Three weeks -leaving mid may

[leslief]

I am looking for suggestions for a destination. I will be traveling alone so my preferences are for some place with good weather thistimeof year, no really strongcurrents, lowbudget, i have about 400dives, i like small stuff but would also enjoy some big critter encounters if availabke. I am considering the philipines but open to other options.

[Centrals]

I assume you want to explore a bit instead of staying in one place.
Fly to Cebu in Philippines and you have plenty of choices eg. Bohol, Dumaguete(Apo Island), Malapascua, Moalboal and Southern Leyte. U
If you like wrecks then there is Coron and Subic Bay.
Anilao, Puerto Galera and Subic Bay is another alternative. Save you a domestic flight if you must fly into Manila.
Manado in Inodnesia and you have three places to dive ie. Banga Island, Bunaken and Lembeh Strait.

[Bubble Junky]

Have you checked out Bali ?

[elcoralreefdivecenter]

Hi Leslief!

Diving in the Philippines is best during March - May (great visibility etc.) i.e. high season for most of the local dive centers.

The nearest diving communities from Manila must be Batangas - Anilao, Sebang and Zambales - Subic Bay. All places have quite a few well established dive centers with highly skilled and competent divemasters/instructors (both locals and foreigners). Anilao is located about 2-3 hours (by road) South of Manila and Subic Bay about 2-3 hours in the opposite direction, North of Manila. In my opinion the diving in Subic Bay is far more diverse than the more relaxed reef diving in Anilao. Having said that, both places are great fun being a diver!

In Anilao (Dive Sites Anilao) you will be staying in one of the local resorts isolated from anything that isn't in some way related to diving. Both food and drinks are usually provided by the resort you're staying at and nightlife is pretty much void! The resorts in Anilao are usually quite small to medium in size, great for making new friends since you will be spending lots of time together during your stay at the designated resort. If heading South from Batangas port (1 hour by boat) you'll get to Mindoro - Puerto Galera, Sebang or White Beach, another great place for diving (Sebang in particular), with both reef and wreck sites. I havnt been yet so wont be able to tell you much about this place but i'm sure you can find out online!

Subic bay offers both Wreck and Reef diving with a wide variety of wreck sites (Dive Sites Subic Bay) just 15-25 minutes away from most dive centers. Many of the sites are worth visiting multiple times since some of the wrecks can be penetrated without being a certified technical diver. One of my favorite wrecks up there is the USS New York (Video Clip USS NY), a site definitely worth visiting once in the Philippines. When back from diving, Subic Bay offers lots of restaurants and a few bars where to mingle with other divers and travelers. The place is a lot more vivid if you will, with lots of other activities.

Our suggestion to you guys is to check out Anilao, Sebang, Subic Bay and Coron with regards to your holiday in the Philippines. Let us know if we can assist you in any way!

Regards,

The El Coral Reef Dive Center team!

[Poi]

Not a lot to add other than even on a non-diving note I enjoyed the Philippines as much as anywhere, if not more than anywhere in SE Asia. Great diving too though!