Dr. Jose P. Rizal · Palawan8°52′ N · 117°30′ E0 → 2,086 m

Rizal

From the sea to the summit, at the far end of Palawan.

Begin the climb

Mula sa dulo ng lalawigan

From the end of the province, a town between the sea and the highest peak on Palawan.

About 203 kilometres south of Puerto Princesa, Rizal faces the West Philippine Sea on one side and the Mantalingahan range on the other.

Eleven coastal barangays share 153 kilometres of shoreline, white-sand beaches, green lagoons, more waterfalls than anyone has counted, and the valley of the Tau't Bato. Nearly nine-tenths of the land is forest.

Puerto PrincesaStart Rizal0 km West Philippine Sea Sulu Sea

About 203 km south of Puerto Princesa City, at the far end of the road.

11Coastal barangays

153.8 kmOf coastline, Bunog to Canipaan

125,915Hectares of land, 87.5% timberland

2,086 mMt. Mantalingahan, Palawan's highest peak

A short film

Rizal, in motion.

Watch on YouTube ↗ Rizal from the air, by Ceddy Medina ↗

Video: “Rizal Palawan, Philippines Tourism” by Mariella May Barnes, on YouTube.

Aerial view of a long, curving beach with gentle surf and forest behind

I · 0 m · West Philippine Sea

The coast

White sand, quiet coves and sunsets over open sea, along 153 kilometres of shore.

Logpond BeachPunta Baja
Malakibay Long BeachPunta Baja
Sorex BeachTaburi
White sand beside a striking rock formation.
Double IslandPunta Baja
Twin islets and white-sand beaches off Punta Baja, Taburi, Latud and Canipaan.
Latud BeachLatud
Millennium Sunset ViewTarumpitao Point
The town's favourite place to watch the sun go down.

Weathered concrete buildings standing among old trees

Tarumpitao Point

Where the town began

Before it was a town, Rizal was a barangay of Quezon known as Tarumpitao Point. After the Second World War it hosted a US Coast Guard LORAN navigation station.

Aerial view of a white sandbar curling out between mangroves and reef — **From above**A sandbar curls out between mangroves and reef.

Top-down view of surf breaking on a pale beach beside coconut palms — **Surf**Waves, sand and palms, straight down.

A wide white-sand beach curving toward a green headland under a blue sky — **White sand**Room to walk for as long as you like.

Aerial view of coconut palms running down to a long beach and open sea — **Palms**Coconut groves right down to the shore.

A person on a rocky lookout above a wide bay fringed with mangroves — **Lookout**A rocky point above the bay.

Aerial view of a jetty and rocky shore over deep green water — **Jetty**A jetty over deep green water.

Weathered boulders and a pandan tree above clear blue water — **Rocks**Boulders and pandan trees above clear water.

Stay a while

Slow days by the sea.

Cottages under the palms, steps cut down to the rocks, and evenings lit by strings of lights. Ask the Municipal Tourism Office for places to stay.

Bamboo cottages with porches on a green lawn under tall coconut palms — **Cottages**On the lawn, under the palms.

Aerial view of a blue-roofed house among palms above a turquoise cove — **Cove**A house above turquoise water.

A wooden stairway climbing between huge boulders above the sea — **Steps**Stairs between the boulders.

A woman walking down a flower-lined stairway between boulders — **Flowers**A stairway through the gardens.

Huge boulders framing a glimpse of bright blue sea — **Glimpse**The sea between the rocks.

A two-storey wooden house on a lawn among coconut palms — **Homestay**Wooden houses in the coconut groves.

Cottages on a hillside at dusk, lit by strings of warm lights — **Dusk**When the lights come on.

A stone path lined with flowers leading down to a thatched hut by the sea — **Path**The path down to the water.

A wooden bench on a rocky ledge above turquoise water — **Bench**A seat above the water.

A long stairway climbing between boulders and flowering gardens — **Climb**Up through the flowers.

Aerial view of a clear turquoise river running between forested banks and rocks

II · Rivers of the range

Lagoons & falls

Three principal rivers run north of the town centre and nine more run south, filling lagoons and pools on their way to the sea.

A woman stands on pale rocks above turquoise water in a forested gorge — **Culasian**Green Lagoon, with a natural pool and the 3 Star Cave upstream.

A vivid blue pool beneath a mossy cliff and the dark mouth of a cave — **Candawaga**Pinagliliwanan Falls, also called the Blue Lagoon.

A woman sits on a boulder at the foot of a rushing waterfall — **Falls**Water pours off the range into cold pools.

A swimmer in a deep green river pool, seen from above — **Deep water**A long swim in a forest pool.

A rocky riverbed running through a stand of tall pines — **Pines**Stony riverbeds wind through pine and forest.

People floating on inner tubes in a fast, clear turquoise river — **Tubing**Float down fast, clear water on an inner tube.

Also worth the walk

Lungsod Cave in Pinagar, Ransang, hides a waterfall inside it. Bungawon is a natural pool for a long, cold swim.

So many falls, no one has counted them all.

Sumigay Falls in Bentat-karis, Iraan, may be the tallest waterfall on Palawan.

SumigayIraan
MantayobBunog
IlianBunog
MadiplakIraan
KinaruwayanIraan
GamayIraan
TurbongPunta Baja
MuslodCampong Ulay
Buar-BuarRansang
ArisurangMantalingahan trail

III · The lowlands

The fruit basket of Palawan

Three people walking across a wide green rice field, forest and mountains beyond — **Rice**Green fields between the forest and the sea.

Rizal means to be the agro-industrial centre of Southern Palawan, and it starts in the fields.

Rice, coconut, rubber and cacao grow between the range and the coast. In fruit season the markets fill with rambutan, lanzones and durian, and the town throws a festival to eat them.

A smiling man with a camera behind a table of durian, lanzones and other fruit — **Harvest**Durian, lanzones and more.

Three people at a table piled with red rambutan, smiling for the camera — **Rambutan**Piled high in fruit season.

A flock of ducks on a pond beside green rice paddies — **Paddies**Ducks on the pond beside the rice.

IV · The forest

Life in the range

861Plant species, at least

90Bird species

35Mammal species

30Reptile species

14Amphibian species

Aerial view of the sun rising over unbroken forest and distant fields — **First light**Morning over the forest and the fields beyond.

Some of the wildlife of the Mantalingahan range is found nowhere else but Palawan.

Rizal's forests climb from the coast to the cloud line, and the town looks after most of them: of its 125,915 hectares, 110,216 are timberland.

Somewhere in them stands the Manggis tree, said to be the tallest tree in Southeast Asia.

Jagged limestone peaks rising above a sea of rainforest under heavy cloud

V · Ransang

Singnapan

A valley of limestone, and the home of the Tau't Bato, the people of the rock.

A bamboo tourism booth hung with portraits of Tau't Bato elders and woven bags — **Tourism Office**Portraits of the Tau't Bato at the municipal tourism booth.

Singnapan is a bowl-shaped valley in Barangay Ransang, five to seven hours on foot from the national road.

It is home to the Tau't Bato, an indigenous community who have long made their homes in the valley's caves. With the Palaw'an and families from across the country, they make Rizal what the town proudly calls the home of the Tau't Bato.

Visit with a local guide and the community's permission, and leave the valley as you found it.

Forested mountains under towering white clouds and blue sky

VI · 2,086 m above sea level

Mantalingahan

The highest peak on Palawan, and the roof of the town.

Hikers holding the Philippine flag on a high ridge at dusk, mountains behind — **The ridge**Hikers raise the flag high in the range at dusk.

The Mt. Mantalingahan Protected Landscape guards the range, and sixty percent of it lies in Rizal.

Summit: 2,086 m
Protected since: 23 June 2009
By: Proclamation No. 1815
Protected landscape: 120,457 ha
Share in Rizal: 60%
To the peak: 2½ days on foot

The seven-day adventure trail

Bunog Entry point
Mantayob Falls
Sumindop Cave
Ilian Falls & Ilian Cave
Arisurang Falls
Madiplak Falls
Sumigay Falls
Little Baguio
Danao Lake
Turbong Falls
Pines Valley
Muslod Falls
Buar-Buar Falls
Tau't Bato caves Singnapan

Back down to Punta Baja

And then, home.

Our story

A town named for a hero.

Rizal is a first-class municipality, young as towns go, and proud of where it stands.

1945+
Tarumpitao Point, then part of Quezon, hosts a US Coast Guard LORAN station after the Second World War.
1983
On 14 April, Batas Pambansa No. 386 creates the town, then called Marcos.
1988
Renamed Dr. Jose P. Rizal under Republic Act No. 6652, in effect from 17 April, in tribute to the national hero.
2010
Awarded the DILG Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping.

The seal of the Municipality of Dr. Jose P. Rizal, Palawan

Reading the seal

The monument and 1983: The national hero, and the year the town was founded.
Coconuts, rice fields and sea: How most people here make a living.
Falls, Mt. Mantalingahan and a cave: The places visitors come for.
Eleven stars: The eleven barangays.
The golden rope: The unity that binds the people to a bright future.

“A premiere agro-industrial center and eco-tourism destination in Southern Palawan.” From the municipal vision

A colour portrait of Dr. Jose Rizal in a dark coat and white collar against a sepia backdrop — **Portrait**Dr. Jose Rizal, an AI-enhanced colour portrait.

The name we carry

Dr. Jose P. Rizal

Physician, novelist and the national hero of the Philippines. Born in Calamba, Laguna, on 19 June 1861, he wrote Noli Me Tángere (1887) and El Filibusterismo (1891), novels that woke a nation.

He was executed in Bagumbayan, Manila, on 30 December 1896. In 1988 the town took his name in tribute.

Born: 19 June 1861
Died: 30 December 1896
Town named: 17 April 1988

A painting of Rizal writing by lamplight at a wooden table in a stone cell with a barred window — “Adiós, Patria adorada, región del sol querida…”
Farewell, beloved Fatherland, region of the sun caressed. The opening line of *Mi último adiós*, written in his cell at Fort Santiago on the eve of his execution. Digital painting.

Para sa mamamayan

Tools for everyday Rizal.

The weather and the sea today, whether the Municipal Hall is open, which office to visit, and who to call.

Today in RizalPunta Baja

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—Wind

—Waves offshore

—Chance of rain today

—Sunrise · sunset

Checking sea conditions…

Forecast from Open-Meteo. A guide only: always follow PAGASA, Coast Guard and MDRRMO advisories before going to sea.

Municipal HallPunta Baja

Is the Hall open?

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Office hours: Mon–Fri, 8:00 AM–5:00 PM
MDRRMO: 24 hours, every day
Address: Municipal Hall, Punta Baja

Holidays and special non-working days are not shown here.

Office finderSaan ako pupunta?

Which office do I need?

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We'll point you to the right office at the Municipal Hall.

HotlinesTap to call

Who to call

EmergencyPolice, fire and medical911
Municipal HallMain line0999 993 8869
Municipal AdministratorOffice of the Municipal Admin0928 413 3333
MDRRMODisaster response, 24/7Hotline ↗

Numbers from the official site. Confirm current hotlines with the Municipal Hall.

BarangaysPopulation · PSA 2015

Eleven barangays, one town

Municipal Hall

Your local government.

Twenty-one offices in five service groups, all at the Municipal Hall in Punta Baja.

Aerial view of the Municipal Hall complex with its grounds, trees and fields beyond — **Punta Baja**The Municipal Hall complex from above.

Administrative services 7

Plans, policies and the running of the municipality.

Municipal Administrator's Office
Municipal Planning and Development Office
Municipal Engineering Office
Human Resource Management Division
General Services Office
Community Affairs Office
Sangguniang Bayan Office

Financial services 3

Budgets, accounts and collections, under the Local Government Code.

Municipal Treasury Office
Municipal Budget Office
Municipal Accounting Office

Regulatory services 3

Permits, property and civil records.

Business Permits and Licensing Office
Municipal Assessor's Office
Municipal Civil Registry Office

Economic services 3

Growing the local economy.

Municipal Economic Enterprise Development Office
Municipal Tourism Office
DTI Negosyo Center

Social services 5

Bringing the government closer to the people.

Municipal Agriculture Office
Municipal Health Office
Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office
Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office
Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Office

Citizen's CharterServices, steps and processing times ↗ Full DisclosureBudgets, funds and quarterly reports ↗ Bids and AwardsProcurement notices and results ↗ OrdinancesFrom the Sangguniang Bayan ↗ Executive OrdersFrom the Office of the Mayor ↗ Elected OfficialsMayor, Vice Mayor and Councilors ↗

Gawad Kalasag Seal · Beyond Compliant 2022Gawad Kalasag Seal · Beyond Compliant 2023Seal of Good Financial Housekeeping 2010DILG MIMAROPA SubayBAYANI Awards 2026

Mayor Norman S. Ong seated at his desk with a nameplate, plaques behind him

Mayor's Corner

Serving all eleven barangays.

Hon. Norman S. OngMunicipal Mayor

The Mayor's Corner gathers the mayor's messages, executive orders and activities around the town, from the Municipal Hall to the farthest barangay.

14 March 2024
Led the first barangay mass wedding in Canipaan, blessing seven couples from Canipaan and Latud.
14 March 2024
The municipality hosted a signing between DENR and an Enhanced National Greening Program people's organization at the MDRRMO Training Center, Punta Baja.