Clothes for the Underground River

What should you wear to the Underground River?

Light, quick-drying clothes: shorts or thin trousers and a T-shirt. Swimwear underneath is optional, since swimming is not allowed at the cave.

Palawan is warm all year. PAGASA's normals for Puerto Princesa City put the mean daily high between 30.9°C in January and 32.9°C in April and May, and humidity stays around 80% for most of the year. Inside the cave it is dim and still, and nobody dresses up.

• Clothes that dry fast. Spray from the pump boat and a wet step at the cave beach are normal. Cotton stays damp for hours; a synthetic T-shirt is dry by lunch.
• Shorts or light trousers. An Inquirer feature on the tour advised shorts and slippers. Light trousers are fine too, and they keep off the insects on the forest path.
• A hat and sunglasses for the boat and the beach. You swap the hat for the hard hat at the cave mouth.
• A spare shirt in your bag. The 6-hour tour's listing asks guests to bring a change of clothes, and the van home is air-conditioned.

Skip the swimsuit as an outfit: a park sign at the river reads "No swimming". If you plan a swim at Sabang beach after lunch, wear it under your clothes.

Sources: PAGASA climatological normals 1991 to 2020, via Wikipedia, Puerto Princesa; Philippine Daily Inquirer, 21 April 2013; the park, notice to the public; GetYourGuide listing 627422.

What shoes should you wear to the Underground River?

Sandals with a strap or water shoes. You step on and off boats, sometimes into shallow water, and walk a short path to the river mouth.

The listings agree on the idea and differ on the detail:

• Sandals or flip-flops. The listing for the tour from the city proper puts flip-flops on its packing list, and the 6-hour tour adds sandals and water shoes.
• No closed shoes at the wharf. The guided day trip's listing asks you to avoid wearing shoes when you board the boat at Sabang Wharf.
• Something with grip. From the cave beach a short walk, across a wooden bridge, leads to the lagoon where the paddle boats wait. The day from the city includes about 10 minutes of trekking, per its listing, and the full-day trip warns of a moderate amount of walking on uneven surfaces.

Our call: sport sandals with a heel strap. They handle the wet step, the path and the beach, and you can walk into a Sabang restaurant in them. Doing the zipline or the mangrove paddle boat as well? The same sandals work for both.

Sources: GetYourGuide listings 607269, 627422, 533011 and 180785.

What do they give you at the cave?

A hard hat, a life vest and an audio device with commentary. The park paddle boat and the boatman come with the tour.

At the lagoon the paddle boats line up below the cliffs. Before you board, the kit goes on:

• A hard hat. The zipline day's listing tells you to put on your hard hat before the cave, and the lowest-price tour's listing says you are given a helmet.
• A life vest for the boats. The 6-hour tour lists a motorized boat with life vest.
• An audio device. The commentary plays as you glide in. The full-day trip lists audio in English, Tagalog, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, French and German.

The boatman steers and the light sweeps the walls, so you do not need a torch: the lowest-price tour's listing puts a flashlight under not allowed. An Inquirer feature on the river described up to 8 passengers to a paddle boat, with the person at the front holding the lamp. Alyssa, on the zipline and mangrove day: "The underground river was so cool, no talking allowed but the audio device explained all the history" (Jun 2026)

Sources: GetYourGuide listings 343766, 541582, 627422 and 180785; Philippine Daily Inquirer, 21 April 2013.

The most booked day: hotel pickup, the Buenavista viewpoint, the boats from Sabang, the cave with an audio device, then lunch by the sea.

★ 4.5 · 8 to 10 hours · from $45

Explore the full-day trip with lunch → Tour details

What should you bring to the Underground River?

Cash in pesos, your passport or ID, a dry bag, sun cream, water and insect repellent. A small bag is easier than a big one.

The packing lists on the listings, put together:

• Cash for the environmental fee. Most tours leave out the environmental fee of PHP 150 per person, paid in cash at the wharf. One listing quotes PHP 120 for people 18 and under and senior citizens. The tour with fees included has it in the price.
• Cash for extras. Tips, lunch on the tours without it, and add-ons bought on the day. One listing prints the optional mangrove tour at PHP 350 and the Sabang zipline at PHP 550.
• A passport or ID card. Several listings ask for one, and a copy is accepted on some.
• A dry bag for your phone, cash and ID on the boats.
• Sun cream and insect repellent. The 6-hour tour asks for biodegradable sunscreen, and the day from the city for biodegradable insect repellent.
• Water. Lunch is included on most tours; on the boat and the beach you want your own bottle.

Keep it small. The firefly tour's listing puts luggage and large bags under not allowed, and the van is where the rest of your things stay while you are on the water.

Sources: GetYourGuide listings 180785, 343766, 541582, 607269, 627422, 813916, 347081 and 453598.

Can you take photos inside the Underground River?

Yes, without flash. Keep your phone in a dry bag until the boat is inside, and stay quiet so the bats and swiftlets are not disturbed.

The cave is home to thousands of bats and swiftlets, per the park, and the visit is built around them: tours run from 08:00 to 16:00 so they do not clash with the animals leaving and returning to the cave. Two of the listings on this site put flash photography under not allowed, and talking is kept to a minimum on the boat.

• Turn the flash off before you board, and the screen brightness down.
• Use a strap or a waterproof case. Two listings suggest a waterproof camera. A phone dropped from a paddle boat is gone.
• Shoot the mouth and the lagoon. The best light is at the entrance, where the green water meets the cliffs. Inside, the boatman's lamp picks out the formations one by one.
• No drones. The listing for the tour with fees included puts drones under not allowed.

Then put the phone away for a minute. The chambers open up overhead, the water is still, and the audio device fills in the story.

Sources: The park, points of interest and notice to the public; GetYourGuide listings 533011, 813916, 607269 and 627422.

What are the rules at the Underground River?

No permit, no entry. No food or plastic bags near the macaques, no feeding or teasing the wildlife, no swimming, no smoking, and no flash in the cave.

The park allows 900 visitors a day, each with a Visitor Entry Permit, and every tour on this site arranges the permit for you. The other rules are posted at the river and printed on the listings:

The monkey rule is the one that matters on the day. Leave snacks and plastic bags in the van, zip your bag, and keep your hands free on the beach. The macaques and the monitor lizards are fun to watch, as long as nobody offers them lunch.

Our permit guide explains the 900-a-day limit and how the Visitor Entry Permit works.

Sources: Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park, notice to the public; GetYourGuide listings 533011, 813916 and 453598.

What should children wear to the Underground River?

The same as adults: light clothes, strapped sandals and a hat. Check the age limits on the listing first, since they differ from tour to tour.

Children must be accompanied by an adult on every listing that mentions them. The age limits the listings print:

For small children, pack a sun hat, a light long-sleeved top for the van, a spare set of clothes and a snack to eat on the way, before you reach the cave beach. Children ride in the same paddle boats as everyone else. A long day in the van is easier with a full-day trip that includes lunch, so nobody has to hunt for a meal in Sabang with a tired child.

Sources: GetYourGuide listings 180785, 607269, 533011, 343766 and 347081.

What is on the Underground River packing checklist?

Light clothes, strapped sandals, a hat, sun cream, insect repellent, a dry bag, water, your ID, and cash for the PHP 150 environmental fee.

The whole list in one place. Most of it fits in a small day bag:

Not on the list: food for the beach, plastic bags, a torch, alcohol and drones. The hard hat, the life vest and the audio device are handed to you at the cave.

Our cost guide sets out which tours include lunch and which fees you pay on the spot.

Sources: GetYourGuide listings 180785, 541582, 607269, 627422, 533011, 813916 and 347081; the park, notice to the public.

Frequently asked questions