D

esignated by UNESCO as
World Heritage Site, one of
three in the Philippines, this is a
superb destination for diving.
Despite its remote location from
Puerto Princesa City, Tubbataha has
become a popular site for the
liveaboard crowd.
It was proclaimed Tubbataha
National Marine Park in 1988 and is
a special series of sunken atolls and
sea mounts in the Sulu Sea
protected from local and foreign
poachers and dynamite fishermen.

That’s good news for divers as this is

one of the finest Indo-Pacific dive

destinations in the Coral Triangle.

The seasonal diving runs from

March into June when the seas are

normally flat and calm. There is

little weather protection for ships as

the few islands are just sand spits.

Liveaboard ships are normally

pretty full so it pays to book in

advance, although there can be

some good deals due to

last minute

cancellations. The ships

normally leave at night

from Puerto Princesa in

Palawan and arrive in

the morning. Trips

average five days.

Each visitor to

Tubbataha Reefs

Natural Park pays a

conservation fee and

Tubbataha White sand slopes

of Tubbataha

Liveaboard and Tubbataha sunset

South

Tubbataha

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North

Tubbataha