Philippine diving booking agent

Hi,

I am planning on returning to the Philippines to dive. This past spring I attended the Seafari Philippines, had a wonderful time and want to return.

Just wondering who is a good agent to book with??

Thanks for your suggestions,

Elmer

I think that might depend upon where in the Philippines you wish to go. Dumegette has Apo Island and some fine diving, it is quiet there and not much to do other than dive tho there is a beautiful waterfalls and an interesting market you can visit. I stayed at the Atlantis and was very pleased with the hospitality and food. Never been to Analo(sic) but I have heard that the macro is amazing but the accommodations are somewhat rustic. I also dove in Puerta Galera and stayed at the Atlantis there as well. It is a party town for sure but the diving was decent for the small critters.

Steve

I have enjoyed excellent services from Seaquest

http://www.seaquestdivecenter.net/

Terri Huber at Deep Blue Adventures.

1-888-266-2209 ext. 102

terri@deepblueadventures.com

Thank you all for your info.

Originally my thoughts were to dive Perto Galera and Dumaguete, but that would entail flying back to Manila. I don't want to have to pack my gear back up to fly between sites. So now I am thinking of Perto Galera and Anilao or just staying in Dumaguete. Is there another good location for a second week of diving near Dumaguete?

thanks,

Elmer

Following ...

You can do ground transport and a short ferry between Dumaguette and Moalboal. I did that flying into Cebu (direct from Tokyo or Seoul) and then out of Duamguette via Manila. Moalboal and Dumaguette were a good mix for me. Reefs with great macro at Moalboal and then muck at Dumaguette (with every third day back on reefs at Apo Island).

We do a week at Analiao, Crystal Blue Resort, and then have the boat from Atlantis pick us up to go to Puerto Galera.

Just pack the suitcase, but don't have to pack/tear down the dive gear or cameras!

I stayed at Crystal Blue a couple years ago and it was fine. I was with Scott Geitler's group and all of the arrangements were great. If you're alone or a couple, consider hiring a private guide. We used private guides and it made a big difference in finding critters.

Scott does 2-3 trips to Anilao each year. I plan to go back in May 2015.

I went to Anilao (Crystal Blue) and Puerto Galera (Atlantis) - and booked through Island Dreams in Houston. Advantage of Island Dreams is you can pay by credit card - and avoid all the hassles of wire transfers. Both locations are first class - Anilao has a little better muck (more critters), but PG is very good. We were there in June (off season) with very warm water - and still saw tons of critters. Frogfish; harlequin, coleman, emporer, tiger, crinoid shrimp (and lots more); seahorses everywhere (thorny and pygmy); mimic, wonderpus, blue ring, coconut octopus; countless nudibranchs, wide variety of different gobies, and healthy coral reefs with all the usual reef fish available at both locations. Crystal Blue has a great camera room and dive area and excellent food; you do have some stairs to negotiate between the rooms and the kitchen/dive area. Absolute freedom for dive profile - we had as much bottom time as air would allow. The boats are roomy with shade, and very stable. Mike keeps the dive groups small - usually no more than 4 divers per guide. The guides are world class, and you never handle your dive gear once you set it up for the first dive. Absolutely some of the best diving I have ever done - right up there with Komodo and Lembeh.

Atlantis in Puerto Galera is a much larger resort, right on Sabang Beach which is a tourist area. They offer up to five days daily - but limit dive time to 60 minutes to maintain schedule (although when we were there, we had a small group and they accomodated our desire for 4 dives/day with more bottom time). There is a wide variety of diving here as well - with most dive sites within a 15 minute speedboat ride. They return to the resort between dives (unless you book the day trip to Verde Island). Service at the resort is first class - and the restaurant was very good. My wife is not a big fan of native food in Asia - but she always found dishes she liked at every meal. Atlantis has a nice camera room and dive area - you board the speedboats right off the beach in front of the resort. They handle all your gear. Again - depending on which room you select, there can be lots of stairs between your room and the dive shop.