El Nido (officially the Municipality of El Nido) is a first class municipality and managed resource protected area in the province of Palawan in the Philippines. It is about 420 kilometres (260 mi) southwest of Manila, and about 238 kilometres (148 mi) northeast of Puerto Princesa, Palawan’s capital. According to CNNGo, it is the Best Beach and Island destination in the Philippines for its "extraordinary natural splendor and ecosystem."
Situated in Bacuit Bay, El Nido, covering a land area of 465.1 square kilometres (179.6 sq mi) in the northernmost tip of mainland Palawan, is bordered by the Linapacan Strait in the north, the Sulu Sea in the east, and the South China Sea in the west. It is composed of 45 islands and islets, each has its own unique geological formations. The highest peak is at Cadlao Island, towering up to 640 metres (2,100 ft) above sea level.
Together with Sulu Archipelago, Sabah, and South China Sea, El Nido, being part of Palawan, is located in the tectonically active and seismically active Sunda Plate, a plate that is entirely separate from the Philippine Mobile Belt to which the rest of the Philippines belongs. The Permian to Paleogene rocks and limestone cliffs of El Nido are similar to those that can be found in Ha Long Bay in Vietnam, Guilin in China, as well as Krabi in Thailand, all of which are part of the Sunda Plate.
In 1984, the then Ministry of Natural Resources issued the Administrative Order No. 518, establishing a 360 square kilometres (140 sq mi) maritime area in El Nido as a turtle sanctuary. In 1991, the rest of the Bacuit Bay, including its island and islets, was proclaimed by the Philippine government as a marine reserve. A year later, by virtue of Administrative Order No. 14 Series of 1992 of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, this area was expanded even more. In 1998, its status was elevated to that of a protected area, and it included even the terrestrial ecosystem of El Nido and portions of Taytay.
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