Podvodni ribolov na Filipinima
The Philippines is 7,641 islands strung across three seas, at the very heart of the Coral Triangle — the richest reef life on the planet. Breath-hold spearfishing is legal nationwide for personal use, and no licence is required. But two things trip up newcomers: "spearfishing is banned in the Philippines" (FALSE — free-diving spearfishing is legal everywhere) and "you can just run a compressor" (effectively off-limits — it is barred by local ordinance in many towns and turns criminal if it damages the reef). This guide sets the facts straight.
The single thread from Luzon to Mindanao is the same: read the sea. The northeast monsoon amihan (Nov–Apr) is the clean, flat season on west-facing coasts; the southwest habagat (Jun–Oct) blows those coasts out and cleans the east; and the typhoon belt (Jul–Nov) sits over the Visayas and Luzon. This guide explains the frame, walks the nine coastal regions, and links to a daily go / borderline / no-go forecast for every city.
Otvori zvijezdu — Siargao →The legal frame in brief
It rests on the Fisheries Code — RA 8550 (1998) as amended by RA 10654 (2015) — plus each municipality's own ordinances. There is no single national registry of spot-by-spot rules, so the golden rule is: check the local Municipal Fisheries Ordinance and the MPA boundaries before you get in the water. The essentials:
- Breath-hold is legal, and free. Free-diving (apnea) spearfishing for personal and family consumption is legal nationwide and needs no licence. Selling your catch is a different, regulated activity — keep it personal.
- Municipal waters (0–15 km) belong to the LGU. Each Local Government Unit governs its own nearshore waters and may ban spearfishing, restrict it to zones, close it at night, or limit gear. Many dive-tourism towns close it in practice — verify locally.
- Any take inside a marine sanctuary is prohibited (Sec 101, RA 10654). Regardless of gear or species, extraction inside an MPA / fish sanctuary is illegal. The Philippines has thousands of these — many are small barangay no-take zones you won't see marked at sea.
- Compressor and scuba are not banned by name nationally — but treat them as off-limits. RA 8550 and RA 10654 never mention compressor, hookah or scuba. But many LGUs (e.g. Naga in Cebu, Cavite City, the province of Pangasinan) ban compressor breathing by ordinance, and it becomes a national crime if it pounds/damages the reef (Sec 97) or is paired with poison (Sec 92). Assume prohibited unless a specific local ordinance permits it.
Protected species — never take these
The national do-not-take list (FAO 208-1 s.2024 + RA 9147 + FAO 193/168) is short but strict: whale shark, all sharks and rays, manta and devil ray, sawfish, sea turtle, dugong, humphead (Napoleon) wrasse — "mameng", giant clam ("taklobo") and seahorse. Note the naming trap: in the BFAR list the local name "mol-mol" belongs to the Napoleon wrasse, not the parrotfish. Bumphead parrotfish and giant grouper ("kugtong") are NOT nationally banned, but both are IUCN-vulnerable and often protected by local MPAs — release them.
Where to dive, by region
SZ Luzon
NW Luzon — west-facing surf-and-reef coast (La Union/Zambales/Pangasinan); the amihan is prime, the habagat murks it.
- San Juan (La Union) — La Union's surf-and-freedive hub off Urbiztondo and Monaliza Point.
- Bolinao — The NW cape of Pangasinan — Cape Bolinao and Patar rock into the South China Sea.
- Alaminos (Hundred Islands) — Hundred Islands National Park sits in the sheltered Lingayen Gulf — scenic but a no-take reserve, and the surrounding gulf shallows are silty.
- San Antonio (Pundaquit) — The Zambales island-hop base at Pundaquit — Capones and Camara islands off an open west coast.
- Masinloc — Oyon Bay and the San Salvador reefs of Zambales.
- Pagudpud — The northern tip of Ilocos Norte — Blue Lagoon / Maira-ira on the Babuyan Channel.
- Basco (Batanes) — The far-north Batanes islands, open to the Luzon Strait.
Batangas
Batangas — Verde Island Passage reefs and coves; strong tidal streams, hunt near slack.
- Anilao / Mabini — The dive capital of the Philippines on Balayan Bay — huge biomass on the Verde Island Passage, but a dense MPA network wraps the whole peninsula.
- Tingloy (Maricaban) — Maricaban Island and the Verde wall, south across the passage from Anilao.
- Calatagan — Cape Santiago at the mouth of Balayan Bay.
- Nasugbu — The open west coast of northern Batangas — Fortune Island and the Matabungkay reefs.
- San Juan (Laiya) — Laiya on the Tayabas Bay side of Batangas — the eastern, more protected face of the province.
- Lobo — The Submarine Garden coast at the south end of the Verde Passage — good rock and reef.
Mindoro
Mindoro — Puerto Galera reefs and the offshore Apo Reef bank; Verde Passage currents, dry-season best.
- Puerto Galera (Sabang) — A dive mecca on the Verde Island Passage, a UNESCO Man-and-Biosphere reserve.
- Sablayan (Apo Reef) — The gateway town for Apo Reef on the Mindoro Strait — the town sits on the mainland; Apo Reef itself is an offshore no-take park (liveaboard only).
- San Jose (Occ. Mindoro) — The southern Mindoro gateway — Ilin and Ambulong islands off Occidental Mindoro.
- Bulalacao (Or. Mindoro) — The clean island cluster (Tambaron, Aslom) at the south of Oriental Mindoro.
Bicol
Bicol — Pacific-facing pelagic coast; the habagat is the calmer window, typhoon-prone.
- Donsol — Donsol on the Ticao Pass is famous for its whale-shark interaction area — a protected zone where hunting is excluded.
- Matnog — The southern tip of Luzon at the mouth of the San Bernardino Strait — Tikling and Calintaan islets.
- Gubat — The Pacific side of Sorsogon — surf and reef off Rizal Beach.
- Caramoan — The Survivor islands on Lagonoy Gulf and the Pacific — Matukad, Lahos, Gota.
- Virac (Catanduanes) — The Pacific island of Catanduanes — heavily exposed to open-ocean swell.
- Legazpi (Albay) — Albay Gulf and the Sula Channel under Mayon volcano — water runs a little murkier from siltation.
- Gasan (Marinduque) — The Tres Reyes islands off Marinduque, on the Tablas Strait / Sibuyan Sea.
Palawan
Palawan — El Nido/Coron limestone and wrecks; LGU limits and many sanctuaries, dry-season best.
- Coron (Busuanga) — The Calamian islands and the WWII wreck fleet of Coron Bay — sheltered, world-class water.
- El Nido — Bacuit Bay's limestone islands — stunning, but a Managed Resource Protected Area with heavy tourism limits.
- San Vicente (Port Barton) — Long Beach and the Port Barton islands on the Sulu Sea.
- Puerto Princesa (Honda Bay) — The capital's dive zone is Honda Bay, a dense cluster of marine sanctuaries closed to hunting.
- Taytay — Malampaya Sound and the Isla Blanca reefs of northern Palawan.
- Linapacan — The islands between El Nido and Coron, reputed to hold the clearest water in the country.
Zapadni Visayas
Western Visayas — Panay/Romblon reefs; the amihan is clearest, the habagat murks the west.
- Malay / Boracay (Aklan) — Boracay is under island-wide environmental protection — no spearfishing around the island.
- Culasi (Mararison) — The Mararison (Malalison) sandspit island off Antique on the Sulu Sea — a growing freedive scene.
- Guimaras (N. Valencia) — The sheltered Panay-Gulf island of Guimaras — Taklong Island is a no-take national park.
- Concepcion (Islas de Gigantes) — The Gigantes island group on the Visayan Sea — the town is on the mainland, the reefs are offshore.
- Romblon — The marble island of Romblon and its neighbours Alad and Logbon — the Blue Hole is a local classic.
Cebu i Negros
Cebu & Negros — Moalboal/Dauin walls and the sheltered Tañon Strait; a dense sanctuary network.
- Moalboal (Cebu) — Panagsama and the famous sardine ball on the Tañon Strait, sheltered from the Bohol-Sea swell.
- Daanbantayan (Malapascua) — The thresher-shark island at the top of Cebu, on the Visayan/Camotes Sea.
- Oslob (Cebu) — Southeast Cebu on the Bohol Sea — known for its whale-shark tourism at Tan-awan.
- Santander (Cebu) — The southern tip of Cebu at the mouth of the Tañon Strait, gateway to Apo Island.
- Lapu-Lapu (Mactan) — The metro-Cebu dive base on Mactan Island — Marigondon and Olango on the Cebu Strait.
- Bantayan (Sta. Fe) — Bantayan Island at Sta. Fe on the Visayan Sea — shallow, sandy, easy water. An east/Pacific-facing coast: it catches amihan (Nov–Apr) swell and the NE trade…
- Dauin / Dumaguete — The muck-dive coast at the mouth of the Tañon Strait — Apo Island and a near-continuous belt of Dauin sanctuaries are no-take.
- Bais — Bais Bay and the Manjuyod sandbar on the Tañon Strait — sheltered, dolphin water.
- Sipalay — Punta Ballo and Campomanes Bay on the Negros-Occidental Sulu-Sea coast.
- Siquijor (San Juan) — The mystic island of Siquijor on the Bohol Sea.
Bohol i Leyte
Bohol & Leyte — Panglao/Balicasag and Southern Leyte pelagics; clear Bohol Sea, drop-offs on the slack.
- Panglao (Bohol) — Alona, the Napaling sardine wall and Balicasag off Bohol — but Balicasag is a no-take sanctuary and Napaling a fee-managed no-take wall.
- Anda (Bohol) — The Quinale walls of Anda on the Bohol/Mindanao Sea — an underrated freedive coast with sheer drop-offs.
- Padre Burgos (S. Leyte) — Sogod Bay's walls and Limasawa — a sheltered, deep bay with whale sharks at Pintuyan.
- Palompon (Kalanggaman) — The famous Kalanggaman sandbar off Palompon on the Camotes Sea — the town is on the mainland, the reef is offshore.
Mindanao
Mindanao — Siargao's Pacific groundswell and the sheltered Camiguin bays; near typhoon-free.
- General Luna (Siargao) — The surf island of Siargao on the open Pacific — Cloud 9, Guyam, Daku.
- Mambajao (Camiguin) — The volcanic island of Camiguin on the Bohol/Mindanao Sea — White Island sandbar and the Sunken Cemetery.
Frequently asked questions
Rules current as of 2026 — breath-hold spearfishing is legal nationwide in the Philippines (RA 8550/10654), no licence for personal use, but municipal waters (0–15 km) are governed by the local LGU (may ban it, zone it or bar night hunting); any take inside an MPA/sanctuary is prohibited and compressor/scuba are barred by ordinance in many LGUs. Freedive only, with a float. Do not take mameng (Napoleon wrasse), whale shark, sharks/rays, manta, sawfish, turtle, dugong, giant clam or seahorse; release bumphead parrotfish and giant grouper. Confirm the local Municipal Fisheries Ordinance before you go.
Is spearfishing legal in the Philippines?
Yes — breath-hold (free-diving) spearfishing is legal nationwide for personal consumption under the Fisheries Code (RA 8550 as amended by RA 10654). But each municipality (LGU) governs its own 0–15 km waters and can ban or zone it, so always check the local Municipal Fisheries Ordinance and MPA boundaries first.
Do I need a licence?
No. There is no national licence for personal-consumption breath-hold spearfishing. You must not sell your catch — selling is a separate, regulated activity.
Is compressor or scuba spearfishing allowed?
Treat it as off-limits. No national law bans compressor/hookah or scuba spearfishing by name, but many LGUs ban compressor breathing by ordinance, and it becomes a national crime if it damages the reef (Sec 97) or is combined with poison (Sec 92). Breath-hold is the only method you can rely on being legal.
Which species are protected?
Never take: whale shark, all sharks and rays, manta/devil ray, sawfish, sea turtle, dugong, humphead (Napoleon) wrasse (mameng), giant clam (taklobo) and seahorse. Bumphead parrotfish and giant grouper are not nationally banned but are vulnerable and often locally protected — release them.
When is the best season?
It depends on which way the coast faces. West-facing coasts are clean and flat under the amihan (Nov–Apr) and blow out under the habagat (Jun–Oct); east/Pacific coasts are the reverse. July–November is typhoon season over the Visayas and Luzon — check PAGASA before you travel. The daily forecast on each city page turns all of this into a simple go / no-go.