Mindoro Vacations, Mindoro Vacation Reviews, Tourism Guide

Mindoro Vacation Guide

Mindoro is the seventh largest island in the Philippines. It is located southwest of Luzon and northeast of Palawan. In past times, it has been called Ma-i or Mait by ancient Chinese traders and, by Spaniards, as Mina de Oro (meaning "gold mine") from where the island got its current name. The island was divided into its two present-day provinces, Occidental Mindoro and Oriental Mindoro, in 1950. Before then, since 1921, the entire island was one province.

According to the late historian William Henry Scott in his book Prehispanic Source Materials For The Study of Philippine History (rev. ed., 1984), an entry in the official history of the Sung Dynasty for the year 972 mentions Ma-i as a trading partner of China. Other Chinese records referring to Ma-i or Mindoro appear in the years that follow.

The economy of Mindoro is largely based on agriculture. Products consist of a wide variety of fruits, such as citrus, banana, lanzones, rambutan, and coconuts, such cereals as rice and maize, sugar cane, peanuts, fish (catfish, milkfish, tilapia), livestock, and poultry. Logging and the mining of marble and copper also thrive.

Tourism is a lucrative business as well, with locations such as Apo Reef National Park, Lubang Island, Puerto Galera, Sabang Beach, and Mount Halcon. Puerto Galera's beaches are the islands most known tourist attraction and are widely visited by both foreigners and locals.