The Philippines' crown jewel to 100,000 hectares of untouched atoll with near-vertical walls, 600 fish and 360 coral species…The Philippines' crown jewel to 100,000 hectares of untouched atoll with near-vertical walls, 600 fish and 360 coral species, whitetip and grey reef sharks, tiger sharks, whale sharks, hawksbill and green turtles nesting, and a seabird rookery on the sandbar. Coral cover here is what the rest of the region looked like fifty years ago. Declared a national park in 1988 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993 after dynamite and cyanide fishing nearly destroyed it. A permanent ranger station on the atoll and a hard three-month season are the reason it recovered. Anchorage: Liveaboard-only; the park is open roughly mid-March to mid-June and closed the rest of the year. Hazards: Liveaboard-only; the park is open roughly mid-March to mid-June and closed the rest of the year. More