, how much of the bay fits into one day.
Questions About Private Boats in El Nido
How much is a private boat tour in El Nido?
A whole-bangka charter runs about ₱6,000 to ₱11,600 depending on the operator and the size of the boat, which is roughly $98 to $190 at ₱61.06 to the dollar on 5 August 2026. That is for the boat, not per person, so it splits. The per-person alternative is the private speedboat covering Tour A and C at $81.84. On top of either, the ₱400 eco fee, lagoon entrances and kayak rental are charged the same as on a shared boat.
Is a private tour in El Nido worth it?
For five or more people, yes on price alone: the charter costs less per head than joiner tickets and you get the departure time and the stop order as well. For a couple it is a luxury, and the honest advice is that two joiner days cost less than one charter and show you more of the bay. The exception is anyone with a single day, where leaving at 07:30 instead of 08:45 decides whether you spend the morning in the Big Lagoon or in a queue outside it.
Can you combine Tour A and Tour C in one day?
Not on a shared bangka, which runs one lettered route per day. A private speedboat can, because it covers the water between stops fast enough to fit both, and that is exactly what this seven-hour listing does: the Big Lagoon and the Tour A stops in the morning, then across the Tapiutan Strait for Hidden Beach and Helicopter Island. What no boat can do is put the Big Lagoon and the Small Lagoon together, because a 2018 town ordinance split them onto Tour A and Tour D.
Does a private boat skip the lagoon fees?
No. The ₱400 Eco-Tourism Development Fee applies to every visitor once, valid 10 days. The Big Lagoon entrance of about ₱200 and the roughly ₱300 kayak are collected at the lagoon itself, by the site collector and the kayak concession, and a charter pays them like anyone else. Motorised boats are banned past the lagoon mouth regardless of what you paid for the boat.
How many people fit on a private bangka?
Charters are the same boats that run joiner tours, so 12, 15 or 25 passengers depending on the vessel. Most groups chartering are far below that, which is the point: the space is yours. If the group size matters, ask which boat you are getting before you pay, because operators allocate by what is free that morning.
Can I choose my own route on a private boat?
Within limits. Operators will reverse a lettered route, extend a stop, or drop one you do not care about, and that flexibility is most of what you are paying for. What they will not do is mix stops across the lagoon split or go outside the permitted sites. Agree the stop order and the departure time in writing at booking, not on the beach on the morning.
What Guests Wrote About Going Private
We left at half seven and had the Big Lagoon completely to ourselves for about forty minutes. By the time we were paddling back out there were maybe fifteen boats queuing at the mouth. That alone was worth the money.
Six of us split a bangka and it came out cheaper per person than the joiner tickets we priced the day before. Crew ran Tour B backwards so we got Pinagbuyutan first with nobody there. Ask for it, they were happy to do it.
Speedboat covered a lot of ground and we saw both the Big Lagoon and Hidden Beach in a day, which you cannot do otherwise. It is a fast bumpy ride between stops though, so not for anyone who gets seasick.