Puerto Galera, Anilao, or Dauin?

[Pillpusher]

So, I'm looking into taking a trip in early November and was beginning to research Anilao and Dauin, until I came across Puerto Galera... The options and amenities in PG look so much better, and it is just stupid cheap. So, what's the catch? Is the diving that much better in Anilao and/or Dauin? How do the three compare?

Also, is there any muck diving in PG? I did my first trip to that part of the world last year to the Lembeh Straight and fell in love with the photogenic critters of muck diving. I still love reef diving and the big critters as well, but I'd love to go somewhere with at least SOME quality muck diving.

Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance

 

[Tippytoes12]

We have not been to Anilao or PG , but really loved our two trips to Dauin.The macro there is wonderful and we saw almost no garbage in the water. The reef diving on nearby Apo Island is awesome with loads of turtles. And you can reach Oslob for the whale sharks from there too.

The Philippines is a wonderful destination.

 

[TSandM]

The muck diving we did in PG was in the bay, at night. And it was good. Most of the diving, however, was drifting gorgeous reefs.

 

[WOODMAN]

There is a wide variety of diving types available in Sabang/Puerto Galera, from the high octane current filled clarity of Verde Island, down to several "muck" type sites, including the Sabang wrecks right out in the harbor, the little known St. Christopher wreck (over by the Alma Jane, but much shallower) and of course, the Clam Farm and Boatyard over around the CoCo View point and back in the channel leading in to Puerto Galera. Here you have the typical muck type diving, with all the weird stuff if you go looking for it. I just saw a blue ring octopus walking across the bottom there a couple of weeks ago, and didn't know what it was until we got back to the boat and my divemaster gushed all over us. "Wow, did you see that? That is only the third blue ring octopus I have ever seen and he was just walking along on his tentacles for you! Very rare!" Ye Gods! I am glad I got about a dozen pictures of him, but maybe I wouldn't have got quite so close if I had known...:nailbiter:Anyway, there is a lot of different diving available, and I was particularly fond of Coral Cove, way down by the old Japanese aircraft wreck, but not nearly as deep. A lot of times they don't want to go that far, especially if the wind is up and the sea is rough over there on the east side, but keep trying. I saw a couple of flashing clams over there, for example, and that is always a treat. There is also Canyons, which is a perennial favorite, and I also like Boulders. Monkey Beach is also nice for vibrant, lush and colorful coral and small fish in shallower water, and the list goes on. I will be writing an exhaustive report on this trip soon (yeah, I know- I keep saying that..) which should help answer some of your questions. Woody

 

[drbill]

I've only been to Anilao and Sabang (PG). I found them to be largely quite different in terms of the diving and the amenities. Anilao was mostly muck diving with some nice reefs tossed in occasionally. Lots to see and film. Sabang/PG was largely reefs occasionally with current. I stayed at Club O in Anilao and had a great time although the resorts there tend to be somewhat isolated (who had time to see anything else with all the diving we did there!) while Sabang had fewer and shorter (about 60 min) dives and more topside action. I enjoyed both locations.

 

[rob1967]

All 3 are excellent destinations. Anilao is #1 in the Philippines for macro/muck, and Dauin would be a close 2nd.

Puerto Galera also has quite good muck diving. The best macro/muck diving in PG is in the actual bay (i.e., the actual Port of Galleons), and the dive site is usually referred to as "The Hill". However the bay is fairly large and can be divided into at least 3 dive sites, and adjacent areas to "The Hill" are sometimes referred to as "Boatyard" and "Clam Cove". On a good day with a good guide, "The Hill" can be as productive as any site in Dauin or Anilao.

However, both Anilao and Dauin have more variety of muck dive sites. Anilao and PG both have very good coral reef sites as well, whereas Dauin is purely muck diving. However, it easy to make day trips from Dauin to Apo Island and Siquijor for nice coral reef diving. (Side-note: Siquijor also has some little-known but excellent macro, as a friend of mine has been finding/photographing all sorts of cool critters there).

Puerto Galera does have cheaper prices and a wide variety of accommodations. There are also more topside activities. Dauin also has a well-developed tourist infrastructure with a good variety of resorts to suit all budgets. Anilao can be a bit pricier if travelling solo or small group, but if you are 4 or more in a boat it is not really an issue. Anilao has little to no topside activities, but this is not an issue for the serious underwater photographer, and Anilao is totally geared to the serious underwater photographer. In my mind, PG seems more geared to all types of divers; i.e., not only serious photographers, but also fun divers, tech divers and those who want to take a course. Dauin is geared to both fun divers and serious photographers.

How much time do you have? If you have 2 weeks or more, you could do all three. If you have only one week, I would suggest you do either Anilao or Dauin. However, if you have say 8-12 days, you could combine Anilao with PG. It is possible to hire a private boat to transfer you directly from your resort in PG to your resort in Anilao, and it only takes about 90 minutes. The cost is about 6000 pesos (about $140) for the whole boat, so quite reasonable, particularly if you are a larger group.

 

[Searcaigh]

I have had several trips to PG and Anilao, I doubt I would go back to PG, seen it done it and got the T-Shirt.

Anilao on the other hand is the Philippines "Lembeh" (been to Lembeh twice now and will be returning there in a couple of months), but more economical in terms of cost.

Last time I stayed at Crystal Blue I had my own boat and dive guide which was awesome, talk about personal service, I got really spoiled on that trip. The local guides are fantastic.

 

[TSandM]

Funny, we've done two trips to Dumaguete, and decided to go back to PG this time for more time on the reefs. To each his own, I guess!

 

[Searcaigh]

I am not knocking PG TSandM by any means, I have had some awesome dives there but Anilao has better macro IMHO.

 

[saila]

Hi Pillpusher,
if you liked Lembeh Strait, you would LOVE Dauin. Many of our guests say that our macro diving is just as good (or even better), with cleaner water. If we think about the critters, our in-house marine biologist who have experience from both places says that we are only lacking Electric Clams (although our divemasters says that they can be sometimes encountered in the walls of Siquijor) and Rhinopias (until someone finds one sitting in our house reef of course). In early November you should be able to see a large variety of octopus among other cool things.

In our coast we don't have that fancy corals, it's mostly sandy slopes or very shallow reef patches, but Apo Island is only 20-30 minutes away and Siquijor and Sumilon Islands are not that far either.

Enjoy your holiday planning, I'm sure you will have a wonderful time underwater where ever you end up here in the Philippines.