Chocolate Hills resort ‘temporarily closed until further notice’

FILE PHOTO: Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort in Sagbayan, Bohol, shown in this August 2023 photo, has trended on social media after netizens called out the government and its owners for allowing its construction and operation within the Chocolate Hills, a protected landscape. Photo by Leo Udtohan

MANILA, Philippines — The controversial resort located within the scenic Chocolate Hills protected area in Bohol province has “temporarily closed until further notice.”

Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort’s announcement of its interim shutdown followed a public uproar questioning the operation of a commercial hideaway among the world-famous Chocolate Hills.

Also, it came hours after the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said it issued a Temporary Closure Order (TCO) on Sept. 6, 2023, and a Notice of Violation on Jan. 22, 2024, against the vacation place. The DENR said Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort was operating without an Environment Compliance Certificate.

READ: Probe sought on resort amid Chocolate Hills

The DENR likewise said it ordered the Bohol Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Office to check if the vacation spot complied with TCO.

“To our valued guests, this is to inform you that our resort is temporarily closed until further notice. Sorry, for the [inconvenience],” Captain’s Peak Garden and Resort wrote on its Facebook page late night Wednesday.

As of posting, the DENR has yet to provide an update on the inspection conducted by its regional office. However, the DENR told INQUIRER.net it was already in talks with its regional operations team in Bohol regarding the matter.

According to the UNESCO website, Chocolate Hills was declared the Philippines’ third National Geological Monument on June 18, 1988, “in recognition of its scientific value and geomorphic uniqueness.”

“Similar to the formations found in Java, the conical and almost symmetrical and same-sized hills known as the ‘Chocolate Hills’, are more aesthetically extensive. These were the uplift of coral deposits and the result of the action of rainwater and erosion,” states the entry about Chocolate Hills on the UNESCO website.

“The hills are located throughout the towns of Carmen, Batuan, and Sagbayan and consist of about 1,776 mounds of the same general shape. During the dry season, when precipitation is inadequate, the grass-covered hills turn chocolate brown, hence the name in reference to a branded confection,” it also states.