Within each Palawan town, the main local transport is the tricycle — a motorbike with a sidecar — flagged down on the street and bargained for. Short hops within El Nido or Coron town are usually 100–150 pesos; longer trips to nearby beaches a few hundred. Always agree the price before getting in.
Between towns, shared vans run on fixed routes (Puerto Princesa–El Nido, Puerto Princesa–Port Barton, etc.) and depart when full. They are quicker and not much more expensive than the buses; they will pick you up from your hotel if you book the day before.
For the island-hopping tours, you buy a boat seat rather than transport — the standardised El Nido and Coron tours (A, B, C, D in El Nido; Coron Ultimate, Island Escapade, etc. in Coron) include the boat, lunch, snorkelling gear and entry fees. Private bancas are negotiable for groups.
Renting a scooter is straightforward in Puerto Princesa, El Nido and Coron (around 500 pesos a day). The roads on Palawan have improved enormously in the last decade and most are now paved, but they remain winding and shared with chickens, dogs and the occasional water buffalo.