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El Nido is a municipality located at the
northwestern tip of the province of Palawan in the Philippines.
It is about 430 kilometers southwest of Manila, and about 238
kilometers northwest of Puerto Princesa, Palawan’s capital. El Nido
is bordered by the Linapacan Strait in the north, the Sulu Sea in
the east, and the South China Sea in the west. The Municipality of
El Nido is composed of 18 barangays (villages) covering a total land
area of 50,000 hectares. Its population of 27,000 people, is a mix
of native Palaweños, with a heavy presence of migrants from other
parts of the Philippines.
El Nido is named after the edible nests of Swiftlets (Collocalia
Fuciphaga) found in the crevices of its limestone cliffs.
These nests, “nido” in Spanish, are the main ingredient for the
gourmet nido soup.El Nido is considered as a showcase of
Palawan’s geology and diverse wildlife. Its majestic limestone
cliffs stand guard over clear waters, with hundreds of species
of tropical fishes and corals, and three species of endangered
sea turtles. El Nido’s forests are host to more than 100
species of birds, a large number of which are endemic to
Palawan.
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