Anilao, Philippines

Anilao in the Philippines, went from obscurity to international fame as a dive site; and then back to obscurity when its reefs suffered damage.

Philippine flag.

Anilao is a small town on the rocky Calumpan Peninsula, which is about 120km south of Manila.  It was regarded as the birthplace of diving in the Philippines.  In the mid-1960s, a whole coral reef was transplanted onto a large rock formation close to the shore.  Contrary to popular belief at the time that the experiment would fail, the coral flourished.  As a result, diving developed and Anilao experienced a dive "boom" in the early 80s, as divers from around the world were attracted to this amazing hotspot of marine activity.

Local banca boat.

However, the diving infrastructure was not fully developed at that time, and the area suffered from explosive growth, destructive local fishing methods plus irresponsible garbage dumping.   Then the dynamite and cyanide fishermen came - and some, but not all of the reefs were devastated.

Diving from the shore.

It remained a popular weekend retreat for Manila-based divers, but amongst the international diving community it gained a reputation as a has-been, and foreign divers travelling to the Philippines started focusing on more remote locations, such as Palawan.

Fishing boat.

Anilao still has one of the highest concentrations of marine life in the Philippines and is slowly recovering after efforts by resort owners in the area, and many divers who had come to love the place fought back.  Garbage cleanups, the creation of a marine sanctuary and education of the local fishermen about the need to conserve and preserve the natural habitat of marine life were introduced.

Sea kayak.

All these efforts are starting to bear fruit and the local marine environment is regaining its former diversity. Once again, Anilao is a place to go for some good diving.  The peninsular is about the cleanest area I have seen in the Philippines.  All around the region colourful posters encouraging locals to get involved in beach/sea cleanup campaigns are in place.

My journey to Anilao was a simple 25p jeepney ride from nearby Buaun.  I found the local people very friendly and extremely happy with what little they have.  Some of the property is well maintained, most with spectacular sea views.  I took a walk down the peninsular, which is a good stretch of the legs, with mountainside jungle on one side and the rocky coastline to the other, it was very pleasant.  Villages are neat and well preserved with recycling facilities evident, streams running from the villages had no rubbish flowing to the sea, as is the case in most other built up areas of the Philippines.

Some of the resorts I visited looked as if they haven’t seen a lick of paint since the boom days of the 80’s. The Outrigger resort had an International Long Distance Swimming Competition taking place when I arrived - (teams from Australia, Taiwan, Malaysia and the Philippines were all taking part).  It was very crowded and looking around it was obvious the resort had seen better days.

Outrigger Resort.

Outrigger Resort.

Outrigger Resort.

Further down the coast, Acacia resort on the other hand is a fairly new boutique style resort, again mostly catering for divers.  The name comes from the 100-year-old acacia tree over the pool and courtyard.  The resort duty manageress was not very accommodating when I first arrived, she wanted to charge me (1000 php - £12) for a whole day - for all I could eat, unlimited soft drinks and iced coffee.  I explained that after a day trekking all I wanted was a couple of cold beers and a spot of lunch.  She eventually capitulated when I mentioned I might be bringing a few guys for diving the following weekend!  A very smart place to spend a relaxing day by the pool.  Other new and established resorts offer technical diving, catering mostly for the increasing number of Taiwanese visitors.

Acacia bar.

Acacia Pool.

The Acacia Tree.

Great view - Acacia.

Although my visit to this region was out of the normal dive season, it was clearly evident that the area is making progress and will soon again appeal to the foreign diver.

Popular dive sites off Anilao.

Later in the afternoon on my return journey, I took the opportunity to stop off at Mabini, where I treated myself to a sea salt foot scrub and pedicure – well I had walked about 6 miles!  It was noted that the gender confused ‘chappie’ spent quite a bit of time on me feet though….