Washing Machine
A fissured reef where currents meet; stingrays, turtles, nurse sharks and whitetips shelter in the crevices, and the wall carries barrel sponges, soft corals and big gorgonian fans. Manta rays, eagle rays and whale sharks are possible in the blue.
Facts
- Region: Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park – Philippines
- Area: North Atoll
- Depth: 5–30 m
- Level: advanced
- Current: strong
- Type: wall, drift, reef
- Coordinates: 8.9533, 119.8675 (approximate)
- Highlights: whitetip sharks, nurse shark, stingrays, turtles, gorgonian fans, manta ray, whale shark
- Permit: Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park can only be entered with a TMO permit: the vessel needs a Vessel Entry Permit and every visitor a Visitor Entry Permit, paid before entry. Per the TMO permits page (checked 2026-10-27): Visitor Entry Permit PHP 5,000 per person, divemasters PHP 500, children 12 and under exempt from the conservation fee; vessel permit PHP 5,500 to 11,000 by gross tonnage. In practice the liveaboard applies for the permits and collects the fee on board: Master Liveaboards and Atlantis quote USD 120 per person (fee changes without notice). Guests complete a Visitor Entry Permit form and attend a mandatory TMO briefing in Puerto Princesa before sailing. Drones need a separate permit.
- Issuer / contact: Tubbataha Management Office (TMO), Manalo Extension, Puerto Princesa, Palawan
- Phone: (048) 716-1631; mobile +63 917 553 0909
- Email: tmo@tubbatahareefs.org
- Unverified: Exact dive-site positions are not published by the sources; the coordinates are only the approximate centre of the park (Wikipedia: 8°57′12″N 119°52′3″E).
- Tips: Strong, changing currents and surge can push divers toward the reef: keep buoyancy tight. Operators require Advanced Open Water and at least 50 logged dives with current experience; a dive computer is compulsory and dives are limited to 60 minutes. Dive guides call the conditions; hooks and a surface marker are standard.