Bohol / Panglao dive op recommendations? Need help picking a dive op

[Kenr]

anyone has idea what a typical dive cost in bohol? maybe a 2 tank dive in a day.

yea about 1100 or 1200p per dive if you have your own equipment thats runs about $55 or $60 usd

 

[Joe Cool]

thanks, i inquired and waiting for reply from amorita. i've been looking at youtube vids of dive in bohol, i can't wait to go dive there. it looks pretty amazing, i hope the diving conditions in may is good. anyone been there around may and what's it like?

May is good diving season. Remember, the summer months in the Philippines is from late March to June. This means nice fairly calm seas and hot/humid weather.

i've been sending amorita resort emails but no replies so far.

It is probably best to just spend a little money and give them a call, a long distance call. A lot of Philippine resort and business establishments, in general, do not have an email culture, i.e. they don't check or even respond to emails. In this case, I would spend a bit of money and call them long distance. This is the only way to inquire and get some answers quickly. But, I always believe if a business establishment is not in a habit of responding to emails, it means they probably don't need any business or they don't run their business that well from a marketing standpoint. IMHO, I usually get ticked off when I encounter situations such as this. I end up looking elsewhere. As someone else noted above and based on my personal experience Amorita charges a lot of money. If Amorita is your cup of tea, then try contacting them by phone. If not, there are other economical alternatives to consider.

If you are interested, I still have an email back from 2011 with accommodation rates for Amorita. Send me a PM if you just want an idea of how much it costs to stay there. They don't ofer any diving services back then.

anyone has idea what a typical dive cost in bohol? maybe a 2 tank dive in a day.

Based on my experience, a 2-tank boat dive will cost between $50 to $60. This includes snacks/soft drinks, boat ride, dive guide, tanks/weights, plus prepping your gear and hauling them on and off the boat (i.e., no need to do it yourself). Of course, it is best to prepare some tip money for the dive guide, boat captain, and dive help afterwards.

 

[kwhkg]

stayed at Oasis a few months ago. good choice but stay away from the "apartment rooms" get room facing pool. Dive op is part of their compound

 

[Kenr]

stayed at Oasis a few months ago. good choice but stay away from the "apartment rooms" get room facing pool. Dive op is part of their compound

I agree, I like the rooms in the back surrounding the pool, I just like the setting better by the pool.. Last December we were back again for a week but had to change from the cabin rooms by the pool to one of the apartment rooms for the last night. The apartment rooms are newer and are two story, with the living space down below and the bedroom upstarts. IMO both are fine, the ones in the back are further away from the beach so maybe quieter but not a problem for me.

 

[kwhkg]

btw I just checked and AMORITA has a page in FaceBook, They seem also to be active there so maybe you can try that

 

[right_on]

thanks for the infos everyone. they're actually emailing me, there's one thing that i find weird though. so i wanted to book the room, i was expecting a credit card form of some sort. but instead they sent me a paypal invoice. is that normal practice? i mean, amorita is a 4 star resort and paypal is the means of getting paid? so i told the guy that i'll call the resort and pay with amex instead. i'm waiting for the reply.

i've also been talking to 2 dive ops about the dive in bohol. how strong can the under current be in the shallows? around 40-60 ft max in the month of mid may.

 

[Kenr]

alot of places want to avoid the cc charges so paypal isn't that unusual. Most of the higher end resorts take credit cards, Amex usually costs them more so try Visa. The two trips i took to Alona i didn't think the currents where that bad, but I'm experiencex diver so it doesn't bother me.

 

[Joe Cool]

thanks for the infos everyone. they're actually emailing me, there's one thing that i find weird though. so i wanted to book the room, i was expecting a credit card form of some sort. but instead they sent me a paypal invoice. is that normal practice? i mean, amorita is a 4 star resort and paypal is the means of getting paid? so i told the guy that i'll call the resort and pay with amex instead. i'm waiting for the reply.

i've also been talking to 2 dive ops about the dive in bohol. how strong can the under current be in the shallows? around 40-60 ft max in the month of mid may.

I think Paypal is a safer way of sending payment to a Philippine resort rather than giving them your credit card number. If you want to cancel your booking and a refund, it is easily done via Paypal. If you have some sort of dispute, you can ask Paypal to mediate or even freeze payment. Small businesses in the Philippines want to deal with cash because accepting credit cards will cost them money. If they do accept credit cards, most of them will charge you the bank fees. I am not sure how much banks charge for credit cards in the Philippines but it seems like, for Amorita, Paypal is the most secure and best way to handle credit card transactions. If I were a small resort owner in the Philippines, I will probably do the same thing.

As for currents around Panglao Island, not much especially if your dives are during slack tide. However, currents will be stronger around Balicasag Island. IMHO, Panglao diving is nice and easy.

 

[Centrals]

thanks for the infos everyone. they're actually emailing me, there's one thing that i find weird though. so i wanted to book the room, i was expecting a credit card form of some sort. but instead they sent me a paypal invoice. is that normal practice? i mean, amorita is a 4 star resort and paypal is the means of getting paid? so i told the guy that i'll call the resort and pay with amex instead. i'm waiting for the reply.

i've also been talking to 2 dive ops about the dive in bohol. how strong can the under current be in the shallows? around 40-60 ft max in the month of mid may.

Unless you are arriving around Christmas or Easter, there is absolutely no need to book any accommodation in advance in Bohol. There are so many places to choose.
The current around Bohol is not that strong.

 

[Kenr]

Unless you are arriving around Christmas or Easter, there is absolutely no need to book any accommodation in advance in Bohol. There are so many places to choose.
The current around Bohol is not that strong.

Depends on where you want to stay. Amorita and Oasis book up for a part of the season.