Tourism and Migration in Palawan

Palawan has now become a hub for many tourists coming from many places in the Philippines. What was once a sleepy town in 1986 when I arrived in Puerto Princesa has turned into one of the favorite places for people to enjoy the bounties of its marine life and many attractions.

I remembered that sometime in 1990, I counted the number of tricycles along Mendoza park as I wait for the morning bus to get to Irawan where I work. It took about 5 minutes for another tricycle to come after the other one has passed. Everything then was slow.

Now, a Robinson's mall was constructed to cater to the increasing needs of the residents as well as visitors who come almost incessantly everyday to get a glimpse of the Underground River. The roads are now congested with vehicles, many of these composed of vans that transport visitors around places in Palawan. 

You might want to ask how many people come to Puerto Princesa to visit Underground River and its many tourist attractions. To give you an idea, the flight servicing, according to what I have learned from a tourism colleague is 29 flights. This is a lot. In fact, the 600 cap of tourists to be allowed access to Underground River has already been exceeded.

Some tourists complain that it took them a great deal of effort to see the unique river but the carrying capacity of the major tourist attraction is already reached. This impacts on the quality of experience of the tourists. As a result, other visitors content themselves with likewise interesting attractions in Palawan. One of those favorite destinations is El Nido.

Associated with the discovery of the many attractions in Palawan and its bountiful marine products caused many visitors to settle in the province. This tendency jacked up the value of land in the city as many retirees decide to spend the rest of their lives in a peaceful environment such as Palawan. Many foreigners from distant places do the same probably for the same reason.

The increased tourism activity and migration will undoubtedly impact not only on the integrity of Palawan's unique wildlife and environment in general in the long term. The government must respond by laying down policies and implementing them in ways that will ensure sustainability of such integrity and productivity for everyone's benefit.