Bohol Beyond Panglao: Philippines Sees Tourism Spill Into Carmen, Loboc, Anda, and Other Towns

Written By: Ankita Neogi Khan

Ankita Neogi Khan

With over 15 years of experience in digital media, I bring a strong foundation in language, journalism, and storytelling to travel reporting. A graduate in English (Honours) from Presidency College with a Master's in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of Calcutta, I began my career as a content curator before transitioning into travel journalism. I specialise in aviation, tourism trends, destination news, and industry insights, combining meticulous research, accuracy, and compelling storytelling to deliver credible, engaging, and insightful content for a global audience.

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August 13, 2026 7:56 AM

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The demand for travel to Bohol is extended beyond Pangloa Island and its resort belt. Bohol recorded 1,427,362 tourist arrivals in 2025 which is 4.18% more than in 2024. Foreign tourist arrivals were up 14.75% in 2025. The Quinale Beach in Anda and the Chocolate Hills in Carmen are the two destinations that are the most visited in Bohol which shows that tourists have a greater interest in sites outside Panglao.

Bohol is undergoing a change in tourism development, planning and connectivity and includes the provision of community based tourism. Bohol also introduced a Sustainable Tourism Development Code and began work on a new six-year tourism development plan. From these developments, it can be seen that travellers to Bohol have the opportunity to explore Bohol beyond Panglao as a multi-centre destination.

Bohol Beyond Panglao Gains Fresh Momentum

Panglao remains the principal gateway for international and domestic visitors. Yet the latest tourism figures reveal a more complex geography of demand. Bohol’s 2025 accommodation inventory reached 1,034 registered establishments, compared with 976 in 2024. Accredited establishments also increased from 20% to 25%.

That expansion matters because accommodation capacity can support longer itineraries. Visitors who once used Panglao mainly as a base can increasingly connect with inland and secondary destinations. This creates opportunities for smaller businesses without requiring every visitor to relocate from the established resort zone.

Bohol’s provincial government is now explicitly pursuing stronger tourism circuits. In July 2026, provincial officials and the Department of Tourism discussed local tourism development planning, new travel routes and diversified experiences. The stated objective includes encouraging visitors to spend more time across the province.

The change therefore is not simply geographical. It represents a move from a single-gateway tourism model towards a distributed visitor economy.

One Island, Many Travel Economies

Bohol has 47 municipalities and one city, with a population of 1,412,726 in the 2024 census. That administrative footprint gives the province an unusually broad base for developing differentiated tourism experiences.

Several municipalities remain comparatively small. Sikatuna had only 7,031 residents in 2024, while Corella had 9,889 and San Isidro had 10,228. Their smaller population bases underline both the opportunity and the challenge of bringing tourism into communities that lack the visitor infrastructure of Panglao.

The significance lies in the combination. Travellers can assemble a more varied Bohol itinerary without depending entirely on beach tourism.

Chocolate Hills Changes the Geography

The clearest evidence of this transition comes from Carmen, where the Chocolate Hills Complex became Bohol’s leading tourist site in 2025. The Philippine Department of Tourism describes the Chocolate Hills as the country’s third National Geological Monument. Its 1,776 formations span six towns.

The attraction also sits within Bohol Island UNESCO Global Geopark. UNESCO designated the geopark in 2023, making Bohol the Philippines’ first UNESCO Global Geopark. The geopark covers approximately 8,808 square kilometres, including land and marine areas.

This designation gives Bohol a particularly strong foundation for geotourism. Visitors can connect limestone landscapes, caves, sinkholes, marine geology and cultural heritage within one destination framework.

For travellers, that changes the question from “Which beach should I visit?” to “Which landscape should I experience next?”

Loboc Builds a Different Proposition

Loboc demonstrates why inland tourism needs a different development strategy. Its tourism identity rests on the river, surrounding vegetation, local culture and countryside rather than a conventional resort strip.

That ecosystem is now receiving more strategic attention. In May 2026, provincial authorities and stakeholders completed a climate-change and disaster-risk assessment for the Loboc River Tourism System. Proposed interventions focus on ecological restoration, infrastructure and safety, and institutional strengthening.

This is important for visitors because destination quality increasingly depends on resilience. A river tourism experience cannot thrive if environmental degradation, flooding or unmanaged infrastructure undermines the attraction.

Loboc therefore illustrates a wider principle for Bohol. Tourism expansion must protect the natural systems that make secondary destinations marketable.

Anda Proves Panglao Is Not Alone

Anda provides another useful signal. Quinale Beach ranked second among Bohol’s tourist sites in 2025, according to BPTO data reported by the Philippine Information Agency. That ranking is particularly significant because Anda sits well beyond the Panglao resort cluster.

The result suggests that travellers are already responding to differentiated destination propositions. Anda can offer a quieter coastal experience while remaining connected to Bohol’s wider tourism network.

For visitors planning longer stays, the municipality can work as a contrasting stop. Panglao can provide convenience and resort infrastructure, while Anda can offer a less concentrated coastal atmosphere.

That contrast is commercially valuable. A destination does not need to imitate Panglao to benefit from Bohol’s tourism growth.

Candijay Opens the Rural Frontier

Candijay represents another dimension of the emerging tourism map. Its attraction lies less in international resort recognition and more in landscapes, waterfalls, agriculture and community-scale experiences.

Such destinations can support the province’s developing emphasis on regenerative and community-based tourism. BPTO identified geotourism circuits, gastronomy, culture, heritage, arts trails and community-based tourism among its 2026 priorities.

This approach can also broaden the economic footprint of tourism. Local guides, transport providers, food producers, farmers and small accommodation operators can participate without building a large resort economy.

However, the model requires careful management. Rural tourism can become environmentally damaging if visitor numbers grow faster than waste, water, transport and site-management systems.

Talibon Brings Ecotourism Into Focus

Northern Bohol adds another compelling dimension through the Talibon Group of Islands Protected Landscape and Seascape. The protected area contains mangroves, white-sand beaches, marine biodiversity and habitats for migratory birds.

In June 2026, the provincial government and DENR advanced an updated ecotourism development and management plan. The five-year framework carries an estimated budget of ₱20.245 million for priority sites, infrastructure and sustainable management.

The significance extends beyond sightseeing. Officials have stressed that ecotourism should generate tangible benefits for local communities, including fisherfolk whose livelihoods depend on natural resources.

For travellers, this creates a different type of experience. Instead of consuming a destination solely as a scenic attraction, visitors can encounter protected landscapes where conservation and livelihoods are directly connected.

Connectivity Will Decide the Next Chapter

Bohol’s tourism expansion still depends heavily on Panglao’s transport infrastructure. Bohol-Panglao International Airport handled 2.22 million passengers in 2025, according to provincial reporting based on Aboitiz InfraCapital data. The airport was handed over to Aboitiz InfraCapital in June 2025 under the airport concession programme.

The airport’s importance creates both an advantage and a bottleneck. More passengers can reach Bohol, but the wider tourism economy needs efficient ways to move them beyond Panglao.

The proposed Third Tagbilaran-Panglao Bridge is therefore relevant to the tourism story. Provincial officials have said the project aims to improve passenger and goods movement between Panglao and Tagbilaran while easing congestion.

International connectivity is also broadening. Bohol welcomed its first direct charter flight from Japan on 2 May 2026, carrying 164 Japanese tourists from Narita to Bohol-Panglao International Airport.

More connectivity could eventually feed demand into secondary destinations. Yet that will depend on tour design, road access, local transport and the availability of quality visitor services.

A New Policy Framework Is Taking Shape

The province is also strengthening the policy architecture behind tourism growth. In January 2026, Bohol institutionalised its Sustainable Tourism Development Code, establishing a framework focused on responsible growth, environmental protection, cultural heritage and local communities.

The timing is significant. Visitor growth can create pressure on exactly the assets that attract travellers. A sustainability framework therefore needs to accompany tourism expansion rather than follow it.

Bohol is also preparing a new six-year Comprehensive Provincial Tourism Development Plan. The provincial government allocated an approved budget of ₱5.5 million for consulting services to prepare the plan.

This creates an important planning window. The next phase can determine whether tourism remains concentrated around established gateways or becomes more evenly distributed.

What Travellers Should Know Now

For travellers, Bohol’s emerging tourism geography offers practical advantages. A longer stay can combine several distinct environments instead of repeating similar beach experiences.

A useful itinerary logic could look like this:

Travellers should also allow more time between destinations. Panglao-based day tours can provide an introduction, but longer stays can create greater value for smaller communities.

Visitors should check local operating conditions before travelling to remote attractions. Weather can affect roads, boats and outdoor activities, while protected areas may impose specific access arrangements.

The most useful mindset is therefore simple: treat Bohol as a province to explore, not merely an airport destination.

Tourism Spillover Needs Guardrails

The phrase “tourism spillover” can sound automatically positive. In reality, secondary destinations need the right infrastructure before visitor growth accelerates.

Bohol’s own planning documents have long recognised this requirement. Its Tourism Master Plan covers transportation, environmental management, conservation, entrepreneurship, sustainable development and implementation.

Earlier recovery planning also identified tourism-site enhancement projects across locations including Sikatuna, Corella, Baclayon, Sagbayan, Carmen, Buenavista, Getafe, Trinidad, Ubay, Antequera, Jagna, Tubigon and Talibon.

That history suggests the current diversification strategy is not an isolated marketing exercise. It forms part of a longer attempt to build a broader tourism economy.

The challenge now is scale. Bohol must distribute visitors without distributing environmental pressure at the same speed.

Why Bohol’s Second Tourism Map Matters

Bohol’s 2025 performance provides the strongest reason to watch this transition. Total arrivals exceeded 1.4 million, foreign tourism expanded sharply, and the province added accommodation capacity. Yet the most revealing statistic may be the ranking of individual attractions.

When Carmen and Anda feature prominently alongside Panglao, the province begins to look less like a single resort destination. It starts to resemble a network of complementary tourism economies.

That distinction matters for international travellers, destination planners and local enterprises alike. A multi-centre model can encourage longer stays, broaden spending and create new reasons to return.

It can also protect Bohol from overdependence on one tourism corridor. If Panglao absorbs the gateway function, municipalities such as Carmen, Loboc, Anda, Candijay and Talibon can increasingly provide the depth.

Bohol Beyond Panglao Points Ahead

Bohol Beyond Panglao is no longer a just a brilliant editorial idea. It is highly likely that the Province is actively widening its tourism footprint through new circuits, local planning, connectivity, conservation and diversified experiences.

This next phase will not be judged upon visitor numbers alone. It will be based upon travel duration, travel distance and travel expenditure benefiting the local communities. Bohol has the natural assets, international recognition and increasing connectivity to make this change.

This change could be very beneficial to travelers. The familiar Bohol of beaches and resorts is merely the introduction to a much larger story of an entire island. The more captivating travel experience most likely will begin after the Panglao transfer.

FAQs About Bohol Tourism

1. Why is Bohol tourism expanding beyond Panglao?

Bohol tourism is increasingly spreading beyond Panglao as travellers seek geotourism, rural experiences, heritage, nature and community-based attractions. The province recorded more than 1.4 million tourist arrivals in 2025, while attractions such as Chocolate Hills in Carmen and Quinale Beach in Anda attracted substantial visitor interest.

2. Which places can travellers visit beyond Panglao in Bohol?

Travellers can explore Carmen, Loboc, Anda, Candijay, Talibon, Jagna, Valencia and Dimiao, among other municipalities. These destinations offer very different experiences, including the Chocolate Hills, Loboc River, beaches, waterfalls, mangroves, protected landscapes, heritage sites and rural communities.

3. Is Carmen becoming an important tourism destination in Bohol?

Yes. Carmen is particularly significant because of the Chocolate Hills, which ranked as Bohol’s most visited tourist site in 2025. The Chocolate Hills also form part of the Bohol Island UNESCO Global Geopark, strengthening the municipality’s position within the province’s geotourism network.

4. What does Bohol’s tourism spillover mean for travellers?

Tourism spillover means that visitor activity generated around Panglao can increasingly benefit destinations elsewhere in the province. For travellers, this creates opportunities to build multi-stop Bohol itineraries, combining resort stays with inland landscapes, cultural encounters, conservation areas and smaller communities.

5. Can travellers stay outside Panglao during a Bohol holiday?

Yes. Panglao remains the most established base for many visitors, but travellers can consider accommodation and longer stays in other parts of Bohol. Spending additional nights outside the principal resort corridor can provide a slower travel experience while directing tourism expenditure towards smaller local businesses and communities.

6. Is Bohol developing sustainable tourism beyond Panglao?

Bohol is strengthening its sustainability framework through its Sustainable Tourism Development Code and broader tourism planning. The province is also developing ecotourism initiatives in areas such as Talibon and resilience measures for the Loboc River tourism system, reflecting a growing emphasis on managing tourism alongside environmental protection.