Phillipines

I am considering to do some diving in either Puerto Galera or APO Island/Dumaguete. Which one is better in terms of coral health and how far away from Manila are they? I am looking for something that offers shore diving as well, and have read PG sites are 10-15 min boat ride, unlike APO Island which offers some really good coral gardens close to shore. What is a better choice in terms of quality of diving? Also, in Feb PG temps are down to 71F(a bit chilly). Are water temps higher in APO Island region? We're looking to travel in mid Feb.

Verde Drop Off seems to be impressive in PG but from other pics I've seen from APO Island, it looks more promising with more coral? Am I right/wrong? Feel free to comment. I have very limited knowledge on the Philippines.

Thanks in advance.

Verde Drop Off, which I've done more times than Apo Island, is the fishier of the 2. It's about 45-60min boat ride from PG depending on sea conditions. In windy choppy conditions, those bangkas can be a very wet ride. If you want to stay on Verde island, I stayed at Dos Palmas Verde Island resort for 2 days before running away to PG. It was dirty and even the drinking water was not good. Not a place I recommend, even with the latest revamp they did in 2008. The diving is nice but can be done from PG.

The coral is more varied and so is the seascape at Apo Island, with rocky coral fields and walls. There was a distinct lack of fish compared to Bohol and Balicasag, which to me is the best place for coral/fish outside of Apo Reef. All my dives at Apo were boat except for the night dive. I stayed for 8 days. If you stay on the island, there is no electricity during the day and only available during the evening hours, so bring either a surge protector or voltage regulator for your chargers.

Shore diving is more an Anilao thing, depending on which resort you choose. I suggest you push the dates towards Mar/Apr so you can do the whalesharks in Donsol or elsewhere.

Which one would you recommend outside of APO Reef? I enjoy more stony/soft corals and macro than large quantities of fish in the water column. How do those places compare to let's say Komodo? Any damage to the reefs? I've only heard of Bohol/Balicasag from shells I collected in the past but good to know they are in good shape.

Have you considered Anilao? For many, it's considered the nudibranch capital of the world. Tons of critters and coral, good area for reef scenics, especially Bahura, Sombrero and Twin Rocks. Close to Manila, about 2½ hours by pickup service from the airport. I strongly recommend www.divesolana.com, family owned and very nice.

I haven't done Apo in a long time but if you go in Feb, weather isn't the best and you can get caught in a squall (we did) and it turned the 45 min boat ride to 3 hours trying to get back to our resort in Dumaguete (Apo resort wasn't around yet), for Puerto Galera, sites are close by, same as Anilao. Dive Verde from PG, I'd book with Asia Divers www.asiadivers.com or a new resort that's being recommended is Macro Vincent Resort on White Beach (far away from the girlie bars and open sewers of Sabang where some of the resorts are, www.macrovincent.com

Anilao and PG share the same critters, maybe more in Anilao. You do have to arrange for boat transfer from the Mainland to PG, about $150 on a private pickup each way, not bad if you're a bigger group, a bit much if it's just you and a buddy.

Cheers

Stu

p.s. just read a news article, I think with NYtimes.com that the reefs in the Western Pacific are on a bit of recovery as ocean temps are cooling down, and water temps in Feb in the Philippines will be cool

Which one would you recommend outside of APO Reef? I enjoy more stony/soft corals and macro than large quantities of fish in the water column. How do those places compare to let's say Komodo? Any damage to the reefs? I've only heard of Bohol/Balicasag from shells I collected in the past but good to know they are in good shape.

I went to Dumagette with a group that arrived in from Puerta Galera. According to the group, they enjoyed PG more. So much so, that several in the group rebooked at PG after staying for a day or two at Dauin (Dumagette) I had a great time in Dumagette. The shore diving was really good. The shore diving at the Ducom Pier was outstanding but the pier has been rennovated and last i heard was still not open to diving. The pier was the single best dive of my life. Too awesome to put into words. The group enjoyed day trips to Apo Island and raved about the coral but I chose to stay and shore dive on the house reef which I could never get tired of. If you're into macro, I don't think either will disappoint you. You might PM this sites Tankado...an excellent macro photographer who lives there and he should be able to give you more of an update.

Stu/Gary,

I haven't considered Anilao so far, but might as well add that to the pool (or Moalboal, close to Dumaguete?) Yeah $150 one way is a bit pricey..you can fly for that amount. How do people reach Anilao, Dumaguete / APO Island or PG from Manila? I assume you can fly to Dumaguete or APO Island, but go by land/boat to the other places? Anilao sounds like close to PG. Which one has better reefs, coral wise, and in what shape are they? Sounds like there's many options to consider.

I'll try to PM the contact you indicated and get some more info... I appreciate your feedback.

To get to Anilao:

Walk out of the International Terminal of the Manila International Airport, look for the sign with your name on it (assuming you request a pickup by the resort), settle in for a 2-3 hour ride and you're there.

To get to Puerto Galera:

Basically the same as the ride to Anilao, but instead of the resort, you get out at Leah Beach, wait for the pickup, then 45-1 hr ride to PG, disembark and go to your resort

To Dumageute

Depending on Airline you fly: Philippine Airlines: arrive in Manila, go through immigration & customs, PAL personnel will/should guide you through to your connecting flight to Dumaguete,flight about 1 hr. Resorts about 20-30 minutes away from the airport. Other carriers (Never done it this way), Arrive in Manila, Customs and Immigration, clear your bags, then head to the Domestic Airport, there is a shuttle bus, but again, never done it that way. If I fly to Manila on say CX of JAL, I tend to overnight it in Manila. Another option, if you choose Cathay (CX), you fly to Cebu (Mactan) and take a high speed catamaran ferry to Dumaguete (4 hours I think).

No flights to Apo, you fly to Dumaguete and the resort should be able to arrange pickup for you.

The RP has 7107 islands. To say you have options is an understatement! Corals in decent shape in the places you've mentioned, there is a La Nina forming now in the Western Pacific so temps will be cooler than usual, but good for coral growth.

Stu

Stu/Gary,

 

I haven't considered Anilao so far, but might as well add that to the pool (or Moalboal, close to Dumaguete?) Yeah $150 one way is a bit pricey..you can fly for that amount. How do people reach Anilao, Dumaguete / APO Island or PG from Manila? I assume you can fly to Dumaguete or APO Island, but go by land/boat to the other places? Anilao sounds like close to PG. Which one has better reefs, coral wise, and in what shape are they? Sounds like there's many options to consider.

 

I'll try to PM the contact you indicated and get some more info... I appreciate your feedback.

Try this: http://www.divernet.com/Travel_Features/fa...gka_theory.html

To get to Anilao:

 

Walk out of the International Terminal of the Manila International Airport, look for the sign with your name on it (assuming you request a pickup by the resort), settle in for a 2-3 hour ride and you're there.

Stu

Stu's got it. I've been to the Anilao area 3 times. On the last trip in '08, I had to go out futher to the pick up area (dive through area) instead of being met at the exit from the main terminal. Do be careful and don't get the deer in the headlights look. I think this is one of the best diving deals.

Bob

Note: I have my biases, was born in Manila before moving and became a Canuck 21 years ago. But, hard to beat the diving you get there, John Bantin's article is a great read and very honest. I love this one "I didn't know that Filipino mangoes were sweeter than any others.... And I didn't know that the islands offered some of the best diving in the world.". This statement rings true with every diver I bring there. Philippine Mangoes are recognized as being the best in the world and when you're there, try the local roast pig, called Lechon, rated by cook/author/Travel Channel host Anthony Bourdain as the best in the world. Hmm...I see a pattern no?

Oh and in full disclosure, I do lead dive trips to the Philippines and am friends with the owners of Dive Solana. I do not have any affiliation tho with the other resorts I recommended as the place I dive from in PG has closed and moved shop further south.

3 gateway cities from North America, Vancouver, San Francisco and Los Angeles are airports that Philippine Airlines departs from. Hard to beat a direct flight, but Cathay is good with about a 2 hour stop over in HK, JAL is usually cheaper but the layover is longer.

S.

Which one would you recommend outside of APO Reef? I enjoy more stony/soft corals and macro than large quantities of fish in the water column. How do those places compare to let's say Komodo? Any damage to the reefs? I've only heard of Bohol/Balicasag from shells I collected in the past but good to know they are in good shape.

I try not to draw parallels to other dive areas because the variables are too many. What is better? Biodiversity? Fishlife? Species count? Hard or soft corals? It's all subjective.

That said, if you've never been to PI, then Bohol/Balicasag is as good as any place to start, esp since from Alona beach you can hit the nicer sites while staying at nice resorts. The nice thing about the area is you can do it in from budget to luxury. Staying on Balicasag, it's more spartan but less traveling to the marquee sites. I usually split between the 2 trying to catch the moon phase for better currents (visibility) and animal behavior. There will always be some coral damage because of the typhoon/storms that hit the reef. AFAIK, only subsistence fishing methods are used in the sanctuary, so the life is good all around.

I always go to Anilao on any trip I do in PI. Very nice mixed bag with emphasis on macro. Great place to work on species shots. Do a search in this forum for reports on the area. I choose my resort based on the house reef and proximity to my favorite sites. This is another place where subsistence fishing methods are used. Small reef fish are in decent numbers and at my 2nd favorite site Twin Rocks, you usually have a school of trevally swimming around. I use Planet Dive there because it's right on Twin Rocks which is a great shore dive. Try to plan around the weekends so you can avoid the crowds.

FYI, foreigners only have a 21 day Visa, after which you need to extend it or preapply for a visa before you arrive. With the traffic and political climate, it's best to avoid staying too long in Manila.

I just returned from a trip to Puerto Galera as well as Dumaguete. We also did a day trip to Apo Island.

Puerto Galera was a great time and I really enjoyed the resort we stayed at, Atlantis. There were macro critters a plenty and most dives were within a 1-3 minute boat ride from the resort.

However, to me, Dumaguete far surpassed the diving in Puerto Galera. There was sandy muck diving with tons and tons of interesting photography subjects as well as coral reef subjects. Sometimes on the same dive.

I also like a more relaxed resort atmosphere, and that was Atlantis in Dumaguete.

Gorgeous scenery, the food was the best I've had at a resort, the dive guides were fantastic and really knew their critters, fresh water from an aquifer and geothermal energy from the volcano.

All good.

So that's my two cents.

~Abi

Gorgeous scenery, the food was the best I've had at a resort, the dive guides were fantastic and really knew their critters, fresh water from an aquifer and geothermal energy from the volcano.

That's funny because I've been a few times and we always invariable run over to El Dorado's restaurant for dinner because the food is better. We ate lunch at Atlantis for convenience and not for the food, which was decent at best. Apparently Atmosphere Resort's cook is also good, but I don't intend to return to Dumaguette as I find Anilao to be the better macro place for what I want, especially since Ducomi is off limits.

I think PG's popularity is due to the build of nightlife and proximity to Manila. It's a nice short trip for expats and people from Taiwan/HK etc. Diving was never the best of what PI has to offer but is always available as part of the entertainment. Then the reputation as a dive destination built up on the merits of infrastructure and not the diving itself. That's always been my take on the place.

Stu,

The Anilao option seems a bit complicated Thanks for the info mate. Appreciate it. I will keep what you wrote in mind...

John,

Nice report..thank you...

I usually split between the 2 trying to catch the moon phase for better visibility and currents.

Drew,

Please expand on the moon phase & visibility.

Bob

In 10 years of diving in PG, I've always eaten at 1 restaurant, unfortunately the shop closed down and the restaurant at Scubaplus went right along with it. Not only was it the best food on the beach, it had food that would rival a good restaurant here in North America. I hope that when they open up again someday in Dumaguete that I'll be able to chow down on Mama Cecilia's cooking again. I've had friends who stayed at Atlantis (ugh) head over daily for lunch and dinner at Scubaplus. If nightlife (cheap beer, cheap girls with mama-sans bugging you every few minutes about "you want a girl tonight?") then Sabang (where Atlantis and many resorts are) would be the place to stay, but for a more relaxed time, then look for resorts that say "Small La Laguna", "Big La Laguna" or "White Beach".

While I did have nice critters in Dumaguete, I agree with Drew, the sheer variety of critters, dive sites are better in Anilao. There are tons of resorts in the area, Twin Rocks is just around the corner (2 mins by bangka) from Solana. I've heard that the food at Balai is good but the accomodations are a bit more spartan. I do like my creature comforts and the staff at Solana has always treated me well. Plus, it's hard to beat the convenience, especially now that the new highway avoids most of the congestion through the small towns.

cheers

Stu

Drew,

Please expand on the moon phase & visibility.

Bob

Bob

It's simple. Moon phase corresponds to tidal flows and critter behavioral cycles (egglaying, mating etc). So I choose the moon phase based on what I want. I do that with all my trips. Tidal flows also affect what churns up so visibility "tends" to be affected by this as well.

unfortunately the shop closed down and the restaurant at Scubaplus went right along with it. Not only was it the best food on the beach, it had food that would rival a good restaurant here in North America.

That doesn't say much really . And if the restaurant was that good, they wouldn't have closed down or at least moved. (Yes I've been there)

There are tons of resorts in the area, Twin Rocks is just around the corner (2 mins by bangka) from Solana. I've heard that the food at Balai is good but the accomodations are a bit more spartan.

Yes there are plenty of resorts in the area but only a few have nice diving right in front of the resort. Shore diving is one of the criteria the OP wanted. And I can't think of any site in Anilao that is better for shore diving than Twin Rocks. Balai and Planet Dive are the only 2 resorts that are right on the site.

Drew,

After checking Atlantis' dive resort site and reading a report on Sport Diver mag., I was leaning towards Dumaguete (mainly because of APO island - Siquijor(?)(remoteness of sites)), but it looks likes Anilao gets thumbs up for critters. If you had to chose between Anilao/PG, which one would you go for? If in PG, can you also dive across to Anilao(Mabini island)? How big is the bay?

I think i'd prefer stony/soft coral gardens in good shape and some macro, than strictly macro and mediocre reefs.

Fyi, my dive buddy seems to be set at Mermaid resort (?) due to budget minded dive packages offered but also because it advertises to have the best biodiversity in the world(??)(I think I've heard that before).

That doesn't say much really . And if the restaurant was that good, they wouldn't have closed down or at least moved. (Yes I've been there)

Hi Drew, true enough. The stuff I got was never on the menu. ;-) They moved to Dumaguete for different reasons...or so I was told. I think the resto was doing good tho.

Yes there are plenty of resorts in the area but only a few have nice diving right in front of the resort. Shore diving is one of the criteria the OP wanted. And I can't think of any site in Anilao that is better for shore diving than Twin Rocks. Balai and Planet Dive are the only 2 resorts that are right on the site.

Yes, best shore dive in Anilao for sure.

Stu