German Island

German Island, Port Barton, Palawan, Philippines

This is an image I intend to put on my screen wallpaper to remind myself to enjoy the present. If there's one regret that I have made during my one-year adventure, it was to allow worry to seep through those moments. What was I thinking? I was worrying about the obscure future in a place like this.

Looking back at the photos now, if I could travel back in time to re-live this place again, I would enjoy it even more. I am not saying I didn't. I did. I think, I should have been more than 100% present at that time. Future will take care of itself. Despite the different scenes everyday, from this day forward, I would love to enjoy each moment more. Time is something that I can never buy back. 

The island

I don't know why they called it German Island. However, It's one of the most popular islands to visit while you're in Port Barton.  


We visited it around March of this year. It's a privately owned island with a white sand beach, a good number of hammocks suspended on coconut trees, barbecue stations used by tour operators for lunch and a lovely snorkeling site. It has a small entrance fee per boat, which is usually excluded from the tour fees. You can spend more than an hour after lunch here.  

A day tour (9AM to 4PM) of two islands and a snorkeling site boat hire in Port Barton costs Php 2500 (US $ 58 / Eur 44). This includes a hearty lunch of grilled fresh seafood, rice, cucumber and tomato veggie salad and fresh mangoes for dessert. We split the cost with another couple and shared the tour with them. 

Tip: Request assistance from the Tourist Center on a mezzanine level next to the jeepney and gas station. You can get it cheaper especially if you are a bigger group of 6. Find more tourists to share the tour with you.  There are random boat men on the beach whose fee will be less expensive if you negotiate with them. However, check if they offer snorkeling gear rental and lunch with it.


Pristine white sand
Lazy afternoon at the hammock
Clear water
Lots of shade
This place reminded us how to play in the water like kids again.
One of the boats from a private island resort
Have a great week everyone!

Love and light,
Arni

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11 comments

  1. omg. this is just absolutely breathtakingly beautiful! i do that too. worry when i should be enjoying the present. sigh. i hope to get myself out of that bad habit!

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  2. I have the same problem with remaining in the 'present' when we go away - I guess it's because you have so much peace and quiet and alone time with your thoughts! This looks like an incredible spot, that water is divine!

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  3. What a heavenly place! It's so beautiful! I wish I could visit and idyllic island like this in the future :)
    I'm supposed to hand in my thesis in three days so I'll take a look at your beautiful photos when I don't feel like writing anymore, to reming of all the wonderful things that are there to enjoy once I'm done with my studies. And then I'll just enjoy the moment for a while, before I start looking for a job :)

    Have a lovely week, Arni!
    xo Irene

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  4. it's true that we sometime appriciate some place more after we leave them. The same as with people.

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  5. It looks totally idyllic. I'm quite like you in that I 'worry' even when I'm on vacation. I'm giving myself a chance in August to let it all go. Let's see how I do.

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  6. What a beautiful place! I'd like to be hanging out there right about now!

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  7. It's easy to let worries bother us even when we're on holidays. It usually takes me a day or 2 to wind down and truely relax while on holidays.

    PS: It's giveaway time on my blog! Hope you join: http://www.underlockandkeyblog.com/2013/06/angelorian-tradition-giveaway.html

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  8. Wow... that white sand! Good screensaver choice :)

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  9. I haven't been to Palawan and I envy you for being so adventurous. We do however travel as well but we go with the whole family, so that's me, hubby and four kids. Here is my question would it be safe to around islands in Palawan with kids? My youngest is now 7 years old...Now following your blog ,btw, hope you could also check out mine at http://www.gastronomybyjoy.com/.

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    1. Hello Joy, welcome to Travel Gourmande. Palawan is safe and people are genuinely nice. Island hopping for kids is pretty safe as well. We saw lots of families with kids. It also depends on which season you go. The months of July to September will have bigger waves. There are some areas in Palawan that may have strong tides when traveling by boat such as the trip from Port Barton to Sabang. Riding a bus/jeepney is an alternative. Great travel advantage for families: The more persons there are on a trip, the cheaper the cost per head gets. Hiring a boat or a van for example for just two persons will be far more expensive than booking it as a group. My family and I traveled two years ago to Coron, there were 9 of us and we were able to get a very good travel package for 3 Days 2 Nights.

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  10. It was called German Island because of two German gentlemen who leased it from the previous owner for almost three decades (80's to early 2000). The most recent nautical charts has it as Regatta Island. Earlier, it was also known as Inaladoan Island.

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