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Palawan’s Lagen Opens This Month, Reimagined With Conscious Luxury

Lagen reopens after a complete redesign as a 42-key private island retreat, setting the bar for Filipino luxury that’s grounded in culture, craft, and conservation. 
September 03, 2025

Palawan’s Bacuit Bay has long been the backdrop for some of the Philippines’ most postcard-perfect images—limestone cliffs, turquoise water, and islands ringed with forest. Among them is Lagen, a resort that has been welcoming travelers for more than two decades. This September, it reopens after a complete redesign, emerging as a 42-key private island retreat that aims to set a new standard for Filipino , one grounded in culture, craft, and conservation.

The new Lagen pares down its accommodations to just 42 Forest Rooms and Water Villas, leaning into intimacy rather than scale. The rooms themselves are simple in silhouette but layered with cultural references: weaving patterns from the Batak tribe, indigenous motifs from the Tagbanua and Tausug, and partitions that nod to traditional bahay kubo architecture. The effect is contemporary, but unmistakably Filipino.

Public spaces tell a similar story. The arrival hall takes its inspiration from the paraw sailing boats of the Visayas, with carved wood and ceramic beadwork made by artisans. Balconies and outdoor lounges extend living spaces into the landscape, blurring the line between room and island. It’s design as storytelling, with restraint as its guiding principle.

Part of what sets this reimagining apart is how deeply artisans were woven into the process. Olongapo’s clay brickmakers, Cavite’s wood carvers, T’boli weavers, and beadwork artists all contributed to the fabric of the new resort. Even the fashion world had a hand: designer Wilson Limon of NiñoFranco collaborated on patterns and details. Rather than importing a global “” template, the team leaned into Filipino craft traditions to give the property its identity.

The redesign was led by WATG, Wimberly Interiors, Henning Larsen, and Ayala Land Hospitality’s creative team. But the outcome feels less like a design statement and more like an exchange of ideas between architecture and heritage.

Lagen’s reboot isn’t just cosmetic. The island now houses a Marine & Biodiversity Conservation Center alongside a Dive Centre, underscoring El Nido Resorts’ long-standing commitment to sustainability. A new wellness complex spans two levels, with a spa garden, yoga studio, healing pools, and treatment rooms designed to echo the same restful elegance as the rest of the property.

“The new era of Lagen is designed to be rooted in authenticity,” says Paloma Urquijo Zobel de Ayala, Creative Director of Ayala Land Hospitality. “Local artisans from across the archipelago have answered the call to bring Lagen reimagined to life. Every surface presents us with an opportunity to celebrate the Filipino aesthetic and cultural heritage.”

What guests will notice, though, is less the philosophy and more the atmosphere. Rooms are understated and the focus is on immersion, whether that means diving in Bacuit Bay, joining a weaving workshop, or simply watching the forest meet the sea.

The global traveler has become harder to impress. Authenticity, sustainability, and cultural grounding are no longer optional, but rather, expected. With Lagen, Palawan adds a property that checks all three boxes without losing sight of comfort and, most especially, a sense of place, where luxury isn’t defined by imported ideas but by Filipino artistry and identity.

For returning guests, the Lagen they knew is still here, only sharper, more purposeful, and more sustainable. For first-timers, it’s a chance to see why Palawan’s reputation as one of the world’s great island destinations still rests on its ability to surprise.

Book your visit at elnidoresorts.com

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