So what do we think of Philippine dive shops?

Just got to Thailand, spent three weeks in the Philippines, in which time I did 10 dives in 3 locations, and had some experiences that left me questioning some of the things I saw. I am not a hugely experienced diver, and may take some stick for my choices or comments, and thats fine.

First stop was White Beach at Puerto Galera. Walked round a few shops, met some people, asked about doing a refresher as I hadnt dived in 5.5 years, but everyone I met said, nah, just get in the water and we will do the two basic skills before going down. So I did five dives, 3 with just me on the boat, they were nice, nothing difficult to start with, so perhaps I didnt see the best of PG diving. Was slightly intrigued that no proof of certification was asked for, just sign the waiver and go.

Did visit Sabang beach, what a ***********. As a 25 year old I also felt about 20 years too young for this place, and creeped out by the seediness.

Next up was Bohol, where I wandered around until I found a few cheaper places doing dives with equip for about 1000 a dive (the pound is really not treating me well, damn you Gordon). This place did actually ask me for my certification, but everything else was crap. The first dive at Balicasag, I was given no time to kit up, just told to sit on the edge of the boat, stick it on and jump in with no checks or anything. I started checking my equipment when I put it on, and it wasnt connected up right, so i couldnt inflate. The DM, who was already in the water, started shouting at me to just jump in and he would fix it in the water. Is it unreasonable to make sure I have fully functioning equipment before I get in the water?

So we did the first dive, and they got it all wrong, it was a wall dive, but we swam all the way against the current, passing other divers going the opposite way, great. Getting ready for the second dive, the instructor jumps in and one of his pipes blows, so back to the beach for a change of octopus and dive site. Second dive, I am swimming along when suddenly I realise I am steaming through my air, and bubbles are appearing from places they shouldnt. End up doing half the dive on instructors air. May be my fault, I dont know, but I have my suspicions about the equipment.

Finally to Malapascua, where I met some nice foreigners (no names) who recommended me a dive centre, she was doing the dive portion of her OW there having done the theory back home. Again, not asked for cert., just sign the waiver and who cares.

Diving here was a little chaotic. First dive was with someone who was doing her OW dives and it was down to 22 m, stay 1m from the bottom, to see thresher sharks, got to stay out of their line. She shouldnt have been that deep, or with us. Next dive, a different OW diver who could not control himself at the right depth, shouldnt have been on that dive. Dive finished in three groups at different times too.Tsk. And no sharks, just one manta in two dives. The place is simply too crowded, they need to control it.

So final dive with them, was tunnel at Gato Island, which was fun, saw a nice big white tip reef shark, but again the DMs had no control. ONe Chinese guy turned up with a wonderful set of equipment, nice shiny knife, computer, camera, the works, but dam, was he weak in the water. The DMs could not control the group, and allowed him (chinese guy) to drift off from 20m to 2m from the surface whilst he laughed and took pictures of himself, midway through the dive. Moron. They went and brought him down everntually, but not until they had helped him take some pictures. Other dive centres were asking for 30 dives to do this tunnel, but the one I was with was putting newly certified OW divers through it, and it was scary.

After the dive I talked to the foreigners, and they said they realised that the dive centre had done the OW dives with only a DM, no instructor, and that they were worried they would not count. This seems really illegal and unprofessional to me.

So I have left now, it wasnt all negative, there were a few nice dives, and some lovely beaches. I was just worried by a lot of what I saw. Anyway, I am considering doing my DM now in Thailand, and it was a nice eye opener seeing some of these operations, and realising what the differences between good and bad operations are. And that you really do get what you pay for.

sorry you had an overall crappy time... but did you bother asking us for recommendations on shops and operations?

probably not...

for one thing white beach isn't good diving... and we would definitely have pre-warned you about the relative seediness of sabang... but then again, the best dive ops in PG are there

we could have given you good recos for shops on malapascua and bohol...

and do feel free about reporting (or naming) unsafe DMs and operations... it helps everyone else in the future...

i hope thailand's a better experience for you overall... stay away from the downtown areas though as they make sabang look like disneyland

Jag

These sort of negative write ups smell of someone looking to grind an axe. No research, no names, and very strong words about locations that we know very well. Could it be a built-in "Go to Thailand because our business is in the tank" sort of write up. I suggest the author rewrite the vignette and be very specific so that "we" can deal with those not-so-professional operators.

there's more HIV in thailand you know...

and more she-boys...

and more she-boys who... ummm... get... ummmmmmmm... "snipped"

Jag

Sorry you went to all the wrong places, but sometimes, it is worth paying a few extra bucks.

Hope Thailand works out better, may be worth checking in to the Thai section of the forum and asking the locals for tips on the best dive ops.

z...

3 shops don't make for the entire Dive training industry in the PI. Name them, you don't have to worry about them slamming you back. You forget you're from Mars!

A few thoughts on the replies. I did a lot of scubaboard readin beforehand, I thought the difference between white beach and sabang was just in the atmosphere, not the dive sites, so chose white beach.

As I said, I was trying to do things a little cheaper than using the best shops, which is why I went for the cheaper places, rather than the good ones which you would no doubt have recommended, and I admit this was my mistake. But again, the point is that the vast majority of people do not use scubaboard, and they just turn up and choose a shop for whatever reason, and price can be a big factor. I think it is disturbing that there can be such a lack of basic professionalism going on which many people may encounter.

I was only commenting on three shops, not all of them, but from talking to other people, things like never checking certification level seemed to be fairly common. Again this is just a very small sample, perhaps others could also comment on their experiences.

I dont know what "axe" you are talking about me grinding, or what research you would like me to have done. I am not trying to sell Thailand, I am AOW diver with 30 dives, not some dive shop operator. I initially did not name names because I did not want to make it seem like I had some particular grudge against one group or person, but may give some advice out later on the operators I went to.

I was also not dissing the Philippines diving, just gave my simple opinion on one place I visited which I did not like at all. I am sure many other places (some which I went to) are delightful.

Now I know most of you live and work in the Philippines, and dont want it dissed too much, but there does need to be some recognition of problems, and I suppose I should play my part and name some names, lol. When you say "deal with", what exactly do you mean?

No one likes a dodgey operator. Naming names means we can specifically warn people to avoid those operations. The PPD wants all visitors to the PI to have as good an experience as possible, getting names helps us warn others.

Granted, there are times when saving every dollar on a trip helps, so it really is not fair to be hard on you for trying to save a buck, we have all done it.

Also, it may be good to know what your idea of "control" is - in relation to a DM having control of a situation. Some more experienced divers prefer the DM to be a guide, not a nanny, in other cases, a nanny is desired for the benefit of all. Most time, something in betwee is best.

Remember that in some places, the responsibility is on you to look out for yourself, this means letting the dive shop know about how comfortable you are in the water, how much experience you have etc (though, you did do this, in my book, when asking about a refresher dive).

Of course, after all that, there is still no excuse for a poorly operated dive op. Perhaps the blase attitude should serve in future as a sign to move along to another dive op...

Z...

Martin,

Sounds like you have been very unforunate with your choices of dive operators, however in your own admission you chose "cheap", there is a rule the world over that goes along the lines of you get what you pay for.

BUT this as you state is no excuse for such poor service and what appears to be dangerous practices. This is one reason for systems such as PADI / SDI / BSAC / CMAS etc etc (there are many others to name but a few) a clearly defined set of procedures to follow that quite clearly have not been followed. Hence as others have stated naming and shaming is a must in order to not allow this to continue, After all you would not want others to experience what you have.

I'm from the uk like yourself (i think) and have been to the Philippines several times and have never experienced situations such as you have reported, however I'm sure it occurs. The operators i have experienced have always been very professional and safe, with feedback hopefully we can bring them all in line.

Your comments on White Beach and Sabang are a little confusing, you state you did some research and thought only the difference was the atmosphere, a quick glance at any dive site map of that area should show you that 99% of dive sites are based around Sabang.

Anyway, very sorry to hear of you experiences please be assured this is not the norm, certainly in my experience. As you mention your are considering doing your DM, you should remeber this and endevour to ensure these practices are highlighted and hence stopped. Once qualified as a DM, you will understand how important it is to maintain standards and be safe, something you will then be in a position to pass on yourself.

Once again, what a shame you didn't take away some good memories of what is an excellent diving destination.

BTW the same applies to Thailand, so be on your toes and watch out for similar poorly run Dive ops. An agencies sign outside a shop is not neccisarily an indication of the standards of that operation. I agree it should be but without names things will not change.

Mat

I think Philippine dive shops I've been to are professional and the service was great. There are good shops and shops to avoid all over the PI. Though this goes for anywhere in the world you go diving. The problem is the dive industry keeps on tolerating the bad ones.

Shopping around Bohol and going to a place P1000 / dive WITH equpment is dirt cheap - I wouldn't have expected much from the service. Although I'm surprised that some shops didn't check for your cert or ask how many dives you've had (>24)!

But you do realize that your posts ring a few alarm bells? Please at least name the shops.