Palawan Voted Best Island in the World For the Second Time! – An exotic paradise in southeast Asia has been voted the world’s best island for the second time in a row.

With crystal clear blue waters, sandy shores and a phenomenal underwater river, the idyllic Palawan archipelago easily claimed the top spot in Travel & Leisure magazine’s awards.

This is the second time this publication has lauded Palawan, but it’s also not the only one as Conde Nast Traveler and National Geographic Traveler have also given the island similar awards.

The exotic paradise of Palawan (above) in the Philippines has been named ‘Best Island in the World’ for the second time by Travel and Leisure magazine. Voters described Palawan as ‘every beach lover’s dream destination’. The place became a visual Hollywood byword for paradise as its white sanded shores have featured in Bourne Legacy, The Beach and James Bond film The World Is Not Enough.

Bourne Legacy’s producer Frank Marshall said Palawan was ‘the most beautiful place’ he had ever been to.

Locals refer to it as the ‘last frontier’ because it’s located on the southern tip of the Philippines, just north of Malaysia. Its geographical location can be thanked for its awe-inspiring natural wonders. A lot of the island’s international fandom is due to the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, a Unesco World Heritage Site, which runs on the island’s western coast.

The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park has one of the world’s most impressive cave systems, featuring intact old-growth forests, distinctive wildlife and cavernous chambers pricked with stalactites and stalagmites. Tourists take guided boat tours through the underground cave system and snorkelers and divers explore the watery world of the province’s second Unesco World Heritage Site, the Tubbataha Reef National Marine Park.

Other than Palawan, Philippine islands Boracay and Cebu also made it on the list in second and sixth ranking. Palawan’s geographical location can be thanked for its awe-inspiring natural wonders, say experts

Rachel Weisz said in an interview: ‘Palawan is more like the Emerald City. It’s like a fantasy. Maybe it’s real to you but to me, it looked like a fantasy place’

Tourists drift along in a boat inside the cave at Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park.

Credits: dailymail