Philippines aorund new year 2018/2019

[erbedo]

Hello, wife and me are planning to go to the Philippines to do some diving, 10 days between the end of December 2018 / begin of January 2019. We like easy dives, macro lovers, do not like drift dives, we do like photo opportunities (macro, shrimps and so on).

We are looking into these 3 spots:
- Anilao
- Puerto Galera
- Palawan/El Nido (although harder to get there)

Do you have any advice? Also concerning dive centers. We only looked at Puerto Galera's Fishermen Cove and Edgewater resort, but nowhere else.

Thank you

 

[Freewillow]

10 days, 3 places

 

[erbedo]

Well, not all the 3 of them. We are looking for one spot to spend 10 days.

 

[Freewillow]

Sorry, my mistake. If you are found of macro, Anilao is THE spot in the Philippines . Moreover, in contrast to most dive sites in Lembeh, there are some nice reef dives.

 

[dirtfarmer]

+1 for Anilao, great macro there.

 

[erbedo]

And what about the outside environment? It seems to me that Anilao does not offer much more than diving. Am I right?

 

[dirtfarmer]

Yup as far as I know not much topside activity going on, but it's some of the best macro in the world.

 

[WetPup]

I too put my vote in for Anilao, as it's got the best macro - but there's not much going on topside. You dive, eat, and sleep.

If you want topside fun along with decent macro, Puerto Galera is an option. It's definitely a party town though. When you say you want topside activities, you need to be more specific.

 

[erbedo]

Thanks for the replies. As topside activities i think about natural parks or things to visit. I'm not a heavy party night person

 

[Makhno]

I noticed that Sogod Bay is not on your list. It's the ONLY place in the Philippines where I went two years in a row. My dive buddies and I love it (and we average >500 to >1000 dives each, including many of the world's most famous dive destinations).

Whale sharks, ornate ghost pipefish, blue ring octopuses, hairy frogfish, flamboyant cuttlefish … and plenty of nudis, if that's your passion.

The main problem with Sogod Bay is the difficulty of getting there: a flight into Tacloban, then a 4 hour drive. Another problem is not a lot of pelagics (true of most Philippines dive destinations, though). And there's not much partying, unless you make it happen. It's sort of a rural community.

Anilao is great. I just got back from 8 days there. Saw mimic octopuses, blue ring octopuses, hairy frogfish, hairy scorpionfish, etc etc

But in Anilao, you are going to pay more for 2 divers than for a full boat of 4 divers. Also, there are few options for eating and drinking … really, few options for *anything*, unless it's at your resort. You are almost a captive of the resort where you are staying, unless you rent a car or are willing to walk a long way uphill to get a tricycle taxi.

If you don't want to waste valuable time traveling to/from Sogod Bay, you could include both Anilao and Puerto Galera in your itinerary. I think that would be very wise. Both have pluses and minuses, but both are great in their own ways.

You can get from one to the other in a few hours, so you can travel and then still include an afternoon or night dive after checking in.

Enjoy, and safe diving