A Year In Bali

[billt4sf]

My wife and I plan to live for a year in Bali starting July 2016, and we certainly want to make our way to the Phils a few times for some great diving there. I would love to get some suggestions from you experienced divers for "where" and (very importantly) "when".

We have about 150 - 200 dives, so we're still learning. We like easy diving. Of course we love to see the big stuff, but we seek to avoid strong currents if we can. We stay less than 100 feet deep. We are not photographers! (We take a few pics here and there just for ourselves, but for us, the diving is not about the photos.) In terms of resorts, we don't want to throw money away on unnecessary luxuries, but we're are the stage where we do need creature comforts: aircon, good meals, easy on and offs, short boat rides, etc. We're in our 60's but we exercise regularly.

With the help of some of you we built a great plan for Indo diving, and we definitely want to get over to the Phils a few times in our July 2016 to July 2017 year. We would usually go out of Bali for 2 - 3 - 4(max) weeks at a time.

We know of a few places (really just names so far) but it's particularly hard to get the straight story on WHEN to go there. Please help us add detail to our list so we choose between them, select the best times, and/or add places to consider.

Thanks in advance!

DAUIN / DUMAGUETE

PUERTO GALERA

ANILAO

SIQUIJOR

ALONA BEACH

CEBU:

MALAPASCUA

CABILAO

OSLAB

DAUIN

We have heard good things about Sea Explorers.

 

[Centrals]

Get yourself register with Cebu Pacific Airway for their cheap promotion alert eg. Bali to Manila. You won't believe how cheap it can be.
There is such a thing as TYPHOON. Best time to avoid them is from Dec to May(but there is exception even in Dec and May).
I would add Coron(wrecks only), Moalboal and Southern Leyte to your already extensive list. And if you do not mind liveaboard then Tubattaha is a MUST( Apr to May is the best).

 

[Mucksavage]

A lot depends on how long your trip is. If you have two week blocks you can expect to say fly to Cebu and do Malapascua, Moalboal and Dauin / Dumaguete in that time. If you have 5 days or less I would stick to one destination at a time.

Malapascua is great all year around. It is a very busy place these days in high season so I certainly recommend July and August visits. Yes typhoons can open but often they are far north and its just a bit disruptive for 36 hours.

Siquijor is a nice place to visit in itself but for diving you can dive there but base yourself in Dauin and do their muck sites and Apo Island as well. Same as Malapascua, its good all the time really.

Oslob is a circus so best avoided.

You could plan a different 'northern' trip with Manila as the hub and visits to PG, Anilao and maybe a side flight to Coron as Centrals suggests. Again 5 days or less just pick one place only.

The best dive conditions of the year are from March to the end of May when its pretty much hot and sunny every day and no wind. But its a very popular time so worth booking ahead.

 

[christ daniel]

Mola season in bali start in july through november. Its a good time for you to dive to see big stuff which is verry famous in bali.

 

[billt4sf]

Thank you cd, but we already have Indo figured out. We are looking for suggestions for the Phils.

- Bill

 

[NYCNaiad]

I was in the Philippines in late Dec/early January and the weather was fine. Not sure about other times of year. Some of the best wrecks I've ever seen in all the years of my diving were in the Coron area. I stayed on Sangat Island. The owner kinda sucks, but you likely won't have to interact with him and everyone else there including the manager was fantastic especially the dive shop which is one of the best: Coron Wrecks | Palawan Wrecks | Coron Wreck Diving

 

[billt4sf]

Looks interesting, NYCNaiad. While we are not particularly interested in wrecks, many of these seem to be at depths we could easily tolerate. How were the currents?

On their webpage, they listed AOW (which we have) and "Wreck Divers" (which we don't have) as (apparently) required certs. Is it required or necessary? We wouldn't penetrate anything that is not incredibly easy.

Thanks for your post.

- Bill & Emily

 

[Centrals]

Discovery divers
www.ddivers.com
Gunter has been around since early 90's.

 

[NYCNaiad]

There is only one wreck that I considered an expert wreck. I think it was the Irako Maru. It was very deep & had a big current so I chose not to do it. (I told the dive shop ahead of time I didn't want to do anything difficult so they let me know in advance.) I am not wreck certified, but I did wreck penetration on all the other wrecks and did not feel uncomfortable in the slightest. There was only one day where there was a slight current on these other wrecks, but it was super light. I wasn't asked about a wreck certification, but had to show my AOW. I also told them I wanted to start very easy so we began with the Lusong Gunboat which goes from 3 meters down to only 12. It gave them a chance to see me dive and me a chance to get used to the area and the dive shop. Side note: If you don't feel comfortable penetrating the wrecks (I wasn't at first), just tell them ahead of time so they have a guide with you to go around the outside only.

I have seen a lot of wrecks, but these were outstanding! No wonder they are listed as the best wrecks of SE Asia and listed in the top dive sites in the world. WRECKS OF CORON BAY - DIVE Magazine

If you are going to see any wrecks on this planet, they are some of the best to see. Plus the WWII historical aspect is very cool.

 

[billt4sf]

THANK YOU Naiad! Very helpful. And cool name.

Naiad - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

- Bill