I don't travel well.

[rob1967]

From Spokane you could take a short flight or drive to Vancouver. Philippine Airlines fly direct YVR to MNL, leaves around 11 pm, arrive in Manila around 5 am, around 12 hours flight time. I like the timing, its easy to snooze on the plane (especially if you take a sleeping aid, which is certainly controversial), but you wake up and you are almost there. The flight is actually easy, it's the jet lag that takes a while to get over. But the diving will blow you away, there is literally 10 times the variety of fish and corals that you find in the Carribean.

 

[Mike Boswell]

I'm a year older than you, I don't get motion sickness, but have always hated traveling, and those marathon trips leave me discombobulated for days afterwards. But I've picked up a few chestnuts here and there so I will offer them FWIW.

First, research the flight options thoroughly. There are always many ways to get there, and the best way for you isn't always the cheapest.

Second, prepare for the trip. I have a checklist that I use that includes a gear list, and things like "check passport expiration date", "call the Credit card company", "ask about malaria pills", "get a pocket dictionary", on and on and on.

Third, get in shape for the travel and the diving. Exercise, diet, swim, get a tan, get healthy.

Fourth, during travel I treat all surfaces as if they were glowing bright orange with disease organisms (because they ARE), wash my hands often, and never touch my face. Bringing your own food is preferable to eating in planes and airports and I usually take dried fruit, nuts, health bars, etc.

Fifth, get one of those inflatable neck pillows, they are great and let you sleep without breaking your neck.

Last, my wife and I like to get to the destination a few days before the diving starts. This gives us a chance to recover from the travel, see the place, settle in, and snorkle or do a checkout dive.

I can't advise you as to whether you should go, but they say that when you get old, it's the things you didn't do that you regret the most. YMMV

 

[vladimir]

I'm a year older than you, I don't get motion sickness, but have always hated traveling, and those marathon trips leave me discombobulated for days afterwards. But I've picked up a few chestnuts here and there so I will offer them FWIW.

First, research the flight options thoroughly. There are always many ways to get there, and the best way for you isn't always the cheapest.

Second, prepare for the trip. I have a checklist that I use that includes a gear list, and things like "check passport expiration date", "call the Credit card company", "ask about malaria pills", "get a pocket dictionary", on and on and on.

Third, get in shape for the travel and the diving. Exercise, diet, swim, get a tan, get healthy.

Fourth, during travel I treat all surfaces as if they were glowing bright orange with disease organisms (because they ARE), wash my hands often, and never touch my face. Bringing your own food is preferable to eating in planes and airports and I usually take dried fruit, nuts, health bars, etc.

Fifth, get one of those inflatable neck pillows, they are great and let you sleep without breaking your neck.

Last, my wife and I like to get to the destination a few days before the diving starts. This gives us a chance to recover from the travel, see the place, settle in, and snorkle or do a checkout dive.

I can't advise you as to whether you should go, but they say that when you get old, it's the things you didn't do that you regret the most. YMMV

I have flown between the United States and Asia dozens of times, and this list pretty much mirrors my own. I would prioritize the last item, give yourself extra time, and the third item, get in shape--traveling is more comfortable (and less risky for DVT) if you are relatively fit. I can't endorse the tanning advice, but morning sun at your destination might help jet-lag, and melatonin seems to as well.

My fiancee is extremely susceptible to motion sickness--to the point that she passes up trips to north Bali because of the car ride from the airport. The 5-minute ride on the Star ferry to Kowloon sickens her. She has never gotten motion sickness on a flight, however, and I am surprised that somebody who does can still manage (or bothers) to dive--a sport where opportunities for motion sickness abound.

I have a thousand songs on my ipod. That's about 4,000 minutes, or 67 hours. That and daydreaming would be enough to divert me through any flight, even if I couldn't read or sleep. The person you are talking to in the seat next to you is probably just being polite--very few of us are that interesting.

 

[daniel1948]

Wow. Thanks for all the replies! I'll reply to a few of the points raised:

The trip is going to Atlantis resorts at both locations. (Puerto Galera and Dumaguete.)

To reassure everyone: I don't take anything without the approval of my doctor. Sometimes I consult the pharmacist first, because she is easier to have a few minutes chat with. But always the doctor before taking anything.

Dramamine is an interesting idea. It does not help my motion sickness, but maybe it would be a good sleep aid. (Note paragraph above.) Seasickness is a serious curse. The fact that I keep diving just shows much I love the ocean! My drug of choice has been Scopace (oral scopolamine). Now that it's been discontinued I'm hoping to be able to get Kwells from Australia. Same drug, 75% of the dosage per tablet, no prescription required in small quantities. But even with scopolamine, I cannot read on the plane, and I still get seasick if the conditions are too rough. It's always a risk, so I try to aim for short boat rides, or else just hope for the best.

Flying through Vancouver is an interesting idea. I was looking at the flights the group is taking, but in fact, I could fly a different route. Arriving early is also a good idea. I usually plan that. If I do not fly with the group, I could do that. It's two flights from here to Vancouver, but they are short ones.

I always do checklists.

Music and audiobooks on my iPod help. But there's a limit.

Is there stuff to do in Manila if I get there a day or two early? Is Manila safe?

I'm not concerned about jet lag on my return home. I'm retired, and can keep whatever hours I like until I adjust back to local time.

I really have not already decided it's too hard a trip. It is a very hard trip, but I'd not have posted if I'd already made up my mind. I've gone back and forth several times on this, which tells me that I'm really undecided. I actually don't know if there's still space available on this trip, but all these considerations/decisions could easily apply to the next opportunity, or to a solo trip.

 

[vladimir]

Is there stuff to do in Manila if I get there a day or two early?

For entertainment only, since it happened quite a while ago and is (probably) no longer relevant:

I had an overnight in Manila enroute to Palau. I didn't want to just hole up in my hotel, since I'd never been to Manila before, so I asked the concierge at The Regent to direct me to a nightclub. I specifically told him I was not interested in a girly bar, and that I'd just like to go where the locals would go to hang out. Well, apparently the locals go to girly bars to hang out, because that's where I found myself, surrounded by locals, including the two lovely women on either side of me in their underwear. So there is definitely stuff to do in Manila, depending on how liberal-minded your wife is.

Is Manila safe?

I managed to escape the evening with my person and my ethics largely unscathed, though my wallet was a little bit the worse for wear--champagne cocktails being fairly costly everywhere, even (especially?) when there's no champagne involved.

I think Manila is one of the least-safe cities in Southeast Asia, so some vigilance is called for, but again, I have very little experience there, recent or otherwise. I wouldn't be deterred from going, but I would be alert to my surroundings once there...as we should everywhere we travel, anyway.

By the way, I was at Atlantis Dumaguete recently. (Which is consistently well-reviewed here on ScubaBoard.) The diving was very good for macro photographers. If you have a laundry list of exotic creatures you'd like to see or photograph, you can fill much of it there. You probably won't see many fish bigger than a breadbasket, though I did see one reef shark. The food was good--a few choices at each meal, mostly prepared well.The staff was excellent and the accommodations were quite good. The diving operation was well-run and professional, if perhaps a bit geared to novice divers. I will return, but it's a relatively short trip from Hong Kong.

 

[Mike Boswell]

I can't endorse the tanning advice, but morning sun at your destination might help jet-lag, and melatonin seems to as well.

I say get a tan because (1) it's been my observation that the most common "scuba diving injury" is sunburn, and I've seen many vacation divers who were pretty miserable because those lily-white arms, legs, neck and face got a large and unaccustomed dose of tropical sun. There are other (and maybe better) ways to protect oneself from sunburn, but (2) the other issue is that a moderate amount of sun exposure probably makes you healthier and happier. There is a lot of research on this and I'm no doctor, but this article may be of interest: Environmental Health Perspectives: Benefits of Sunlight: A Bright Spot for Human Health

 

[Jax]

Wow. Thanks for all the replies! I'll reply to a few of the points raised:

The trip is going to Atlantis resorts at both locations. (Puerto Galera and Dumaguete.)

To reassure everyone: I don't take anything without the approval of my doctor. Sometimes I consult the pharmacist first, because she is easier to have a few minutes chat with. But always the doctor before taking anything.

Dramamine is an interesting idea. It does not help my motion sickness, but maybe it would be a good sleep aid. (Note paragraph above.) Seasickness is a serious curse. The fact that I keep diving just shows much I love the ocean! My drug of choice has been Scopace (oral scopolamine). Now that it's been discontinued I'm hoping to be able to get Kwells from Australia. Same drug, 75% of the dosage per tablet, no prescription required in small quantities. But even with scopolamine, I cannot read on the plane, and I still get seasick if the conditions are too rough. It's always a risk, so I try to aim for short boat rides, or else just hope for the best.

Flying through Vancouver is an interesting idea. I was looking at the flights the group is taking, but in fact, I could fly a different route. Arriving early is also a good idea. I usually plan that. If I do not fly with the group, I could do that. It's two flights from here to Vancouver, but they are short ones.

I always do checklists.

Music and audiobooks on my iPod help. But there's a limit.

Is there stuff to do in Manila if I get there a day or two early? Is Manila safe?

I'm not concerned about jet lag on my return home. I'm retired, and can keep whatever hours I like until I adjust back to local time.

I really have not already decided it's too hard a trip. It is a very hard trip, but I'd not have posted if I'd already made up my mind. I've gone back and forth several times on this, which tells me that I'm really undecided. I actually don't know if there's still space available on this trip, but all these considerations/decisions could easily apply to the next opportunity, or to a solo trip.

Honestly, Daniel, just reading your description makes the trip sound 'too hard' for me.

Do you HAVE to fly with the group? What if you staged your flights with overnights on the way? Somewhere on this board is a tale of Decompression Illness in which the writer places some of the blame on the tiredness from the long trip.

Maybe you could leave earlier, over night a few places, then marry-up with the group on the last leg?

Do the same on the return trip? Yes, it will cost more, but isn't your health and comfort worth it?

 

[Jax]

My drug of choice has been Scopace (oral scopolamine). Now that it's been discontinued I'm hoping to be able to get Kwells from Australia. Same drug, 75% of the dosage per tablet, no prescription required in small quantities.

Have you tried the Scopolamine patch? I am a chronic spewer, and it definitely lowered the instances of that, with the only side effect of dry mouth. (Take hard candies . . . or Life Savers.)

 

[Woodiver]

If you decide to go to Asia, route through YVR. There’s no reason to fly down to LAX or SFO because most of the routes to Asia come back up the coast and over the south coast of Alaska. Since you have issues sitting for long periods of time, stay away from Cathay in economy but if you have the miles, business has lay flat seats and first is wonderful.
I’m a little concerned about the choice of Dumaguete if you preferred Belize or Cozumel over Fiji. Dumaguete is mostly muck diving, mainly sloping sand with a few coral patches and man made structure (tires, cars, etc.) but the muck has lots of critters which is why photographers love the place. You will not see a lot of coral structure unless you take the day trip to Apo which is offered a couple of time each week. The resort is located in a rural area so you will spent the majority of the time at the resort. The staff and food was very good during our visit.
We stayed at Dumaguete first then moved to Puerto Galera. The move consumed a full day, we left Dumaguete around 7am, flew to back to Manila, three hours on a van, then an hour boat transfer and didn’t arrive until late in the afternoon. The Atlantis resort at Puerto Galera is in the middle of Sabang beach which has a number of resorts, bars, clubs and people. It’s a totally different feel than Dumaguete. Puerto Galera light life also include some of seedier sides, prostitution was very apparent in the area around the resort went we were there. The resort is built into the hillside with the main traffic route along the beach running between the restaurant, pool area, gear storage area, hillside room and the dive center/beach front rooms. Our room was one of the upper hillside rooms and it was over 100 steps to get to the room. The room was large but it was modeled after the Flintstones, kind of strange décor.
I thought the diving was very good at Puerto Galera, again mostly critters but more coral. If you go, don’t miss out on the Verde Island trip, so many different types of nudibranchs! There are few photos here: Flickr: woodiver15's Photostream

 

[daniel1948]

<...snip...> Well, apparently the locals go to girly bars to hang out, because that's where I found myself, surrounded by locals, including the two lovely women on either side of me in their underwear. So there is definitely stuff to do in Manila, depending on how liberal-minded your wife is. ...

I'm not married, and I have no morals, other than "be nice to people," so the only thing that would keep me from frolicking with the locals would be my healthy fear of STDs. Unfortunately, those are rampant everywhere, so I'll be keeping my pants on.

I say get a tan because (1) it's been my observation that the most common "scuba diving injury" is sunburn

I do not burn easily. I do use sunscreen, but when I (occasionally) forget it, it's no big deal. I've still got a good tan line on my legs at swim-trunks latitude from Bimini. And my arms stay fairly dark year around. I just have to always cover my head. The top of my head will burn if I don't. I even wear a swim cap for snorkeling.

Honestly, Daniel, just reading your description makes the trip sound 'too hard' for me.

Do you HAVE to fly with the group? What if you staged your flights with overnights on the way? Somewhere on this board is a tale of Decompression Illness in which the writer places some of the blame on the tiredness from the long trip.

Maybe you could leave earlier, over night a few places, then marry-up with the group on the last leg?

Do the same on the return trip? Yes, it will cost more, but isn't your health and comfort worth it?

I mentioned in an earlier post the idea of traveling separately from the group. This is a definite possibility. There's a slight disadvantage in multiple overnights, as that lengthens the overall travel time, while shortening each travel day.

I checked, however, and the Philippines Airlines flight from Vancouver to Manila is 14 hours. I think they stop for fuel in Hawai'i. The group flight is on Korean Air, Seattle to Seoul, 12 hours, then Seoul to Manila, where they spend the night before continuing on to the resort. Philippines Air gets very mixed reviews, with some reviewers reporting older airplanes where the A/V does not work and the business class seats are uncomfortable; and others reporting newer planes with comfortable seats. Apparently Philippines Air is a mixed bag.

I could still take Korean Air a day early and meet the group in Seoul. This would mean three overnights getting to the resort: Seattle, Seoul, and Manila.

Have you tried the Scopolamine patch? I am a chronic spewer, and it definitely lowered the instances of that, with the only side effect of dry mouth. (Take hard candies . . . or Life Savers.)

I used to use the patch. I find that the first day the side-effects (principally severe dizziness, but also severe sore throat unless the weather is very humid) are just about intolerable; and the third day the desired effects are too weak. So of the three days, it only really works well on day 2. Cutting the patch in half (which you are not supposed to do) doesn't seem to help much. Scopace was less convenient while on a live-aboard, with its 8-hour duration, so I had to take a pill every 8 hours. But at a resort it was great, because it had worn off and there were no side effects in the evening. I just took one an hour before boat time each morning.