Palawan in February: weather, sea conditions and the El Niño outlook

How this page is built: we compile PAGASA station normals, PAGASA monsoon, gale warning, cyclone, El Niño and drought notices, Coast Guard heavy-weather rules, news reports of PAGASA bulletins, and the official 2027 holiday proclamation. Nothing here is first-hand. Normals are 30-year averages and the drought outlook is a forecast, so neither tells you the weather on your dates.

For a specific trip, check PAGASA's gale warning, the day's forecast and any Coast Guard sea travel suspension before you sail.

At a glance

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February weather by station

PAGASA counts a rainy day as a 24-hour period from 8 am with at least 1 mm of rain.

Source: PAGASA Climatological Normals 1991 to 2020 for each station, checked Nov 2026.

Puerto Princesa's 30.7 mm is its lowest monthly total of the year, and Cuyo's 7.1 mm is the lowest of any month at any of the three stations. Coron is the exception on rainfall: March is drier there (15.4 mm), but February has the fewest rainy days of the year, at 2.

Compared with January, February is drier at Puerto Princesa (55.6 mm over 5 rainy days in January) and at Cuyo (15.0 mm), and about the same at Coron (19.2 mm over 3 days). The January rows are on Palawan in January.

Nights are as cool as Palawan gets. Puerto Princesa's February minimum of 23.7 °C is the lowest monthly average there, and Coron (23.6 °C) and Cuyo (25.3 °C) are within 0.1 °C of their January lows. PAGASA's normals also count thunderstorm days: 2 in February at Puerto Princesa and none at Coron or Cuyo.

Average humidity in February is 76% at Coron, 79% at Puerto Princesa and 82% at Cuyo. The prevailing wind is east at Puerto Princesa (4 m/s) and Coron (2 m/s) and northeast at Cuyo (3 m/s). Those wind figures are land station averages, about 7 to 14 km/h. They do not describe the open sea and they smooth out the surges behind gale warnings.

El Nido has no PAGASA station in the normals set; Coron is the nearest northern station, so read it as a regional guide. Model rain and wind for the El Nido area are on El Nido weather by season, and all 12 months for the three stations on Best time to visit Palawan.

El Niño and the drought outlook for February 2027

PAGASA's El Niño Advisory No. 6, issued Nov 3, 2026, says a very strong El Niño is present in the tropical Pacific, that models expect it to continue until the first half of 2027, and that it may peak by the end of 2026. El Niño raises the chance of below-normal rainfall, dry spells and drought, though PAGASA adds that heavy rain can still come with tropical cyclones and other rain-bearing systems.

PAGASA's drought outlook issued the same day tracks Palawan month by month:

Source: PAGASA dry conditions, dry spells and drought outlooks, November 2026 to April 2027 (issuance Nov 3, 2026), checked Nov 2026.

PAGASA's definitions are about rain against the average. Meteorological drought means three consecutive months of way below normal rainfall (more than 60% under average) or five consecutive months of below normal rainfall (21% to 60% under). By the end of February 2027 the outlook has 68 provinces in drought nationwide.

What this means for a February trip is less clear than the label suggests. February is already one of the driest months in Palawan's normals, so a percentage shortfall there comes off an already small total. We have no sourced report on water supply for resorts or towns in Palawan, so we make no claim about it. These lines are from the Nov 3, 2026 issuance; check PAGASA's site for a newer one before you rely on them.

Amihan winds and sea conditions in February

PAGASA declared the onset of the Northeast Monsoon (Amihan) on Oct 27, 2026. Its notice says the Amihan is expected to become dominant over most of the country in the coming months, bringing cooler weather, episodes of cold surges and rough sea conditions, and that shear lines, tropical cyclones and the Intertropical Convergence Zone may also shape the weather. The previous season ended on Mar 23, 2026, when PAGASA announced the wind had shifted from northeasterly to easterly, so February 2026 was inside the season.

On Nov 9, 2026, at 5:00 PM, PAGASA issued Gale Warning No. 1 for strong to gale-force winds associated with the northeast monsoon, for seaboards of northern Luzon. The warning covers sea areas within 30 nautical miles of the coast and says sea travel is risky for small seacraft, including all motor bancas of any type or tonnage, whose crews are advised to remain in port or seek safe harbor.

In February 2026, the PAGASA sea bulletin reported by Rappler on Feb 6 put the seaboards of Palawan in the "up to moderate seas" band, with waves up to 2 meters and a note that small vessels should take precautionary measures or avoid sailing, if possible. That was one day during a tropical storm, not a monthly average.

Island hopping and the El Nido to Coron ferry both run on the day's sea state. Leave a buffer day before an onward flight.

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Typhoons in February: what Basyang did in 2026

PAGASA says about 20 tropical cyclones enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility in a year and about 8 or 9 cross the country, with nearly 70% of typhoons developing between July and October. February is far from that peak.

It is not immune, though. According to Rappler's reports of PAGASA bulletins, Basyang (Penha) entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Feb 3, 2026, as the second tropical cyclone of the year, after PAGASA had estimated up to one for February. By the 8 am bulletin on Feb 6, Signal No. 1 (strong winds of 39 to 61 km/h) was up over the northern part of Palawan, listed as Taytay, El Nido, Dumaran, Araceli, Roxas and San Vicente, including the Calamian, Cuyo and Cagayancillo Islands; GMA News carried the same list from the 11 am bulletin. The same Rappler report put Palawan in PAGASA's heavy to intense rain band (100 to 200 mm) for Feb 6 and the moderate to heavy band (50 to 100 mm) for Feb 7.

Basyang made all five of its landfalls in Mindanao and the Visayas. It weakened into a low pressure area over the Sulu Sea at 2 am on Feb 7 and dissipated at 8 am, and Signal No. 2 was the highest signal raised.

The signal list counts for boat days because of a Coast Guard rule. Under Philippine Coast Guard Memorandum Circular 02-23, vessels may not sail, except to take shelter, when Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 1 or higher is raised at the origin, along the route or at the destination. El Nido and the Calamian Islands, where Coron sits, were both on the Signal No. 1 list. How operators handle suspensions is covered on El Nido island hopping tours and Coron island tours.

Dates in February 2027

Proclamation No. 1427 (Sep 8, 2026) sets the 2027 holidays. Two February dates appear in it:

• Chinese New Year, Saturday Feb 6, 2027. The proclamation says the date may be declared a special (non-working) day.
• EDSA People Power Revolution anniversary, Thursday Feb 25, 2027. The 41st anniversary, listed in the proclamation as a special working day, so it is not a day off.

There is no regular holiday in February 2027. Holy Week comes next, with Maundy Thursday on Mar 25 and Good Friday on Mar 26, 2027, both regular holidays.

We have no sourced occupancy or room rate series for Palawan in February, so this page makes no crowd or price claim. Check live ferry, flight and hotel inventory for your dates. Other trip costs are on Palawan trip cost.

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Related pages

• Best time to visit Palawan
• Best time to visit El Nido
• Palawan in January
• Palawan in December
• El Nido island hopping tours
• Coron island tours
• El Nido to Coron
• El Nido vs Coron
• Puerto Princesa Underground River
• Is Palawan safe?

Last checked Nov 2026. Sources are listed at the end of this page. Weather figures are PAGASA's official 1991 to 2020 station normals; the El Niño and drought lines are PAGASA's Nov 3, 2026 advisory and outlook; holiday dates are from Proclamation No. 1427 for 2027.

FAQs

Is February a good time to visit Palawan?

On rainfall, yes: February is the driest month at Puerto Princesa and Cuyo on PAGASA's normals, and Coron averages 2 rainy days. It is still Amihan season, when PAGASA expects rough sea episodes, and February 2026 had a tropical storm that raised Signal No. 1 over northern Palawan. Check the day's warnings before boat days.

Is February a good time for the Philippines?

PAGASA puts February in the cool dry part of the national dry season, which runs December to February, before the hot dry months of March to May. For 2027, PAGASA's Nov 3, 2026 outlook expects drought in 68 provinces by the end of February under a very strong El Niño, which means less rain than usual rather than a change in season.

When is the best time to go to Palawan?

We do not rank months. On PAGASA's normals, February to April has the fewest rainy days at all three Palawan stations, 2 to 5 a month, and July to October holds the national typhoon peak. Every month is laid out on Best time to visit Palawan.

How is the weather in Palawan in October?

Wet. October is Puerto Princesa's wettest month on PAGASA's normals, at 212.9 mm over 15 rainy days, and Coron averages 241.2 mm over 14 days and Cuyo 260.8 mm over 14. It is also inside the national typhoon peak of July to October.

How is the weather in Palawan in December?

December is the first month of the dry season but still has leftover rain: 174.9 mm over 9 rainy days at Puerto Princesa, 90.3 mm over 6 at Coron and 71.0 mm over 5 at Cuyo. Highs average 30.9 to 32.3 °C. Details and holiday dates are on Palawan in December.

When not to visit Palawan?

We do not name months to avoid. The wettest months on PAGASA's 1991 to 2020 normals are July at Coron (521.5 mm over 21 rainy days) and Cuyo (408.9 mm over 21), and October at Puerto Princesa (212.9 mm over 15). Nationally, PAGASA says nearly 70% of typhoons develop from July to October.