MANILA, Philippines — White sand beaches are well-loved destinations in an archipelago like the Philippines, but among the many beach destinations, pink beaches are considered far and few in between.
A casual search on the Internet yields the pink sand beach entries around the world are found in the Bahamas, Indonesia, Spain, Italy and the Philippines' Great Santa Cruz Island.
Zamboanga City's Great Santa Cruz Island has been popular for decades because it is only one of the handful pink beaches in the world.
Its pinkish sand is caused by the pulverized rare red Organ-pipe coral (Tubipora musica) due to surf erosion. The pulverized coral gets mixed with the beach's white sand.
In March this year, Travel+Leisure included Great Santa Cruz Island as among the "11 Most Beautiful Pink-sand Beaches Around the World."
Philstar.com is among the few invited earlier this year to visit the island just off the coast of Zamboanga City's main island.
A 15-minute boat ride allows guests to visit the destination. They are advised to coordinate with the city's local tourism office. Visitors to the island are required to undergo a briefing on do's and dont's since it is a protected area.
Great Santa Cruz Island implements a strict no-plastic rule, confiscating every single-use plastic, such as water bottles, chips and cup noodles, before visitors are allowed to board the motorized banca that goes to and fro the island.
Tour guide Jan Pasicaran Taup told Philstar.com that the island can only accommodate a maximum of 320 people per day.
Fees as of March 2024 include entrance fee (P20), environmental fee (P5) and terminal fee (P5).
There are cottages and pavilions for rent: small cottage (P100), large cottage (P200) and pavilion (P500).
Beach sunsets are sure sights, but unfortunately for the island's visitors, it is only open until 2 p.m. Its administrators restrict the number of people allowed per day and the hours they can stay on the island since it is a protected area.
As an added activity, visitors can also opt to do a tour in the mangrove in Great Santa Cruz Island. They can explore the mangroves that house different sea creatures and see starfishes, listen to interesting stories behind the mangrove, and even pick and eat fresh lato or seagrapes.
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