Want to learn to dive in Moalboal!

Hi guys! I'm an ESL teacher in South Korea, and Christmas break is coming up. From the 25th to the 1st, my girlfriend and I will be on Cebu, and we're thinking about learning to dive. Neither of us have done it before, and so we have a few questions, if you wouldn't mind:

1) First of all, is it worth it? We'll only be there for a week. How much actual dive time will we get in a 3-5 day open water course? Are there fun diving things you can do that don't require a cert? I'm honestly a total newbie here.

2) If we do decide to learn, where's the best spot? It seems like northern Cebu is still going to be a post-typhoon mess by the time we get there, so we were thinking Moalboal or maybe Oslob. Which one's nicer / more likely to have whale sharks? (I REALLY want to dive with a whale shark.)

3) How much should we be paying? Friends of ours who went claimed they paid $120, but the courses I'm seeing seem more like $350.

4) Is it worth it to do PADI eLearning beforehand? Do dive shops actually accept the printout from that in lieu of their written portions?

Thank you so much for your help! Don't hesitate to tell us anything else you think we should know.

-Michael

I'm sure you'll get some conflicting responses to this - the idea of travelling to a disaster zone a month from now will strike some as insensitive and crass, while others will cite the positive impact of tourist dollars to an economy struggling to get on its feet again. It's a tough call.

By the same token, the whale shark operation at Oslob is hugely controversial - you're basically guaranteed to see them but there are major concerns about the ethics of enticing the whale sharks in using bait, not to mention the stress levels they're under because of the volume of people. There's also the question of whether you really want to see a huge, graceful, oceanic creature in what is, to some at least, a glorified zoo.

Finally, if you see whale sharks on your first couple of dives you're going to set the bar pretty high for everything subsequently. I say this without too much bitterness having been diving for 16 years, with 400+ dives in 15 countries, and never yet having laid eyes on rhincodon typus.

Hi Michael,

Things are not ideal in northern Cebu right now as you say, as bad as it is the devastation is it is not quite as bad as the horrible scenes making the news in Tacloban. The Philippines is also a very resilient country, you'll be amazed at how quickly things can be back up and running. The end of December is not that far away but I'd have expected a lot of the operators there will be up and running again (albeit not necessarily at full capacity) so don't discount it just yet.

Try to make it clear what you want form the course/week to any resorts/instructors you speak to, Open Water is normally 3-4 days if the book work is done in advance, 4-5 days if not. The number of dives is normally 4, but many operators would offer you additional dives as an option. However, be aware certification dives may not always be the greatest dives as the focus is on learning; finning techniques, buoyancy and core skills should be the main content, not fish and corals ;-)

Location wise Oslob is a little controversial but there are strong opinions on both sides from respected parties, however learning to dive there would not be recommended - Most nearby resorts do a day trip there also so it would still be easy to dive with the Whale sharks if you really want to. Dumaguette would also be a good option to consider, just a short ferry ride from Cebu.

Course price wise you will find courses for a full range of prices, $120 is not unheard of but for that kind of payment I can only assume the instructor is a complete disaster waiting to happen as the cost wouldn't even cover the standard materials and equipment rental costs. The typical rate here in Manila is closer to $400-500 for a good quality course, you may find it cheaper near Cebu but you have to ask what you really want from the course; a certification or to learn - you'll generally pay a lot more for the later and a lot less for 'just' the first. Check what is included in the courses also, a lot of shop courses expect you to buy a lot of equipment or pay for all rental costs on top of the course fees.

The eLearning option can be useful if you plan on making the most of the inwater time, although I find it to be a very limited system with little interaction. It also only covers the bear minimum content, however if you want to get an extra day of diving it will help, a good instructor can always fill in the blanks. Also it's worth noting the eLearning option is generally more expensive for you as a whole.

Hopefully thats of help and gives you some pointers! Enjoy diving here in the Philippines!

Karl

docmoxie:

Hi guys! I'm an ESL teacher in South Korea, and Christmas break is coming up. From the 25th to the 1st, my girlfriend and I will be on Cebu, and we're thinking about learning to dive.

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Do check in advance, as many dive operations have been impacted by Typhoon Haiyan. As others have said, Cebu wasn't as badly effected as the areas shown on TV news... but some have lost, or intermittent power etc...

docmoxie:

1) First of all, is it worth it? We'll only be there for a week. How much actual dive time will we get in a 3-5 day open water course? Are there fun diving things you can do that don't require a cert? I'm honestly a total newbie here.

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The minimum requirement for the OW course is 4 dives - doing a maximum of 3 dives per day. There are also confined water (pool or shallow on the beach) sessions that take approx 1 day. Note: that is a minimum requirement - a contentious dive operation will train sufficiently to reach a good standard, not just provide the bare minimum of sessions. 5 days is normally well sufficient for most trainees though.,

docmoxie:

2) If we do decide to learn, where's the best spot? It seems like northern Cebu is still going to be a post-typhoon mess by the time we get there, so we were thinking Moalboal or maybe Oslob. Which one's nicer / more likely to have whale sharks? (I REALLY want to dive with a whale shark.)

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Olsob has whalesharks more frequently, but as Karl mentioned, there are some ethical questions to ask.

docmoxie:

3) How much should we be paying? Friends of ours who went claimed they paid $120, but the courses I'm seeing seem more like $350.

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In general, you get what you pay for.

In either case, you will get a plastic certification card. What varies is the comfort, confidence and comfort as a diver that you emerge from training with...

Low cost courses are normally achieved by cutting costs. There's no magical way to produce a $120 course... they cut boat fees because you do less interesting dives from the shore... they use a lower-quality instructor that's willing to work for peanuts... they break agency standards by not supplying you with a manual...dive times are the shortest they can be... the maximum number of students are crammed onto a single course...you might do 2 or more dives from a single cylinder.. etc etc...

Most dive shops would make a comparable profit on a dive course... so the more expensive ones are simply giving you more for your money. When they do... it's stuff that benefits your learning and enjoyment. Plenty of these low-cost dive shops pump out students who are a danger to themselves and others... and whose skills are so low that they'll never learn to really 'enjoy' diving... and many cease diving soon afterwards..

docmoxie:

4) Is it worth it to do PADI eLearning beforehand? Do dive shops actually accept the printout from that in lieu of their written portions?

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A PADI shop will accept PADI eLearning. It costs more money (don't expect a reduction from the dive shop), but saves you from having to do tedious homework during your valuable vacation...

You can also do an introductory/DSD so you'll have a better idea if you want to pursue training and certification. Thats more practical than paying for a cert then suddenly realize its something you dont really like doing.

jamesdiving:

I'm sure you'll get some conflicting responses to this - the idea of travelling to a disaster zone a month from now will strike some as insensitive and crass, while others will cite the positive impact of tourist dollars to an economy struggling to get on its feet again. It's a tough call.

By the same token, the whale shark operation at Oslob is hugely controversial - you're basically guaranteed to see them but there are major concerns about the ethics of enticing the whale sharks in using bait, not to mention the stress levels they're under because of the volume of people. There's also the question of whether you really want to see a huge, graceful, oceanic creature in what is, to some at least, a glorified zoo.

Finally, if you see whale sharks on your first couple of dives you're going to set the bar pretty high for everything subsequently. I say this without too much bitterness having been diving for 16 years, with 400+ dives in 15 countries, and never yet having laid eyes on rhincodon typus.

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Given my druthers, I would happily postpone or cancel the trip. However, we bought nonrefundable tickets literally the day before news of the typhoon arrived. So we're out $1200 if we cancel, sadly . Being teachers and broke-ass, that's not something we can afford right now.

I think given the fact that we don't know if we'll be scuba diving a lot in our futures, that doing "fun" dives is our best bet. Otherwise, snorkel time. I know this is off-topic for this board, but does anybody know good snorkeling spots in southern Cebu?

Again, thank you so much for the help.
-Michael

Hi there

Maolboal is a great place with snorkelling off the beach the whole way around the island. I dived with the whalesharks from there , it was awesome. You may get a better price for your OW when you are there....it's won't be much though. Diving is better there in my opinion ,but you will still see lovely things snorkelling. I believe that this area is completely unaffected by the storm.

Best wishes

docmoxie:

Given my druthers, I would happily postpone or cancel the trip. However, we bought nonrefundable tickets literally the day before news of the typhoon arrived. So we're out $1200 if we cancel, sadly . Being teachers and broke-ass, that's not something we can afford right now.

I think given the fact that we don't know if we'll be scuba diving a lot in our futures, that doing "fun" dives is our best bet. Otherwise, snorkel time. I know this is off-topic for this board, but does anybody know good snorkeling spots in southern Cebu?

Again, thank you so much for the help.
-Michael

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I don't see any reason to cancel the trip even if you had not paid for the flight. It is not the whole country is affected by the recent event.
Moalbaol is a good place to learn scuba diving. Some of the operators will organize daily trip to Oslob to dive/snorkel with the whaleshark.
Ocean Safari Philippines(Nelson's dive Shop) is my recommendation. You can stay next door at Eve's Kiosk.
Take the bus at Southern Bus Terminal in Cebu to Moalboal and then tricylce to the resort.

BTW, do call ahead as Christmas is usually very busy.

I did my open water and advanced courses in Moalboal a few years ago. I think I paid under $300 for open water and it was worth it. All the reports that I've heard say that Cebu is back to business as usual.

I'll be in Moalboal on Dec 22nd and planning to do Oslob as well. :cool2:

Moalboal is great for courses specially now when they have a huge school of sardins just out side neptune diving adventures house reef