Cruising

By Aris R. Ilagan

(Photo by Anjo Perez)

The Philippines is one of the highly-rated dive destinations in the world. Blessed with a wide variety of marine species, colorful soft and hard corals and clear sea waters, scuba divers from different countries spend their vacation in this tropical paradise for a whole year of diving.

The Philippine waters offer diverse challenges of scuba diving from plain shore entry escapade to an exciting drift dive in open sea channels.

Tubbataha Reef off Palawan is among the top candidates for the World Heritage Site being a top scuba diving site which is often compared to Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Sharks of different varieties and even rare kinds of turtles are abundant in this well-preserved marine park, a perfect haven for underwater photography.

Other popular dive destinations include Balicasag in Bohol and Pescador Island in Cebu that both remain protected against environmental abuse – thanks to the joint efforts of non-government organizations and local government authorities that worked hand in hand in curbing illegal fishing and environmental abuse on marine life.

Considered the most accessible for divers coming from Metro Manila is Mabini town in Batangas where a barangay (small village) called “Anilao” is very popular for short weekend diving ventures.

Either go deep diving or night diving – the experience in these seawaters will remain unforgettable.

In the past decades, both sectors were active in the pursuit of eco-tourism that benefits even the local townfolk who depend on the fishing industry and tourism.

With the cooperation of the community and visiting divers, the marine environment has impressively recovered from widespread devastation and abuse that prevailed many years ago.