View source for Tablas Island

{{Short description|Island in the Philippines}}
{{travel guide|date=March 2018}}
{{Infobox islands
| name                            = Tablas
| image_name                      = File:Tablas Island, PH, Sentinel-2.jpg
| image_caption                   = Tablas island satellite image captured by [[Sentinel-2]] in 2016
| native_name                     = 
| native_name_link                = 
| location                        = 
| map                             = Philippines
| map_alt                         = 
| map_width                       = 
| map_caption                     = Location within the Philippines
| map_relief                      = yes
| label                           = 
| label_position                  = 
| coordinates                     = {{coord|12|24|19|N|122|3|51|E|type:isle_region:PH|display=inline,title}}
| archipelago                     = {{nowrap|[[Romblon|Romblon Group of Islands]]}}
| waterbody                       = {{unbulleted list | [[Sibuyan Sea]] | [[Tablas Strait]] }}
| total_islands                   = 
| major_islands                   = 
| area_km2                        = 839.156
| highest_mount                   = [[Tablas Peak]]
| elevation_m                     = 665
| country                         = Philippines
| country_admin_divisions_title   = [[Regions of the Philippines|Region]]
| country_admin_divisions         = [[Mimaropa]]
| country_admin_divisions_title_1 = [[Provinces of the Philippines|Province]]
| country_admin_divisions_1       = [[Romblon]]
| country_admin_divisions_title_2 = [[Municipalities of the Philippines|Municipalities]]
| country_admin_divisions_2       = {{Collapsible list
 |title = 
 |frame_style = border:none;
 |title_style = background:transparent;text-align:left;
 |list_style = text-align:left;
 |bullets = on;
|1 = [[Alcantara, Romblon|Alcantara]]
 |2 = [[Calatrava, Romblon|Calatrava]]
 |3 = [[Ferrol, Romblon|Ferrol]]
 |4 = [[Looc, Romblon|Looc]]
 |5 = [[Odiongan]]
 |6 = [[San Agustin, Romblon|San Agustin]]
 |7 = [[San Andres, Romblon|San Andres]]
 |8 = [[Santa Fe, Romblon|Santa Fe]]
 |9 = [[Santa Maria, Romblon|Santa Maria]]
 }}
| country_largest_city            = [[Odiongan, Romblon|Odiongan]]
| country_largest_city_population = 45,367
| population                      = 164,012<ref name="PSGC">[https://archive.today/20130416085403/http://www.nscb.gov.ph/activestats/psgc/province.asp?provcode=166800000&regCode=16&regName=REGION+XIII+(Caraga) = 175900000&regCode = 17&regName = REGION+IV-B+%28Mimaropa%29 "Romblon Municipalities and Cities"]. Philippine Standard Geographic Code Interactive. Retrieved on 2011-06-05.</ref>
| population_as_of                = 01 Aug 2015
| density_km2                     = 
| ethnic_groups                   = 
| additional_info = {{maplink|frame=yes|frame-align=center|plain=yes|frame-width=265|type=shape|stroke-width=2|stroke-color=#000000|zoom=9}}
}}

'''Tablas''' is the largest of the islands that comprise the [[Provinces of the Philippines|province]] of [[Romblon]] in the [[Philippines]]. The name of the island is of Spanish origin. Before the colonization of the Philippines, Tablas was known as the Island of ''Osigan''. At the time of contact with Westerners, ''Osigan'' had a population of 256 people living in small villages. Wax was produced in this island.<ref>Miguel de Loarca, Relacion de las Yslas Filipinas (Arevalo: June 1782) in BLAIR, Emma Helen & ROBERTSON, James Alexander, eds. (1903). The Philippine Islands, 1493–1803. Volume 05 of 55 (1582–1583). Historical introduction and additional notes by Edward Gaylord BOURNE. Cleveland, Ohio: Arthur H. Clark Company. {{ISBN|978-0554259598}}. OCLC 769945704. "Explorations by early navigators, descriptions of the islands and their peoples, their history and records of the catholic missions, as related in contemporaneous books and manuscripts, showing the political, economic, commercial and religious conditions of those islands from their earliest relations with European nations to the beginning of the nineteenth century.", p. 73.</ref>

[[Odiongan, Romblon|Odiongan]], on the west central coast of the island, is a major port and the largest municipality of Romblon in terms of population.<ref name="PSGC"/> Tablas is administratively subdivided into the [[Philippine municipality|municipalities]] of [[Alcantara, Romblon|Alcantara]], [[Calatrava, Romblon|Calatrava]], [[Ferrol, Romblon|Ferrol]], [[Looc, Romblon|Looc]], [[Odiongan]], [[San Agustin, Romblon|San Agustin]], [[San Andres, Romblon|San Andres]], [[Santa Fe, Romblon|Santa Fe]], and [[Santa Maria, Romblon|Santa Maria]].

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==Geography==
The island lies about {{convert|50|km|mi}} east from the southern part of [[Mindoro Island]]. The northern tip of Tablas is about {{convert|12|km|mi}} from [[Romblon Island]]. ''Mount Payaopao'' (also known as ''Tablas Summit'' on old maps) at the northeastern extremity of the island, is the highest peak on the island at {{convert|2182|ft|m}} high and the second highest in the province (after [[Mount Guiting-Guiting]]).<ref>[http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/ams/philippines/txu-oclc-6539351-nd51-14-450.jpg "Romblon Map - U.S. Corps of Engineer"]. University of Texas in Austin Library. Retrieved on 2011-06-05.</ref><ref>Mancuyas, Mario M. (2003-02-21). {{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20110727141418/http://sanrokan.com/newsanrokan/archives/feb21/feature_san_agustin.htm "San Agustin"]}}. Sanrokan News Magazine. Retrieved on 2011-06-05.</ref>

A wooded central range of hills traverses the length of Tablas. The west coast is formed by the western slope of the central mountain ridge, which is narrow and well defined. The summits in the middle of the island are 1,600 to 2,000 feet high. In the center of the island is ''Bitaogan Peak'', {{convert|2164|ft|m}} high, which appears as a rounded knob from east and west and sharp from north and south. ''Mount Lunas'', at the back of Looc Bay, is a black ridge {{convert|1556|ft|m}} high, long and rounded from east and west and sharp from north and south; with it the range breaks off to the low pass from Looc Bay to the town of [[Alcantara, Romblon|Alcantara]] on the east coast. The southern part of Tablas is a group of many sharp conical hills, all bare and grassy except ''Malbug Hill'', {{convert|904|ft|m}} high, and ''Calaton Point'', {{convert|835|ft|m}} high, on the east coast, which are dark and wooded. The shore line is largely mangrove, with many beaches of coral sand and some limestone cliffs. The shore reef is continuous except off Guinauayan Point.<ref name="USCGS"/>

There is no good natural harbor except Looc Bay, a large indentation on the west side, but sheltered anchorage may be found on either side of the island, according to the season of the year.<ref name="USCGS">U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey. "United States Coast Pilot, Philippine Islands, Part 1", p.186. Washington Government Printing Office, 1919.</ref>

Cabalian Point, the southern extremity of Tablas Island, is low and sandy and hard to distinguish at night, a lighthouse was built during the American Colonial period.

==Education==
[[Romblon State University]] is a premier institution for higher education in the Mimaropa Region. The University has a large campus in Odiongan town and a few more around [[Romblon]] province.

==Economy==
Main occupations are fruit and vegetable farming, fisheries, farm animal breeding and fishing. Tablas is one of largest producers of [[pili nuts]].{{citation needed|date=March 2018}}

Tablas was established an economic zone, [[Tablas Economic Zone|Tablas Economic Zone Inc]]. (TEZI), on 2015 under the powers of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority ([[PEZA]]) and the Department of Trade and Industry ([[Department of Trade and Industry (Philippines)|DTI]])

==Language==
The [[Asi language]] is a [[Visayan language]] spoken, along with the [[Romblomanon language|Romblomanon]] and [[Onhan language|Onhan]] languages, in the province of Romblon, Philippines.<ref>[http://www.carabaohotels.com/languages.php "Romblon Province languages"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110519223254/http://www.carabaohotels.com/languages.php |date=2011-05-19 }}. A Romblon Province Website. Retrieved on 2011-06-05.</ref> [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]] is spoken by the locals as the second language. Foreigners are a welcome diversion for college students, who are the main part of the population who can speak English.

== Wildlife ==
The Wildlife and landscape appears untouched as deep-green vegetation is crossed by rivers and streams. A portion of the native forest cover has been removed and converted to coconut plantations, or rough grazing. However, the remaining small areas of watershed forest support several species of endemic wildlife that occur only on Tablas, or on just Tablas and Romblon Island. These include the Tablas Fantail ''Rhipidura sauli'', the Tablas Drongo ''Dicrurus menagei'', the Romblon Hawk Owl ''Ninox spilonota'', and the Tablas Bulbul ''Hypsipetes (siquijorensis) cinereiceps''. The frogs Platymantis_lawtoni and Platymantis levigatus are endangered species endemic to Tablas and other islands of Romblon province. In Ferrol at Malcom's Cove, monkeys, sea turtles and the Philippine eagle. In Santa Fe the whale shark (the earth's largest fish) is known to breed. The waters off Looc teem with numerous species of tropical fish and sea life in the protected sanctuary. Binucot Beach has manatee, dolphin and sea turtles.

<ref>New records and other observations of birds on the island of Tablas, Romblon province, Philippines (Forktail 22: 77-84, 2006)  Desmond Allen {{cite web |url=http://www.orientalbirdclub.org/publications/forktail/22pdfs/Allen-Tablas.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2011-06-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610195847/http://www.orientalbirdclub.org/publications/forktail/22pdfs/Allen-Tablas.pdf |archive-date=2011-06-10 }}</ref>
<ref>Vocal divergence and new species in the Philippine Hawk Owl ''Ninox philippensis'' complex (Forktail 28: 1-20, 2012) P. C. RASMUSSEN, D. N. S. ALLEN, N. J. COLLAR, B. DEMEULEMEESTER, R. O. HUTCHINSON, P. G. C. JAKOSALEM, R. S. KENNEDY, F. R. LAMBERT & L. M. PAGUNTALAN</ref>

== Scuba Diving ==
The only known [[blue hole]] in the Philippines is the [[Tablas Island Blue Hole]], located just off northwest Gorda Point in northeastern Tablas, below the [[Gorda Point Lighthouse]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://californiadiver.com/a-wreck-a-reef-and-a-blue-hole-exploring-tablas-and-romblon-philippines/|title=A Wreck, a Reef and a Blue Hole: Exploring Tablas and Romblon, Philippines|publisher=California Diver|date=April 4, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Provincial Tourism Officce|url=https://romblonph.blogspot.com/2015/09/blue-hole.html|title=Romblon Islands{{!}}Blue Hole|website=blogspot.com|accessdate=August 5, 2024}}</ref>

==Access==

===By water===
Access to Tablas is usually by ferry from the Port of [[Batangas City]] in southern [[Luzon]] and disembarking at the Port of Odiongan in [[Barangay]] Poctoy.<ref>[http://www.carabaohotels.com/gettingthere.php "Romblon - Getting there"]. Carabao Hotels. Retrieved on 2011-06-05.</ref>

[[Montenegro Lines]] serves Odiongan from the Port of [[Batangas City]] everyday with [[Roll-on/roll-off]] vessels. Travel time from Batangas to Poctoy takes about 8–10 hours. Travel time from Poctoy Pier to Odiongan town is about 10 minutes by motorcycles. [[Auto rickshaw (Philippines)|Tricycles]] are also readily available.<ref>[http://www.whitebeachboracay.com/2011/02/tablas-island.html "Getting to Tablas Island"]. White Beach Boracay. Retrieved on 2013-02-14.</ref>

From Caticlan (Sambiray Dock or Tabon plaza) there is pump boats every day leaving around 10 - 11 heading for Santa fe. Leaves Santa fe at 7:30 in the morning. Travel time about 2h depending on sea condition.
there is also another pump boat (Boat name: SANOY, phone number to captain +639126356955) going from Tablas south tip (Tabugon) to Caticlan almost every day in the morning, leaves Tabugon around 8 in the morning and goes back from Caticlan (Sambiray Dock or Tabon Plaza) to Tablas around 10 - 11. 
Price for one way trip 200php. When low tide in Tablas there is a smaller boat (flat boat) sending passengers between the beach and the boat for 10php per passenger.

===By air===
The main commercial airport of the province of Romblon is [[Tugdan Airport]] ([[IATA]]: TBH – [[ICAO]]: RPVU) located in the southeastern coast of Tablas in Barangay Tugdan, in the town of [[Alcantara, Romblon|Alcantara]].

From Manila, [[Philippine Airlines]] (PAL) serves Tugdan three times a week. Beginning February 2017, Cebu Pacific started flying from Manila to Tablas four times weekly - Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, using ATR 72-600 aircraft.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/592192/money/companies/cebu-pacific-to-launch-flights-to-tablas-and-masbate|title = Cebu Pacific to launch flights to Tablas and Masbate | date=12 December 2016 }}</ref>

==Images==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="140px">
File:PoctoyPier81030cg.jpg|Poctoy Pier, Tablas Island, 2008
File:MVMariaMatilda81027cg.jpg|MV Maria Matilda at Poctoy Pier, Odiongan, Tablas Island 2008
File:MainitFalls81027cga.jpg|Mainit Falls, Tablas Island, 2008
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
* {{Commons inline}}

{{Islands of the Philippines|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Geography of Romblon]]
[[Category:Islands of Romblon]]
[[Category:Populated places in Romblon]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Romblon]]