Itbayat

Between 2,000 and 4,000 years ago, a wave of animist-polytheist Austronesians arrived on Itbayat and became the ancestors of the island's people. Torongan Cliff is home to the Torongan Cave, which the island's ancestors used as their abode. The early people of the island also established the sacred Axurud, the oldest stone tomb in Batanes.^[6]

A church and civil government were established in Batan Island in 1783. In 1855, civil authority was established and the mission canonically founded in Itbayat. A settlement during the Spanish colonial period, it became a municipal district when the Americans organized the province in 1909. Finally, in 1935, it became a municipality.

On September 14, 2016, Typhoon Meranti (Ferdie) made landfall on Itbayat while at peak intensity, as a Category 5-equivalent super typhoon, with the eye passing directly over the island.^[7][8] During landfall, the storm's powerful winds caused extensive damage and knocked out the island's communications systems.^[9]

On July 27, 2019, a series of destructive earthquakes, the largest of them being recorded to be magnitude 6.0, caused severe damage around the town. Nine people died as a result, and sixty were injured.^[10][11][12]

In 2024, Barangay San Rafael hosted the April 14 to June 6 Balikatan exercise involving the construction of humanitarian, logistics and disaster relief warehouse at Sitio Kagonongan, a supply depot area at the San Rafael National Food Authority warehouse and an American physician’s assistant station and lodging facilities for American soldiers at Itbayat District Hospital.^[13][14]

In May 2024, the Philippine Coast Guard opened its first monitoring station in northern Luzon, located in Itbayat island, as part of efforts to monitor the entry of foreign vessels particularly from China.^[15]

The following month, in June 2024, the 51st Engineer Brigade' 513th Engineer Construction Battalion and United States Army, with Batanes LGU, Governor Marilou Cayco and Mayor Sabas C. De Sagon, led the dedication ceremony for a 10x8-meter concrete logistical structure, Humanitarian assistance and Disaster response relief goods warehouse, part of 'Exercise Salaknib'.^[16]

Itbayat is located at 20°47′16″N 121°50′29″E.

The municipality has a land area of 83.13 square kilometres (32.10 sq mi) ^[17]. It constitutes 37.96% 219.01-square-kilometre- (84.56 sq mi) of the total area of Batanes.

In the 2024 census, Itbayat had a population of 2,937 people.^[27] The population density was 35 inhabitants per square kilometre (91/sq mi).

Poverty incidence of Itbayat

Source: Philippine Statistics Authority^{[28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35]}

The Schools Division of Batanes governs the town's public education system. The division office is a field office of the DepEd in Cagayan Valley region.^[39] The Itbayat Schools District Office governs the public and private elementary and high schools throughout the municipality.^[40]

Transportation to the island town is by boat or by plane direct from the provincial capital of Basco.

Jorge Abad Airport serves as the gateway to the island for STOL planes through Basco airport or other airports from mainland Luzon. There are small carriers that provide commercial scheduled and non-scheduled flights to Itbayat from Basco Airport. Jorge Abad Airport is served by the following small airline companies:

• Aerospeed Air
• Fliteline
• Sky Pasada

The town can be reached by sea going vessels that provide transportation for locals and tourists between Itbayat and Basco. The following companies provide daily scheduled voyage between Basco and Itbayat:

• M/B Ocean Spirit
• M/B Itranza
• M/B Veronica

There are no private charter boats or larger vessels in the island. Charter flights, however, can be scheduled to and from the town.