Philippines, Mabul/Sipidan or Indonesia

I am looking at planning my next dive trip and looking at the following locations:

Philippines (Puerto Galera area)

Mabu/Sipidan

Indonesia (Wakitobi or Komodo)

Possibly Caribbean if value is worth it.

Philippines is cheap (under $2000 for 10 days), but how good is it. Plus I see there are travel advisories, more for the southern islands but does anyone know if there is anything to worry about?

Mabul/Sipidan seems a little more expensive but still managable. Is Wakitobi worth the price?

I am looking for a destination with great macro and photo ops. I have been to Lembeh, and loved it. I think I would love any of the destinations listed but just looking for more insight.

As for time of travel, kind of looking at May but that is rushing it and may push it off to the fall time frame.

Thanks,

Brett

Brett

I would suggest you do a search of this subforum for the various opinions of those destinations.

Security wise, Philippines is always going through some sort of political upheaval. I did miss a bomb in Makati by 1 hour while at the movies in the 90s. Still I find it as safe as any other country in South East Asia nowadays. It really depends on your mindset. Many PI travellers don't think much of travelling to Mindanao (the travel advisory southern area) whereas I know missionaries who have abandoned their posts there.

What does the Jedi say about fear?

Stick to Luzon and head to Anilao and you should be fine. Some of the wetpixel staff are going to PI in May.

The other areas have been discussed heavily so search the forums.

As for the caribbean, I don't consider it diving personally.

i second anilao.. try Solana.. great op with really good guides.

and yes very safe..

I'm hearing great things about Bali - Tulamben, Suraya...

We were disappointed in Komodo - lots of dynamite fishing in the area.

Sipadan wasn't as good as advertised, but may have been seasonal - we had very poor vis and not much fishlife - lots of turtles.

Wakatobi is great, but not as target rich for macro as Lembeh.

Haven't done the PI, yet.

Going back to Lembeh...

I am looking at planning my next dive trip and looking at the following locations:

 

Philippines (Puerto Galera area)

Mabu/Sipidan

Indonesia (Wakitobi or Komodo)

Possibly Caribbean if value is worth it.

 

Philippines is cheap (under $2000 for 10 days), but how good is it. Plus I see there are travel advisories, more for the southern islands but does anyone know if there is anything to worry about?

 

Mabul/Sipidan seems a little more expensive but still managable. Is Wakitobi worth the price?

 

I am looking for a destination with great macro and photo ops. I have been to Lembeh, and loved it. I think I would love any of the destinations listed but just looking for more insight.

 

As for time of travel, kind of looking at May but that is rushing it and may push it off to the fall time frame.

 

Thanks,

 

Brett

Brett,

I don't know where you are flying out of, but I would spend the extra money and skip the Carribean. Although you may get some nice white sand beaches and palm trees, the diving does not hold a flame to the south pacific and indo pacific areas. Even in the areas of the Carribean which are marine reserves, the quantity and biodiversity of marine life is only a fraction of what you will encounter in the Coral Triangle. Again, spend the extra couple dollars/Euros and do it right!

We were disappointed in Komodo - lots of dynamite fishing in the area.

Jim, did you do the Bali-Komodo-Bali itinerary? Depending on time of month and tides, they tend to skip the best sites to get the tides right. And they still do GPS point as a must do... when it's prime was maybe 14 years ago

Best way to do Komodo is to start in Labuan Bajo or Bima. This way you can do Rinca and the other islands as well.

If you thought the dynamiting damage looked bad now, you should've seen it in the mid 90s! And Wakatobi/Tukang Besi area was stricken by the WWII legacy as badly as Komodo.

With Bali, the diving is very nice but the problem is getting to the best spots is all by car. Tulamben/Seraya are definitely worth 10 days alone.

there is a new liveaboard that will be doing the east coast of Bali soon...

So no north coast stuff? That's a pity, although getting to secret bay by boat is a good 15 min skiff ride.

i will start a new thread on it soon...

Macro-muck in Mabul and Kapalai is nearly as good as Lembeh, I hear; Sipadan is an entirely different dive, which makes the combination well worth visiting. The turtles are great, and there are often (but not always) jacks, barracuda, bumphead parrotfish and sharks: the coral on the walls is still good, and the cave is quite special.

I don't think that there have been any security issues for several years.

Tim

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