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While most people think of beautiful beaches when they think of the Philippines, the island nation has a ton of wildlife experiences to offer. Granted, many of them are based around water, but there’s a ton of land based experiences too.
The most well-known animals found in the Philippines are the Tarsiers and the whale sharks- at least that was all I had heard about before visiting. When I did more research there was so much more to do in my two months there. As a diver, I have included some notable diving experiences in here too, but many of the dives can also be done via snorkeling.
Read on to find the best wildlife experiences in the Philippines, both on land and underwater.
Bohol Island
See The Tarsiers in Corella, Bohol
A great spot to see tarsiers is Corella in Bohol. Tarsiers are small primates with big eyes that help them see in the dark. They are animals that can only be found in the Philippines. In Corella, there’s a tarsier sanctuary where you can see these fascinating animals up close in their natural habitat. The sanctuary is dedicated to protecting tarsiers and educating visitors about them.
When you visit the sanctuary, you’ll take a guided tour through a forested area where tarsiers live. The guides share interesting facts about these creatures and their role in the ecosystem. It’s a unique experience to observe these tiny primates in their natural environment.
To get there you can hop on a tour, or hire a motorcycle to visit on your own. I stayed nearby in Loboc Village, hired a motorbike from my hotel and rode there. The road there was winding, but wasn’t busy or difficult to drive. If you hire your own motorbike and want to make a day of it, the Chocolate Hills viewing point is a further hour’s drive away. Many tours include both together if going with that option instead.
Birdwatching in Rajah Sikatuna Park, Bohol
Birdwatching in Rajah Sikatuna Park in Bohol is a great way to see a variety of bird species in the Philippines. The park is a protected area with rich forests and diverse habitats, making it an excellent spot for birdwatchers. You can find many different birds, including some rare and endangered species. The park’s trails and viewpoints offer good opportunities for spotting these birds in their natural surroundings.
Some of the birds you might see include the samar hornbill and the metallic winged sunbird. There is an entrance fee for the park which is per person, but you also need to pay a birdwatching fee which includes a guide- this is per group of 5. The above may change so make sure you double check before your trip.
When you go birdwatching in Rajah Sikatuna Park, it’s best to bring binoculars and a bird guidebook to help identify the different species you see. The park’s guides can be quite helpful by pointing out interesting birds and sharing their knowledge about the local wildlife. Overall, it’s a peaceful experience (although there is a bit of walking) for anyone interested in birds in their natural habitat.
Snorkel with Turtles in Panglao, Bohol
Panglao on Bohol island is a popular place for tourists, and is known for its beautiful beach and turtle snorkeling. The best option for snorkeling here is to hop on one of the turtle snorkeling tours, which will take you out to find some turtles to swim with.
These are normally quite cheap by western standards if you book on the island, and often include dolphin sightings. You can normally book the day before. Of course turtles and dolphins are wild animals so there’s no guarentees, but there’s a good chance of seeing them- especially the turtles.
If you’d prefer to book ahead you can, but just be aware you may pay a little more. Regardless, the tours normally start around 9am, but the start time can be loose depending on when the other passengers arrive. The boat will normally take you to Balicasag island where you’ll hop on a smaller boat to go see the turles. The mask and snorkel is normally included in your tour fee, but fins aren’t always. So check before hand, and otherwise you can hire some for a small fee on the island.
The tour will normally go to a turtle snorkeling spot, then another snorkeling spot, then to Virgin Island which has tons of shallow water to swim in. There is next to no sun shade here though so make sure to bring a hat and some sunscreen.
Spot Whales in the Bohol Sea, Bohol
Another cool thing you can do in Bohol is to go whale watching. This one is perfect for those who want to get out on the ocean but not in it. Most of the tours go out near Pamilican Island as this is one of the best spots to see whales. As well as seeing whales, you also might be lucky enough to see some dolphins too.
Depending on which tour you pick, some tours will take you just to see the whales, while others will also give you some time to visit and island and go for a swim or snorkel too.
Cebu Island
Swim (or Dive) with Whalesharks in Oslob, Cebu
Not very far from the shore on a beach in Oslob, you can swim or dive with whale sharks. It was quite busy there on the beach when I went but it didn’t seem too crowded in the ocean. I’m guessing the groups might be staggered.
My friend and I chose to do diving as we thought it would be a more authentic experience. However you are still relatively close to the snorkeling boats. Still, I did enjoy the dive and I got one of my favourite photos ever from the experience.
Swimming with whale sharks in Oslob is a bit controversial, which is not something I realised while doing it. I thought it would be an amazing experience (and it was) and that it was a great source of income for the local people. Sometime after visiting I learned about some of the arguments why it wasn’t a great idea.
I’m not sure I would go again based on what I’ve read since, but I did enjoy the experience when I went. I recommend doing some research on the internet and deciding if its something you want to do or not.
Dive (or Snorkel) with Sardines in Moalboal, Cebu
One of the coolest things I’ve done that I didn’t expect to be a highlight of my trip, was diving and snorkeling with sardines in Moalboal. In fact I got one of my favourite / funniest photos from my sardine dive. It wasn’t something I initially planned as part of my trip, but stumbled upon it later in my planning.
During the dive we were surrounded by these tiny fish which swarmed together to create massive walls of fish. It was really impressive to be around them as they made different shapes.
I also went snorkeling with them with a friend the day earlier and we saw a bunch of them. We went on our own with hired snorkel gear but you can also join a tour if you’re not brave enough to jump in the water alone in the early morning. I would love to say I remember the spot we jumped in, but I don’t. We walked over some rocks and then jumped in to a section of deeper water. Due to this, I recommend asking your hotel staff for recommendations as they’ll (hopefully) know a good spot to head to.
I learned mid snorkel that there may be jellyfish which freaked me out, and if I had known that I probably would have joined a tour instead. As an Australian, I don’t enjoy being near jellyfish, however we didn’t see any so it might depend on the time of day you go snorkeling. Also, I think maybe they were the bad kind of jellyfish we have back home (in Australia) as no one else seemed alarmed by it.
Luzon Island
Swim with Whalesharks in Donsol, Luzon
If you read up on the whale shark diving in Oslob and decided it wasn’t for you, another great option is Luzon. From what I’ve read, swimming with whale sharks has a better reputation and is known to be more sustainable.
There are smaller snorkeling groups for encountering whale sharks in Donsol, with limits of 6 people in the water per whale shark. However its up to the captains as to whether this is followed and sometimes, when whale shark sightings are rare, you may see more people in the water per whaleshark.
Last price I saw was under $100 per person, but things may have changed since. November to June is when you’ll be able to swim with whale sharks here.
Other Islands
Birdwatching in Olango Wildlife Sanctuary, Olango Island
The Olango wildlife sanctuary has over 900 hectares of space to spot migratory birds. Here you can see birds such as the Chinese egret, the far eastern curlew and the bar tailed godwit during their migration. You can either visit the sanctuary independently or on a tour from Cebu.
While you can see birds at the coastal sanctuary during the entire year, the best time to visit is December to February to see larger numbers gather. Then the next best time to visit is September to May, as this is in line with the two migragtions. Time of day wise, two hours before high tide is normally the best time to visit.
Please note there is an extra fee if you want to take photos of the birds, last time I checked.
Dive with Thresher Sharks, Malapascua Island
So this one is only for divers, but if you can dive I’d strongly encourage you add it to your bucketlist. You’ll need an advance cert as the sharks are seen past 30 metres and it is a pretty early start which I’m pretty sure was around 4 or 5am.
Thresher sharks are one of the more unique animals found in the Philippines. With a long upper tail they look different to other sharks.
When I visited, I had not done too many dives, but especially had no experience in current. It wasn’t too bad, but for someone who was not used to it, I did struggle a little at the safety stop. I held onto the rope, which helped me stay in place. It was near the surface though that I was getting pushed around, and I didn’t notice a current at all while at the viewing location.
Seeing the sharks was so awesome, and a bit relaxing as it wasn’t a dive you moved around a lot for. There is a viewing area with a rope, where you waited on the sand and watched the sharks as they swam by. You could hold onto the rope too to help steady yourself if needed.
One thing to know is that it is easiest to do this dive when staying at one of the dive hotels on the water. I was traveling on a budget so and booked a hostel inland and I had to walk through a small village area with roaming chickens at 3am (ish) to get to the dive boat.
If you are like I was, make sure you walk the way there in daylight first so you know how to get there in the dark. I didn’t feel unsafe at all, but it was just dark and harder to navigate.
Dive with Dugongs at the Dugong Dive Centre, Busuanga Island
I didn’t know about this activity when I visited last time but now that I know about I, I’m determined to add it to my next trip. From research one tour to Busuanga Island looks like its aimed at divers, rather than snorkelers. There seems to be only one tour company that does the tour and it sounds like you start off with swimming with the dugongs and then progress onto diving.
It looks like you could possibly also see dugongs on a dive in Palawan or , but the sightings are less likely. Some companies offer a 2 day dugong watching tour around Coron which seems to have better odds than Palawan.
So, as you can see there are tons of wildlife experiences in the Philippines to do. My last trip was all about diving and snorkeling, but as I approach birdwatching age, me and my zoom lens will be visiting atleast one bird park next time I visit.
If I had to choose my favourite out of the wildlife experiences I did last trip, I think diving with whale sharks was such an amazing experience. I’d love to this again, but to try it in Donsol next time. I’d also love to do the dugong snorkel.
There’s so much to choose from though. I’d recommend for a first trip doing a whale shark swim and the sardine snorkel or dive. Swimming with turtles in Panglao would also be an amazing experience, especially if you prefer to stay away from something as big as a whale shark.
Whatever you do, I’ll know you’ll have a great trip as these experiences are not with wildlife you see everyday. Besides, if you can combine beautiful beaches or nature with cool wildlife experiences, you come home a happier person.