We arrived at Best Western Plus The Ivywall Hotel Puerto Princesa, past midnight—exhausted but excited for our family's first trip to Palawan. The vacation also doubled as a surprise birthday celebration for our toddler, Kid A. He arrived straight from school in his uniform, which made for a pretty funny start to the trip! It was also my birthday—but unlike his, mine, obviously, wasn't a surprise.

BEST WESTERN PLU THE IVYWALL HOTEL PUERTO PRINCESA’S MODERNIST FACADE

Having previously stayed at Best Western Plus The Ivywall Resort–Panglao, we were curious to see if the Puerto Princesa property could live up to the excellent experience we had in Bohol. Would The Ivywall's first Best Western Plus franchise in the Philippines deliver the same level of comfort, service, and value? Here's our detailed and honest review after spending four days at the hotel.

“It’s crocodile mating season in Balabac and they’re pretty aggressive during this time” our tricycle driver shouted over the wind as we were hurled across the lantern-lit roads of Puerto Princesa. We just came from their brand-spanking new airport, backpacks in tow at the back of a tricycle, and it disheartened us to hear this news. Our host had already warned us that the weather wasn’t really favorable on our chosen date for Balabac, the southernmost town in Palawan, and now this. It definitely added to our apprehension of pushing ahead with our planned getaway.

EVENINGS AT PUERTO PRINCESA’S RIZAL AVENUE

Without a Plan B and unsure of our next move, we decided to regroup at one of the most famous and pioneering food places in Puerto Princesa, Rene’s Saigon Restaurant. It used to be that you can walk from the airport terminal to Rene’s chao longan, but the new airport terminal is now located farther away—like one tricycle ride away. Tired from the flight, we decided to recharge first before tackling the problem of where to actually go next.

►COMPARE: PUERTO PRINCESA VS CORON VS EL NIDO

Where the heck are my group mates!? I was at the port of Sabang, en route to the world famous Puerto Princesa Underground River for Star Cruises’ shore excursion, and I cannot remember who my guide was and who my van-mates were. Giving up, I boarded the nearest boat and tagged along with an international convoy of Singaporeans, Malaysians, and a Japanese gal with short funky blond hair. I’m going underground, van-mates missing or not.

►CRUISE MORE: RESORTS WORLD ONE

The first thing we looked for as we alighted at the tarmac of Puerto Princesa’s airport was some hot grub to fill our tummy. The ride from Manila was surprisingly fast and undelayed; it was almost like a miracle.

Through a friend, we found AbuLeighCious, a curiously named diner near Holy Trinity University. The name got our attention and we checked it out.

AbuLeighCious is a newly opened bistro that caters mostly to students in the area. Owned and operated by childhood best friends Abu and Leigh who both have a passion for cooking and selling stuff since their teenage years. The tandem decided to open up their own bistro after tiring of the usual food fares around the city.

I have been to Coron twice, El Nido once, and Puerto Princesa thrice. So okay, I think I bit much more than I can chew, promising an answer to the never ending Coron versus El Nido debate. Still unresolved between the two, I decided to complicate matters further by adding Puerto Princesa in the mix.

To have a more objective output, I’ll dissect each destination in categories and rate each one based on my experience. I’ll grade each destination from 1 to 5 stars, with 5 being the highest, then add everything at the end of the post.

Alright, now that I have my disclaimer in bold, let’s get it on!