Reasonable scuba divers will agree that, as far as the possibility of marine life encounter is concerned, luck is a constant factor, along with all other environmental conditions, as well the divers’ skill and general behaviour. “It’s not an aquarium down there after all,” is an easy but a necessary caveat. In that regard, I and my fellow divers thank ours lucky stars for the Tubbataha superlatives experience (dive safari in March 2025). 

However, to fully appreciate the site, it would be necessary to look back and stocktake decades of efforts from various stakeholders in Palawan - academe, fisherfolk communities, national and local government agencies, NGOs, international organisations, etc., whose efforts made Tubbataha currently a model for marine site conservation.

From the 70s to early 90s, local communities struggled with the declaration of the site as a strict “no-take zone,” and condemned concepts of heritage and conservation as anti-poor and useless. Years later, Tubbataha showed signs of recovery, commercial fish catch in waters outside the park increased, and created a new generation of conservation believers.