Entalula in El Nido Named World's Best Beach

The World's 50 Best Beaches recently published its definitive annual global rankings, citing Entalula Beach in El Nido, Palawan, which travel experts officially named the number one beach on the planet. Leyte's Kalanggaman Island secured the 25th spot.

The global rankings reflect a major shift in how international travel experts evaluate top-tier destinations. The voting body, composed of more than 1,000 travel journalists, influencers, and industry professionals, focused heavily on preservation, natural soundscapes, and a distinct lack of overcrowding. To secure a spot on the list, a destination had to offer an untouched state, an abundance of natural sounds, excellent water clarity with calm conditions, and a higher-than-average number of perfect beach days.

Earning the ultimate title of the world's best beach, Entalula was framed by travel experts as an overlooked slice of heaven. What sets this hidden pocket of El Nido apart from busier commercial strips is its natural isolation. Massive limestone cliffs rise sharply directly behind a powdery, white sand coastline, keeping the beach secluded.

Because it is accessible exclusively by boat, the beach naturally limits its own foot traffic, allowing the exceptionally clear waters to remain calm and undisturbed. Evaluators noted that Entalula Beach's "contrast of majestic cliffs, clear water, and amazing seclusion that gives Entalula its edge as a place that feels both dramatic and calm at the same time."

Securing the 25th spot globally, Kalanggaman Island in Palompon, Leyte, stands as another piece of paradise. Visually defined by its iconic, narrow sandbar that tapers out into the open ocean at both ends, the island offers an experience where visitors are quite literally surrounded by changing tides. The island itself is a thin strip of white sand bordered by clear, shallow water on either side, offering unobstructed ocean views in every direction.

Much like Entalula, Kalanggaman features limited onshore infrastructure and can only be reached by boat. This controlled accessibility keeps daily visitor counts low and prevents commercial sprawl from degrading the natural ecosystem. The shape of the sandbar, combined with the clarity of the water, gives Kalanggaman a distinct character that resonates deeply with modern, eco-conscious travelers.

While these recognitions is good for the Philippines' position in global ecotourism, they also magnify the challenges of managing sustainable growth. Under the National Tourism Development Plan, the country’s post-pandemic recovery leans heavily on its premier sun, beach, and island assets. However, maintaining a world-class reputation requires world-class infrastructure. During a recent industry dialogue hosted by the Tourism Congress of the Philippines and the Management Association of the Philippines, Tourism Secretary Dita Angara-Mathay emphasized that marketing a destination is only half the battle.

Angara-Mathay observed that access is the foundation of competitiveness, noting that the agency’s primary focus is expanding connectivity, lowering travel barriers, and boosting efficiency across the board. To turn this global attention into sustainable economic returns, DOT is rolling out highly targeted marketing strategies for core international markets based on demand patterns and conversion performance. These efforts target regional hubs like China, India, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and fellow ASEAN nations, alongside long-haul markets like North America, Australia, and Europe.

The tourism department's blueprint prioritizes high-value, high-yield sectors that encourage longer stays and generate widespread economic benefits, such as cruise tourism, wellness retreats, gastronomy, and the meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE) sector. At the same time, the agency is championing domestic tourism as an economic stabilizer by developing regional travel circuits, community-driven experiences, staycations and workations; and even faith, heritage, wellness, and farm routes. However, Angara-Mathay openly admitted that this growth cannot happen without a massive, sustained influx of capital to improve last-mile access, streamline electronic visa systems, and rapidly expand accommodation capacities.

The reality of these infrastructure issues is most visible in El Nido. Just as Entalula Beach celebrates its global top ranking, the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority has announced the approval of a P500 million water supply system upgrade for the municipality. The emergency project aims to construct a comprehensive Water Supply Treatment System, complete with advanced treatment facilities, updated water storage tanks, and a modernized distribution line. The goal is to elevate local water quality to safely meet the Philippine National Standard for Drinking Water, supporting both the local economy and the tourism industry.

For years, the municipality struggled with its aging water systems, even as social media regularly swelled with viral complaints from foreign tourists suffering from waterborne illnesses and hospitalization, TIEZA Officer Mark T. Lapid explained to reporters.

The situation reached a breaking point when the Department of Environment and Natural Resources threatened a total environmental shutdown of El Nido. The environment department's Environmental Monitoring Bureau had flagged dangerously high fecal coliform levels in several critical bodies of water across Bacuit Bay, including heavily visited sites like Helicopter Island, Secret Lagoon, and Pasandigan Beach. Faced with a looming closure order, local officials finally submitted the infrastructure proposal.

Lapid revealed that the agency has temporarily stopped accepting new project proposals from local government units due to uncertainty on the collection of travel tax, its main funding source. At the instruction of President Marcos Jr., lawmakers have pushed for the complete abolition of this levy that currently funds tourism infrastructure, Commission on Higher Education scholarships, and National Commission for Culture and Arts heritage preservation. Though travel tax collection surges over 13 percent year-on-year to reach P2.7 billion in the first four months of the year despite global aviation re-routings away from the Middle East conflict, the legislative threat of its removal has paralyzed long-term planning.

To safeguard the El Nido water project, the authority is forcing an accelerated timeline. Lapid explained that they want to start the project by July at the latest because they are unsure of their source of funds next year. Because of this risk, they are completing the work in one go, rather than in phases, to prevent running out of money midway through construction.

To survive a future without travel tax revenue, the tourism infrastructure authority is shifting its strategy toward self-sustaining utility models, fast-tracking the privatization of its existing assets, and actively pursuing public-private partnerships with local governments to finish critical sewerage and water treatment facilities. Lawmakers have offered assurances of future funding through the General Appropriations Act, but have yet to name a concrete, alternative source of capital.

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