MANILA, Philippines — A U.S. Marine Corps drone detachment is operating from a Philippine airfield in Palawan near South China Sea flashpoints in the Spratly Islands, USNI News has learned.  From the ...

MANILA, Philippines — A U.S. Marine Corps drone detachment is operating from a Philippine airfield in Palawan near South China Sea flashpoints in the Spratly Islands, USNI News has learned.  From the ...

**THE GREAT TANG: BY THE SEA** takes over **Palawan Green, Sentosa** , from **22 January to 14 February 2027** , with _hanfu_ dressing-up, carnival games, workshops, performances and food for the Lunar New Year season. It draws on **Datang Everbright City** , a Tang Dynasty-themed night street in Xi’an. The organisers say this is the first time elements of that attraction have been brought beyond China, which puts a slice of it a short trip from home instead of a flight to Shaanxi. If your Lunar New Year runs on reunion dinners and house visits, this is a beachfront evening you can slot in between them. The dress-up corner is the part we’d plan the whole outing around! ## A Tang Street Crosses the Sea Datang Everbright City (大唐不夜城, roughly “the Great Tang city that never sleeps”) is one of Xi’an’s best-known night-time attractions, bringing Tang culture to life through architecture, performances, food, retail and street experiences. Xi’an was once Chang’an, the Tang Dynasty capital, shaped by the movement of people, music, food and fashion. The Sentosa edition pairs that history with Singapore’s _Nanyang_ identity, _Nanyang_ being the old Chinese term for the “South Seas” region where generations of Chinese migrants settled. Put simply, it’s two cities built on cultural exchange sharing one beach. The event is developed by Singapore’s PushButton Entertainment, Xi’an Qujiang Cultural Tourism Co., Ltd. and JZBB Pte Ltd, in partnership with Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC). Xi’an Qujiang is the company behind the original street, and its own description says it manages Datang Everbright City alongside Xi’an City Wall, Tang Paradise and the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. ## Dress Up, Play, Eat _Hanfu_ is the obvious headliner for anyone with a camera roll to fill. It’s the traditional clothing of the Han Chinese, all flowing sleeves and layered robes, joined by workshops, carnival games and a cultural and creative market. “This collaboration gives us the opportunity to create a celebration that draws on Tang heritage while feeling relevant to Singapore,” said Jonathan Chia, Director of PushButton Entertainment. He added that the team wants visitors to discover the cultural influences behind the event “whether they are familiar with Tang culture or encountering it for the first time”. That makes it an easy invite for the friend who has never sat through a single Chinese period drama. SDC’s Michael Ma, Assistant Chief Executive of its Business & Digital Technology Group, called it “a first-in-the-world immersive experience outside of China”. He pointed to **zodiac readings** , the **auspicious goats at Sensoryscape** for the Year of the Goat, and **festival lightings** once the night comes alive. His suggestion is to stay on into the evening for those lights, so treat this as a sunset-to-dark plan rather than a quick afternoon stop. ## Muslim Quarter Flavours Fly In The food is our second pick, because it’s the hardest part to find anywhere else in Singapore, with flavours inspired by Xi’an’s renowned Muslim Quarter. These will sit beside Singapore and Southeast Asian favourites, with **halal-certified options** promised too, which matters for any group outing where not everyone eats the same way. Performers from Xi’an in Tang Dynasty-style hanfu before a red-lit horse statue, the costume tradition behind Sentosa’s dress-up experience The organisers haven’t named the vendors or dishes yet, and they say food offerings will be detailed in a later announcement, so hold off on building your evening around a single stall. If you’re mapping out a full festive food calendar, our guide to Chinese New Year restaurants covers the sit-down reunion meals. ## Three Years on the Beach This isn’t meant to be a one-off. The partners marked the deal with a signing ceremony at Tang Paradise in Xi’an. The wider vision, as the organisers frame it, is a Lunar New Year experience by the sea that can evolve over time, starting with the Tang Dynasty as its theme. That leaves room for future editions to look quite different, which is worth knowing if you skip the first one. And if you’d like a hand in what else lands on the island, our look at how Sentosa’s next 20 years are being planned explains where you get a say. 🗓️ **Date:** 22 January to 14 February 2027 📍 **Location:** Palawan Green, Sentosa 👘 **Highlights:** _Hanfu_ dressing-up, carnival games, workshops, cultural performances and a cultural and creative market 🍜 **Food:** Xi’an vendors with Muslim Quarter-inspired flavours, plus Singapore and Southeast Asian favourites, with halal-certified options 🐐 **Bonus:** Zodiac readings, festival lightings and the auspicious goats at Sensoryscape, per SDC Between the robes, the Xi’an street food and an evening by the water, THE GREAT TANG: BY THE SEA gives Lunar New Year 2027 a beachside setting worth a spot in your festive plans. The organisers say the programme, experiences and ticketing will be announced in due course, so bookmark the official THE GREAT TANG: BY THE SEA website and follow PushButton Entertainment to catch the details the moment they drop, _hanfu_ slot and all! **Photos and Visuals courtesy of Xi’an Qujiang Cultural Tourism Co., Ltd.**

Donation of books bound for Culion Foundation, Inc. (CFI) beneficiaries (Photo courtesy of CFI) MANILA, Philippines, October 2026 — 2GO, the country's leading integrated transportation and logistics provider, partnered with Culion Foundation, Inc. (CFI) to deliver essential learning resources to 19 public schools across Culion, Palawan, helping make educational materials more accessible to students in one of the country's island communities. Through 2GO’s integrated transport and logistics network, CFI delivered 17,239 books to elementary and high school students across the coastal municipality. The initiative supports CFI’s Education Program, which aims to strengthen local literacy, improve access to learning materials, and advance foundational educational goals. The collaboration demonstrates how 2GO’s core capabilities can support organizations in reaching beneficiaries beyond major urban centers. By facilitating the transport of donated resources to underserved communities, 2GO helps connect organizations with the students and families they seek to serve. “At 2GO, we believe our role goes beyond providing transport and logistics solutions. By working with partners like the Culion Foundation, we leverage our nationwide reach to help address community needs and support education initiatives that create more opportunities for the next generation. Ultimately, connecting the country means helping ensure that more Filipinos can participate in and benefit from its growth,” said 2GO President and CEO Frederic DyBuncio. For organizations distributing resources across geographically dispersed communities, reliable logistics is essential to translating donations into tangible support for beneficiaries. By working with trusted community organizations, 2GO applies its transport and logistics solutions to move essential resources where they are needed, while contributing to broader efforts to improve access to education. “Our partnership with 2GO has been instrumental in helping us bring donated books to public schools across Culion. Their logistics support demonstrates how the private sector can mobilize its core strengths to create collective community impact. Together, we are helping make learning resources more accessible and opening more opportunities for children to learn, grow, and thrive,” said Eugenio M. Caccam Jr., CFI executive director. The initiative reflects 2GO's commitment to extending the value of its integrated solutions beyond commercial requirements. By working with organizations on the ground, the company helps connect resources with communities and supports efforts to expand access to education.

Las mejores islas filipinas te esperan con playas de arena blanca, aguas cristalinas y paisajes espectaculares. Desde el encanto tropical de Palawan hasta la vibrante Boracay, cada isla ofrece una experiencia única para unas vacaciones inolvidables en este paraíso del sudeste asiático.

A stunning island paradise of limestone cliffs and lagoons.

Aaron-Matthew Lariosa - October 28, 2026 3:58 PM - Updated: October 29, 2026 6:07 AM

**Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC)** and ride-hailing platform **TADA** announced on **29 October 2026** that free, app-booked driverless shuttles are planned for western Sentosa from **early 2027**. If your Sentosa day usually involves a sweaty walk or a transfer to the beach shuttle before you reach the sand, this pilot is aimed squarely at you. The service starts with **two autonomous vehicles (AVs)** built by WeRide, a self-driving technology company, and it will grow progressively to **27 pick-up and drop-off (PUDO) points**. SDC describes it as Sentosa’s first on-demand shared service to operate across such a wide network of locations, and the most useful part for beachgoers is _where_ these shuttles are allowed to drive. ## The Beach Roads Cars Can’t Use The AVs will make extensive use of **Siloso Beach Walk** and **Palawan Beach Walk** alongside the island’s public roads. SDC says this lets guests reach beachfront attractions and restaurants more directly, without changing to a beach shuttle along the way. **_For anyone hauling a cooler bag, a toddler or both, a door-to-sand ride is the headline feature, more than the missing driver._** Sentosa’s driverless shuttle cruises the coast, with free rides to Siloso and Palawan from early 2027 Self-driving vehicles aren’t entirely new here, because Sentosa ran an initial AV trial back in 2019. What changes this time, according to SDC, is an operating model built around on-demand bookings, with the AVs able to skip stops along predetermined routes when nobody needs them. ## Booking Works Like Ride-Hailing Rides are booked through the **TADA app** , which uses your phone’s GPS location to suggest the nearest available PUDO point on the island. QR codes on Sentosa’s on-site wayfinding signs will lead to more information on the service and its stops, which helps if you’re wandering around without a plan (as most of us are on a beach day). The four booking steps in the TADA app, from tapping the Sentosa AV banner to scanning the QR code once you’re onboard During the pilot, the service is **free for guests** and runs from **1pm to 7pm**. Each vehicle seats **up to eight guests** , so a group outing or a family with grandparents in tow can share one ride rather than splitting up. SDC CEO Thien Kwee Eng summed up the pitch plainly, saying that with this pilot “guests can simply book a ride, get picked up nearby, and travel to where they want to go.” It’s a lot less hassle than squinting at a shuttle timetable in the midday heat. ## 18 Stops First, More by Mid-2027 Phase 1 covers the **western side of the island** , linking hotels, beachfronts and attractions around Siloso, Imbiah and Beach Station. SDC’s planned list names 18 stops for the launch, starting with Beach Station (in front of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf). Three more, **Shangri-La Rasa Sentosa** , **Siloso Point** and **Imbiah Lookout** , are planned for mid-2027, and further phases covering the rest of Sentosa depend on approval from the Land Transport Authority (LTA). A TADA shuttle pulls up at a Sentosa stop as guests walk past, the kind of pick-up the app is designed to point you towards From that list, the beachfront stops along the car-free service roads are where this pilot offers something a taxi can’t. **Palawan Beach** (in front of FOC by the Beach) and the stop **in front of the Southernmost Point of Continental Asia** sit on the Palawan side, while **Ola Beach Club** , **Siloso Beach Resort** and **Coastes / Skyline Luge Singapore** cover Siloso. Families should note **Palawan Kidz City** , since SDC specifically pitches the service at people travelling with loved ones. ## A Human Still Rides Along Despite the “driverless” label, every vehicle carries a **trained safety operator on board** and is backed by remote monitoring, so help can step in when needed. Onboard digital signage and announcements will keep riders updated throughout the journey, and SDC says it is exploring voiced commentary about nearby attractions for future rides. SDC and TADA will work with the LTA to run the vehicles under strict safety and operational protocols, and they plan further trials beforehand to test routes, booking, boarding and safety procedures. TADA CEO Sean Kim said the partnership is about giving people more ways to move, “with safety always at the top of our priority.” A couple of things are worth keeping in mind before you plan around it. The start date is a target of “early 2027” rather than a fixed day, the free rides apply during the pilot period, and the 1pm to 7pm window rules out sunrise swims and post-dinner trips home. 🗓️ **Date:** Phase 1 targeted for early 2027 ⏰ **Time:** 1pm to 7pm 📍 **Location:** 18 planned PUDO points across western Sentosa, including Beach Station, Palawan Beach and Siloso Beach Resort 💸 **Price:** Free for guests during the pilot period 📱 **Booking:** Through the TADA app 🚐 **Capacity:** Up to eight guests per vehicle, with a safety operator on board Self-driving cars have mostly lived in tech headlines from far away, so it’s a nice change to see them pencilled in for a spot as familiar as Palawan Beach. Get the TADA app on your phone ahead of early 2027, and keep an eye on Sentosa’s official channels for the exact launch date and the next batch of stops. With any luck, the hike from Beach Station to your favourite beach bar is about to get a lot shorter! **Photos and Visuals courtesy of Sentosa Development Corporation.**

MANILA, Philippines — A U.S. Marine Corps drone detachment is operating from a Philippine airfield in Palawan near South China Sea flashpoints in the Spratly Islands, USNI News has learned.  From the ...

With more than 7,000 islands, the Philippines is a dream destination for backpackers seeking turquoise waters, white-sand beaches, dramatic landscapes and unforgettable adventures. 🎒 Explore the highlights: 🏝️ Palawan — Discover crystal-clear lagoons, limestone cliffs and hidden beaches. 🌊 Siargao —