The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park is a protected area in the Philippines.
The park is located in the Saint Paul Mountain Range on the western coast of the island of Palawan, about 80 kilometers (50 mi) north of the city of Puerto Princesa, and contains the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River (also known as the Puerto Princesa Underground River). It has been managed by the Puerto Princesa city government since 1992.
It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1999, and voted as a New7Wonders of Nature in 2012. It also became a Ramsar Wetland Site in 2012.
A major tourist destination, it is mostly accessed through road trips to the seaside village of Sabang from where one of the many Bangkas (Kayaks) take visitors to the park
In 2010, a group of environmentalists and geologists discovered that the underground river has a second floor, which means that there are small waterfalls inside the cave. They also found a cave dome measuring 300 m (980 ft) above the underground river, rock formations, large bats, a deep water hole in the river, more river channels, and another deep cave, as well as marine creatures and more. Deeper areas of the underground river are almost impossible to explore due to oxygen deprivation.[citation needed]
On November 11, 2011, Puerto Princesa Underground River was provisionally chosen as one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. This selection was officially confirmed on January 28, 2012.[1]
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