The province of Tawi-Tawi offers many beautiful diving sites for many adventurers and sea lovers. Ready your underwater camera and witness the amazing beauty of marine creatures as I give the list of the well-known diving sites in Tawi-Tawi.
Kubbung Dive Site
Kubbung Dive Site is one of the most active dive clubs in Bongao. It is good for many sea lovers who want to discover huge lionfish, crocodile snake eels, black-saddle snake eels, elongated fish, and lots of vibrant sea life. Corals are everywhere. They have different sizes and some look like great steps because they are on top of each other. There are also lots of soft corals as well.
Pahut Plane Wreck Dive Site
The Pahut Dive Site is named after the barangay adjacent to it. The plane wreck found off the coast of Barangay Pahut on Bongao Island, Tawi-Tawi, is believed to be the remains of a Japanese fighter plane. At exactly 60 feet, three-fourths of a Word War II fighter plane sits in crystal-clear waters. The entire fuselage and what’s left of the wings are almost entirely encrusted in various kinds of coral, and is now home to a variety of fish.
Tawi-Tawi takes pride in Pahut Plane Wreck Dive Site for being one of the best dive sites in the province. Most divers are encourage to visit the site just to explore its one of a kind marine ecosystem.
Other Dive Spots
No other province in the Philippines provides exciting dive spots like Tawi-Tawi which is replete with extensive reefs, lagoons, atolls, and channels that never fail to fascinate divers.
- Mussah Cave’s cathedral-like opening
- Mussah Manis’ 300-feet wall
- Mujahideen Reef’s breath-taking scenario
- Gagandilan Cavern’s challenging crevices
- Masangkay Reefs’s sunken boat, the MV Krizilmona, in just 40 feet of water
- Tabawan’s Overhead Cliff in the Sultan Triangle
- Jambanagan Diraddali’s underwater garden of colorful soft corals and giant sponges
- Sugbay Reef’s challenging drift drive experience on ingenous rock-based formations
- Tumbagaan Rock’s 60-feet reef with small caves, crevices, and fissures
Tawi-Tawi Divers Club
The Tawi-Tawi Divers Club is open for accommodation. Aside from offering scuba diving courses, they are very eager to share their overwhelming dive sites with anyone who wants to visit. They have about a dozen of complete gear sets available, plus 20 or so tanks. They have their own air compressor. They are passionate about their marine environment and strive to protect and conserve it.
If we measure development in terms of economy, Tawi-Tawi is booming. The importance of protecting the aquatic resources of the Deep South is being realized. A vibrant marine ecosystem is very much alive in the waters of Bongao. Go to Tawi-Tawi and see the great underwater treasures of the world!
How to get there
There is no direct flight from Manila to Tawi-tawi, so you need to reach first the Zamboanga Airport from Manila by Cebu Pacific or AirphilExpress. It will take 1 - 2 hours travel time that approximately cost 2,500php – 3,500. From Zamboanga, you need to catch a flight going to Sanga – Sanga, Tawi – tawi which cost 1,500php – 2,300php. From the airport, tricycles are waiting for passengers who will bring you to the town center of Bongao.
Sibutu, Tawi-Tawi