2 days · 8 stops
What the forest kept
A closed military base is an accidental nature reserve. Subic spent most of a century off-limits, and the rainforest, the mangroves and one of the world’s great bat colonies are what came out the other side.
These are suggested places from the story, grouped into a starting route. Adjust the order, travel time and bookings to suit your day. Check current opening hours before setting out.
Day 1
Ilanin Forest (East and West)
Two SBMA conservation districts covering the Freeport's western forest: Ilanin Forest East (919 ha, strict conservation) and Ilanin Forest West (1,224 ha, allowing recreation at developed nodes).
Triboa Bay Mangroves / Triboa Mangrove Park
Two-hectare mangrove boardwalk in the Ilanin Forest area of the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, part of an ongoing SBMA reforestation program.
JEST Camp
Ecotourism camp in Upper Mau, Cubi-Triboa, built as a 1960s US military jungle-survival school taught by Aeta instructors. Reopened to the public after the base closed in 1991, it runs day demos, an obstacle course and overnight survival packages.
JEST Camp (Jungle Environment Survival Training Camp)
Jungle-survival training camp in the Cubi-Triboa district, teaching skills once passed to the US Navy by Aeta guides. Ranked the Freeport's #6 attraction on TripAdvisor, 4.1 stars from 27 reviews.
Day 2
Pastolan (Aeta community)
Aeta settlement within SBFZ/SBMA territory; part of Freeport land recognized under a Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title held by the Aeta people. Documented in linguistic literature as a place where Ambala Ayta is spoken.
Morong Park
An ecological park on the Bataan side of the Freeport, well south of the CBD. It sits on the stretch of the zone where the named districts run out, and is marked only by its plus code.
Tanawan sa Subic Bay
A marked viewpoint over Subic Bay on the road between the CBD and Cubi. Tanawan is Filipino for a place you look out from, and that is the whole of it: no facilities, no gate, no staff.
Camayan Point
The headland closing the western end of Ilanin Forest West, out past Camayan Beach and the dive wharf. It is a point of land rather than a managed site, with no facilities listed.