Boracay Earns Top Beach Recognition
Boracay has landed on Tripadvisor's 'Best of Best Beaches' list for 2026, reaffirming its status as a must-visit destination for beach lovers. The recognition is based on global traveler feedback and highlights the Philippine island's pristine white sands, crystal-clear waters, and vibrant local culture.
This latest recognition is a significant milestone for Boracay, which was closed to tourists for a six-month rehabilitation period in 2018. The closure was ordered by then-President Rodrigo Duterte, who called the island a "cesspool" due to overwhelming sewage and waste management problems. The intensive cleanup effort involved demolishing illegal structures, upgrading the island's drainage and sewage systems, and clearing beachfronts of unapproved developments. Before the shutdown, Boracay's coral reef cover had declined by approximately 70.5% between 1988 and 2011, a period of surging tourist arrivals. Upon reopening in October 2018, new regulations were implemented to manage the environmental impact of tourism. These included a cap on daily tourist arrivals to stay within the island's carrying capacity of about 19,000 visitors at a time. In the Tripadvisor 2026 awards, Boracay's White Beach ranked sixth on the "Best of the Best Beaches" in Asia list. The award is given to destinations that receive a high volume of outstanding reviews over a 12-month period, with fewer than 1% of Tripadvisor's 8 million listings receiving the honor.
