How is Alona Tropical resort? ok?

Thinking of going there late Oct./early Nov.
How does the diving compare to Bunaken? I dove Leyte and Sabang last year, same time, and viz in Leyte was much better than Sabang which was disapointing. Hopefully I'll get to Baliscag, and perhaps Apo Island. Worth the trip? Thanks for replies.

I dove Balicasag in late 2001 and was very impressed. It and Cabilao have been two of my favorite locations to date. Most of the other dive sites near Panglao were also very nice, thought not quite as good. Like you, I dove Sabang and was disappointed with the visability. You shouldn't have to worry at Balicasag, Cabilao or the other dive sites near Panglao.

I'm planning a trip to the Philippines for Sept. and have thought about trying Leyte. Did you think it was worth the difficulty of traveling there? Was there much to do topside after diving? Also, any recommendations for dive operators there? Any thoughts you have would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Alona Tropical is nice - clean, professional, good location, good dive shop. I did DM with Sea Explorers there, that's the dive shop on the resort. After a month I was saying, "Oh no, not Balicasag AGAIN!" -LOL! This was Dec/Jan 2004. Viz was anywhere from 25 to 75 feet. One time in Cabilao it was down to 15 feet.

Back in '99 I stayed at the Alona Kew and dove with Seaquest. I really liked Pamilacan; it had the big Napoleon Wrasse. But the boats don't go there anymore, according to the locals.

manhattandiver:

I dove Balicasag in late 2001 and was very impressed. It and Cabilao have been two of my favorite locations to date. Most of the other dive sites near Panglao were also very nice, thought not quite as good. Like you, I dove Sabang and was disappointed with the visability. You shouldn't have to worry at Balicasag, Cabilao or the other dive sites near Panglao.

I'm planning a trip to the Philippines for Sept. and have thought about trying Leyte. Did you think it was worth the difficulty of traveling there? Was there much to do topside after diving? Also, any recommendations for dive operators there? Any thoughts you have would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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Leyte is not difficult to get to, although if you come from NYC it IS a long haul. All my connections went very smoothly. Whaleshark season isn't until late December through Feb I believe.
I stayed at Peter's Dive Resort. He has a website which outlines his operation. It is small, intimate, semi rustic, clean, good food, excellent diving, (a few hairy currents here and there) VERY laid back, and offers great service. Peter is Aussie so you know the beer is plentiful and cold, and he runs a good operation, at very righteous prices. There is not much else to do, a few hikes here and there and a local karaoke bar down the road. Actually, I had a great time. Almost forces you to RELAX. Dive when you want, no worries, i.e. no herd mentality/schedules. If you want to really chill out and get away from the madness of NYC, talk to Peter. HTH

I spent about 10 days diving around Panglao last October. Although I did not stay at Alona Tropical, I did have a few meals at their restuarant and had a look at the accommodation, good food and looks like one of the nicer places to stay at. I'm sure you'll make out to Baliscag as it is a nice dive site and seems like all the shops go very regularly. I can relate to Corregidor's "Baliscag Again?!" comment, as every time we had a new diver or two on the boat it would be our first stop of the day. Vis was good, better overall than the vis in Leyte around the same time for me.

You can make it over to Apo from Panglao easily, seems like it took about a half day for me to make the trip. I did have to wait a 2-3 hours in Zamboanguita for a boat ride over to Apo as it was a Friday and all the school kids were heading back to the island for the weekend and I was a lower priority passenger. I imagine it was just bad timing on my part and usually the wait is not so long but it might be worth calling ahead of time to Liberty's (424 0888, or 0917 603 9987) they can pick you up in Dumaguete or Zamboanguita if they know you are coming. Apo is a beautiful place to spend some time and the diving was the best overall that I have had in the Philippines, you should go if you can!

manhattandiver:

I'm planning a trip to the Philippines for Sept. and have thought about trying Leyte. Did you think it was worth the difficulty of traveling there? Was there much to do topside after diving? Also, any recommendations for dive operators there? Any thoughts you have would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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I thought Leyte was definitely worth the effort, and from Cebu it is almost as easy to get to as Panglao, just a longer jeepney or taxi ride once you get off the ferry in Ormoc. If it wasn't for the diving I would get bored after a couple of days but the diving was quite nice, if conditions allow try to get out to Limasawa island a time or two. There are only two dive operations in located in Southern Leyte, Peters Dive Resort and Southern Leyte Divers (WWW.LEYTE-DIVERS.COM) which is where I stayed based on the recomendation of my DM from Malapascua. Seems like most people head to Peters and it is located in Padre Burgos putting you a bit closer to the action, such as it is. I was quite happy diving with Gunter and Co at Southern Leyte Divers, located a couple of minutes out of Padre Burgos in baranggay San Roque.

I am going to spend two weeks on Panglao in February. Didn't decide yet if I should stay in Alona Kew or Alona Tropical. As far I see Alona Tropical seems better place. More comments would be appreciated.

As a diving center I consider Genesis Divers. Anyone dove with them?

Cheers,
Sebastian.

If this is any help or additional info about alona...

the rooms have no TV

Axua:

If this is any help or additional info about alona...

the rooms have no TV

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You mean Alona Tropical? I hope they have private shower and hot water?

Cheers,
Sebastian.

stiwi:

As a diving center I consider Genesis Divers. Anyone dove with them?

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I dove with Genesis and would certainly do so again. Good DMs, nice boat, friendly faces. I was often able to pick the dive site I wanted to go to and could stay down til my air was used up on every dive.