Lonely Planet, the largest travel guide book publisher, has cited two of the country’s famous dive spots as among the six national parks around the world with offer a “surprisingly spectacular diving” experience.
In her article, Lonely Planet writer Angela Ballard described the Philippines as a site where thousands of dives sites are scattered throughout the country, with more than 1,200 macro and open sea or pelagic enchanting species that live in the Philippine waters.
Ballard specifically noted the rich biodiversity of Tubbataha Reefs National Park in Palawan which has earned the UNESCO World Heritage status.
“Board a liveaboard in Puerto Princesa City, then sail to dive sites like Amos Rock, Washing Machine and Black Rock to experience 600 species of fish, 360 species of coral, 11 species of sharks and 13 species of dolphins and whales, along with manta rays, barracuda, nudibranchs, pipefish and seahorses,” she said.
Aside from the underwater heritage site in Palawan, Ballard also mentioned the country's top diving spot, the municipality of Moalboal in the island province of Cebu, where she recommended travelers to sail on a traditional double outrigger canoe, locally known as “bangka”.
“Moalboal is world-renowned for its sardine run, an enormous bait ball of approximately seven million small fish that attract larger marine life in search of food. While you can dive in the warm Philippine waters year round, you’ll witness the most wildlife and avoid monsoons if you visit between March and June,” she said.
The Department of Tourism (DOT) celebrates this recognition, coming as it does amid a pandemic that has inflicted massive losses on the tourism industry.
"This citation from the largest travel guide book publisher, Lonely Planet, is positive news, something to be proud of especially for the tourism stakeholders of Tubbataha, Palawan, and Cebu," Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said in a statement.
Puyat added that this also fortified the country’s status as one of the premier diving sites in the world. She said that the article is timely in view of the scheduled staging of the second edition of the Philippine Dive Expo (PHIDEX) 2020 this year.
Palawan and Cebu were among the earliest major tourism sites to allow their local residents for leisure travel as community quarantine measures have already been eased by the national government.