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Philippines
Palawan Province
Palawan island is the largest province of Philippines in terms of land mass
and Puerto Princesa City is its capital. The Palawan island group is situated
between the South China Sea in the northwest and Sulu Sea in the southeast.
There are more than eighty different ethnic groups and races in the islands of
Palawan, however, most of its people are of Austronesian origin.
Palawan's almost 2,000 km ( about 800miles) coastline are peppered with
about 1,800 islands, rocky coves and lovely white sandy beaches. It also has
vast stretches of lush tropical rainforests that carpet its majestic mountain
ranges. As such, Palawan is very well known in the world for its beautiful
natural beauty and eco-tourism, rainforest trekking, scuba diving and big game
fishing are amongst the favorite activities of tourist visiting the Palawan
islands.
Natural Tourist Attractions in Palawan
This province of the Philippines is even home to two UNESCO World Heritage
Sites. They are the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park and the
Tubbataha Reef National Marine Park. Needless to say, these two parks are
amongst the major tourist attractions in Palawan.
El Nido Marine Reserve - Commonly called El Nido, this marine
reservation in Palawan occupies an area of almost one hundred thousand
hectares. El Nido is very rich in nature with diverse ecosystems such as
rainforest, mangrove swamps, beautiful sandy beaches, colorful coral reefs and
spectacular limestone cliffs is a perfect sanctuary for various forms of
wildlife.
Manta rays and basking whale sharks are commonly sighted and
scuba divers have also reported frequent sightings of one of the world's
rarest marine mammal dugong. The dugongs was said to be mistaken by sailors in
the past as mermaids.
Tourists and nature lovers can find wonderful
accommodations at El Nido Resorts on the Miniloc and Lagen Islands.
El Nido Resorts are famous for their sparkling lagoons,
palm tree forests and colorful orchids. However, staying in El Nido resorts
can be rather costly.
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Calauit Island Wildlife Sanctuary - This wildlife santuary is
about 3,700 hectares in size and is created to preserve wildlife. What makes
this animal sanctury interesting is that it not only preserve the wildlife of
Palawan but also animals from Africa such as giraffes, elands, zebras and
gazelles. These foreign animals co-exist native Philippine animals such as the
Palawan bearcat, mousedeer and peacock pheasant.
To enter the wildlife sanctuary, tourists are required to secure permit
at the Office of Palawan Council for Sustainable Development in Coron. There
is no transport system in the area and so, tourists need to hire their own
vehicles.
The Coron Reefs - The Coron Reefs are actually 7 enchanting lakes
surrounded by overhanging limestone cliffs. This wonder of nature is a natural
magnet of nature loving tourists. The Coron Reefs island is located in
northern Palawan, near the town of Coron.
St. Paul Subterranean River National Park - This subterranean
river flows within a deep underground cavern which is under massive limestone
and marble cliffs. Some people consider St Paul Subterranean River as one of
the wonders of the world.
This amazing river stretches some 8 km (3.5 miles) and plunges into an
underground lagoon. Tourists can tour the underground river aboard paddle boat
outriggers and be pleasantly enthralled with the subtersanean landscape of
stalactites/stalacmites, rock formations and natural domed amphitheaters.
Puerto Princesa City Tubbataha Reefs National Marine Park - Scuba
divers swear that Tubbataha is Philippine's best scuba diving location. The
park was named as a World Heritage site because of its abundant wealth of
amazingly diverse marine life.
The Tubbataha Island is actually two islets with dazzling array of
colorful of soft corals and small caves where reef sharks patroling the depths
and where nurse sharks sleep. You can also easily spot its resident turtles
and manta rays during ray season. When diving in Bird Island or what the the
northern islet is called, divers will encounter big schools of fishes and
colorful sting rays.
Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park - This
subterannean river is a significant habitat for biodiversity conservation and
it empties itself into the open sea. The site contains a full or what is
commonly called 'mountain-to-sea' ecosystem and is also home to some of the
most important forests in Asia. Is it any wonder that Puerto Princesa
Subterranean River National Park was declared as a World Heritage site
attracting tourist from all over the world to the Palawan islands in the
Phillippines? - Palawan Phillipines article was posted on
13th November 2007
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