Iloilo Paraw Beach Resort offers a breathe-taking view of Guimaras Island, home of the sweetest Mangoes in the world and the famous Bala-an Bukid. The black sands in our shores have historical values as it is the exact location where the oldest Paraw Sailing competition in Asia (and the biggest in the Philippines) started and remains to be alive up to this day through the annual celebration of Paraw Regatta Main Sailing Competition.
Soon enough, our guests will be able to enjoy various water sports and island hopping activities. For now events and beach sports activities may be organized with due coordination from the resort management. Guests may swim but on an “AT YOUR OWN RISK” basis due to Government regulations and lack of Coast guards in the area.
About the Iloilo Paraw Regatta Festival
Photo Credit to: Lovepilipinas.com
The Iloilo Paraw Regatta is the oldest traditional craft event in Asia, and the largest sailing event in the Philippines. The principal attraction of Iloilo Paraw Regatta are the double outrigger boats called “paraw”. This native sailboat has been in existence for no one knows how long. But the fact remains that the people of the Iloilo Strait are still to this day using the paraw as a means of transportation as well as a source of livelihood. With a fresh breeze, and an ilonggo at the helm, the paraw is a strikingly fastboat, making 20 to 30 kph through the waves. Indeed the paraw was the inspiring prototype from which the Westeners have developed what they have called the trimaran, the fastest sailboats now on the planet. Activities have been expanded to spread over a week in the month of February. On the Saturday of the climactic weekend there is a slalom racing on a course by the beach to facilitate crowd participation. On the Sunday, the thirty-kilometer distance race is sailed on a course in the Iloilo Strait, running up the coast of Panay and then down the coast of Guimaras, before returning to the finish at Villa Beach.
The geophysical shape of the Iloilo Strait provides year round breezes. Thus the working sailboat still predominates. In these times of high fuel costs, and polluting oil spills, one can appreciate the simple ecology of the traditional paraw. Nevertheless, the skills needed to sail are far from complex. The objective of the Regatta is to celebrate the skills of the paraw sailors, and bring a fiesta spirit into their lives. And with the colorful painted sails, the spirit is brought into the lives of participants and tourists as well.
Watch GMA 7's Coverage of the Latest Paraw Regatta Competition in Iloilo City