It is about 170 nautical miles (310 km) southwest of Manila and is known for several Japanese shipwrecks of World War II vintage.

[1] The island and surrounding fishing grounds are part of the ancestral domain of the indigenous Tagbanwa people, officially designated such on June 5, 1998.

The island comprises two barangays of the municipality of Coron: Banuang Daan and Cabugao.

[1] The area around the wrecks has rock formations which provide for snorkeling opportunities, with underwater visibility extending up to 80 feet (24 m).

[5] Ecotourism has long surpassed diving as the top draw to Coron Island in the last decade.