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  1. 1Borneo2000
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  25. 25Philippines2012
  26. 26Caramoan2013
  27. 27Blood vs. Water2013
  28. 28Cagayan2014
  29. 29San Juan del Sur2014
  30. 30Worlds Apart2015
  31. 31Cambodia2015
  32. 32Kaôh Rōng2016
  33. 33Millennials vs. Gen X2016
  34. 34Game Changers2017
  35. 35Heroes v. Healers v. Hustlers2017
  36. 36Ghost Island2018
  37. 37David vs. Goliath2018
  38. 38Edge of Extinction2019
  39. 39Island of the Idols2019
  40. 40Winners at War2020
  41. 41Survivor 412021
  42. 42Survivor 422022
  43. 43Survivor 432022
  44. 44Survivor 442023
  45. 45Survivor 452023
  46. 46Survivor 462024
  47. 47Survivor 472024
  48. 48Survivor 482025
  49. 49Survivor 492025
  50. 50In the Hands of the Fans2026
Philippines key art
Season 25 · 2012Three returning players

Philippines

Caramoan, Philippines

A returnee-sprinkled season widely credited with revitalizing the show, set among the islands of Caramoan.

Denise Stapley

Sole Survivor

Denise Stapley

Won the jury 6-1-1

Year
2012
Location
Caramoan, Philippines
Format
Three returning players
Days
39 days
Castaways
18
Grand prize
$1,000,000
Jury vote
6-1-1

Also read at the Final Tribal Council

Lisa WhelchelMichael Skupin

How Denise Stapley won

Denise attended every single Tribal Council of the season — an iron-man feat — surviving each vote on grit and tight bonds to outlast the entire cast.

The bigger picture

In context

Era

The New School Era

2010–2020

Timeline

25th of 50

Aired 2012

Filming

Philippines

1st of 4 seasons filmed here

Starting tribes

The 3 tribes marooned when the game began — and where the names come from.

Kalabawwater buffalo

Filipino for the carabao / water buffalo.

Matsingmonkey

An archaic Filipino word for 'monkey'.

Tandangrooster

Filipino for 'rooster'.

At the merge · they became Dangrayne — Merge tribe — a play on 'dang rain' after three weeks of near-constant downpour. The players first wanted a profane version; producers warned it would be censored, so they landed on the Filipino-sounding Dangrayne.

Returning players

Veterans who came back for another shot at the title.

Jonathan Penner3× playerMichael Skupin2× playerRussell Swan2× player

Also filmed in Philippines

Caramoan key art

Caramoan

Season 26 · 2013

Blood vs. Water key art

Blood vs. Water

Season 27 · 2013

Cagayan key art

Cagayan

Season 28 · 2014

Idols & advantages

The twists in play

The whole arsenal

Idol moments

  • The Matsing Idol

    Jeff Kent blindsided instead

    Malcolm Freberg

    On the cursed Matsing tribe — which lost every challenge and shrank to two — Malcolm tore the beach apart and found the idol lashed to the rice barrel. When it was outed at the merge, he calmly convinced the Tandang alliance he'd play it, steering the blindside onto baseball star Jeff Kent and keeping the idol in his pocket.

Go deeper

Explore Season 25

The Cast

The whole tribe in finish order, Sole Survivor to first boot.

18 castaways

Episode Guide

Every episode, with recaps of how the season actually played out.

14 episodes

In the Arena

Every challenge that ran, episode by episode, and who won each one.

22 challenges
Around the fire

Common questions

Who won Survivor Philippines?
Denise Stapley won Survivor: Philippines (Season 25, 2012), taking the jury vote 6-1-1.
Where was Survivor Season 25 filmed?
Survivor: Philippines was filmed in Caramoan, Philippines.
When did Survivor Season 25 air?
Survivor: Philippines aired in 2012 and ran 39 days.
Who were the finalists in Survivor Philippines?
Denise Stapley won at the Final Tribal Council alongside Lisa Whelchel and Michael Skupin.

Around the fire

The tribe's debating Survivor 25 right now

Cast your vote, drop a hot take, and climb your torch — every contribution is tied to your profile at Tribal Council.

Join the debate at Tribal

Season 25 of 50