Boracay Mangrove Forest Paddling & Bat Colony Sunset Tour

Almost every visitor to Boracay knows White Beach's 4 km of powdery sand — far fewer know that behind the resort strip, on the island's sheltered eastern coast, lies a 56-hectare mangrove forest that constitutes one of Boracay's most important ecosystems and most surprising experiences. This paddling tour explores the interior waterways of the mangrove by kayak or stand-up paddleboard, ending with the island's most dramatic wildlife event: the nightly departure of a large colony of giant Philippine flying foxes.

The put-in is on the eastern coast, away from all boat traffic and tourist infrastructure. The guide introduces the mangrove system from the water — the different mangrove species and their distinctive root architectures, the role of the forest in stabilising the island's shoreline and filtering nutrients from inland runoff, and the recovery story post-2018 when the Boracay rehabilitation program prioritised mangrove restoration alongside beach and drainage clean-up.

As the afternoon light drops, the guide paddles toward the roost trees where the flying fox colony begins to stir. Philippine flying foxes (Pteropus vampyrus) are the largest bats in the world — their wingspan exceeds a metre and they are unmistakable in flight, soaring like small eagles rather than fluttering like insectivorous bats. At dusk, hundreds of individuals leave the colony simultaneously, spiraling upward in a dark column before dispersing across the island to feed on fruit. Watching this from a kayak in the middle of a mangrove forest, while the sky turns red and orange over the Sibuyan Sea, is the kind of natural experience that people remember long after the White Beach sunsets have blurred together.