Palawan awards and rankings

How this page is built: we list rankings from the publishers themselves where their pages load, and from dated news reports where they do not. Each row gives the year, the rank and the source. Reader polls measure popularity, not inspections.

Palawan rankings at a glance

Island rankings in 2026

Two magazines with almost the same name ran separate reader polls in 2026, and they ranked Palawan differently.

• Conde Nast Traveller (UK edition): Palawan is No. 1 in Asia with 98.99, ahead of Phu Quoc, Vietnam (98.26) and Koh Lanta, Thailand (97.50). The page also says sustainability points went to Palawan.
• Conde Nast Traveler (US edition): Palawan is No. 3 in Asia with 94.32, behind Phu Quoc (95.26) and Boracay (94.60).
• Travel + Leisure Luxury Awards Asia Pacific 2026: the Philippine Information Agency reported Palawan as the fourth best island in Asia Pacific. The New Straits Times gives the top four as Koh Samui, Phu Quoc, Bali and Palawan.
• Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards 2026: Koh Samui won best island in the world. Palawan is not in the 2026 world top 20 as listed by Time Out, after placing No. 2 in 2025. We could not load T+L's own 2026 page (it blocks our checker), so we have not confirmed whether Palawan appears lower on that list.

Island rankings in 2025

• Travel + Leisure World's Best Awards 2025: Palawan was No. 2 among islands in the world with 93.60, behind Paros, Greece (96.50), and the winner of the Asia list with a reader score of 93.60, ahead of Bali (93.25) and the Maldives (92.65).
• Conde Nast Traveler (US) Readers' Choice 2025: Palawan was No. 5 in Asia with 90.23. GMA News reported it was No. 6 in 2024.

Beach rankings

Entalula Beach sits on a small island in El Nido's Bacuit Bay and is reached by boat. On The World's 50 Best Beaches it was No. 4 in 2024, No. 2 in the world and best in Asia in 2025, and No. 1 in 2026, as reported by GMA News and Philstar. Philstar reports that 2026 winners move to the list's "Best of the Best" section the following year, and that another El Nido beach, Hidden Beach, is already there.

The same Conde Nast Traveler (US) Philippines beaches story also lists Amanpulo on Pamalican Island in northern Palawan.

What the rankings mean for a trip

Reader polls reward how much voters enjoyed a place, so they are a sign of popularity rather than a quality check. Entalula Beach is a boat stop, so plan it through an El Nido tour or private boat; see El Nido island hopping tours and the El Nido eco fee. For crowds and weather by month, see best time to visit Palawan.

Related pages

• Palawan travel guide
• El Nido vs Coron
• El Nido island hopping tours
• Nacpan Beach, El Nido
• Seven Commando Beach, El Nido

FAQs

Is Palawan the best island in the world?

Not on the latest lists. Travel + Leisure readers ranked Palawan No. 2 in the world in 2025, behind Paros. In 2026 the T+L world winner was Koh Samui, and Palawan was not in the top 20 reported by Time Out.

Which award named Palawan the best island in Asia in 2026?

Conde Nast Traveller's 2026 Readers' Choice Awards (the UK edition), with a score of 98.99, published Oct 6, 2026.

What is the best beach in the world for 2026?

Entalula Beach in El Nido, Palawan, according to The World's 50 Best Beaches 2026. It was No. 2 in 2025 and No. 4 in 2024.

Why do Conde Nast Traveler and Conde Nast Traveller rank Palawan differently?

They are separate US and UK editions with separate reader votes. In 2026 the UK edition put Palawan No. 1 in Asia and the US edition put it No. 3.

Has Palawan won Travel + Leisure's best island award?

Palawan won T+L's best island in Asia in the 2025 World's Best Awards with 93.60, and placed No. 2 in the world that year.