Fortune Island

Fortune Island lies about an hour by boat off Nasugbu in Batangas, an island of about 27 hectares that José Antonio Leviste, a former governor of Batangas, opened as the Fortune Island Resort Club in 1995, adding among other things a row of Greek-style columns and statues on the clifftop - a folly with no connection to anything, built for the view. The resort closed, the buildings decayed, and what remains is a small island with white sand at one end, cliffs at the other, the ruined structures, and the columns standing against the sea, which is what draws the photographs. The Spanish warship San Diego sank off the island, deep below snorkelling range, and the reef in the shallows is clear enough to snorkel. Visits are day trips or overnight camping arranged with boat operators from Nasugbu; there are no facilities, no fresh water and no shade beyond what you bring, and typhoon damage has periodically closed the island or removed parts of the structures.

Highlights

• The clifftop columns - the abandoned Greek-style folly.
• The ruined resort - decaying buildings across the island.
• The white beach - the sand strip at one end.
• The clear water - snorkelling over the shallow reef.

When to go

November to May for calm crossings. Overnight camping is the usual way to do it, since the day trip spends much of its time on the boat.

Practical notes

There are no facilities of any kind - no water, power, shade or toilets worth the name; everything comes in and out with you. The ruins are unstable and the cliffs unfenced. Crossings depend entirely on sea conditions.

Nearby

Nasugbu's beaches and Caleruega are on the mainland; the Tagaytay ridge is up the hill.

Key facts