Do I need a special permit to dive Tubbataha, and when does it open?
Trying to figure out the logistics for Tubbataha Reef in the Sulu Sea.
2 answers
- Rommel (Tubbataha liveaboard divemaster)📍 LocalJun 28, 2026
Tubbataha is liveaboard-only and the season runs roughly mid-March to mid-June (calm seas; it's closed the rest of the year). You can't day-trip it. The park conservation fee is around PHP 3,500 on top of your liveaboard fare (about PHP 90,000-160,000 for a ~6-day trip out of Puerto Princesa). Book months ahead, boats sell out. Bring an advanced cert plus ~50 logged dives, the currents are real.
- HannahJun 28, 2026
Did it last April. There's no individual permit to chase, the liveaboard operator sorts the park fee and paperwork for you. Just make sure your dive insurance and nitrox cert are sorted before you fly to Puerto Princesa. Check /best-time-to-visit so you don't show up off-season, the reef is genuinely only reachable those few months.