Suggestions for a three week Philippine diving itinerary mid March 2020

[RedFishBlueFish]

Hello all! Looking for help with a 3 week diving itinerary in the Philippines starting mid March 2020. Hubby and I are AOW and have gone diving in Coron and Tubbataha. We would like to have a mix of topside activities and diving and were interested in Anilao, Puerto Galera, Malapascua, Bohol, Siquijor, Siargao and Donsol. I don’t know the logistics of getting to and from these places and in what order to do them so as not to backtrack. Any help or suggestions on what places to omit or add and how long to spend at each place, and what dive operators to use would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Jay]

If you liked Coron then Subic Bay is a good one too. There's no penetration (even limited) w/o a Wreck Spec and no deeper dives (close to 40m) without Deep Spec. I did both courses with Arizona and would highly recommend them. Subic can fit into flights well as it's near Clark Airport which connects to other flights easily. If you fly Internationally with PAL then you're baggage allowance applies to your (same ticketed) domestic flights.

 

[RedFishBlueFish]

If you liked Coron then Subic Bay is a good one too. There's no penetration (even limited) w/o a Wreck Spec and no deeper dives (close to 40m) without Deep Spec. I did both courses with Arizona and would highly recommend them. Subic can fit into flights well as it's near Clark Airport which connects to other flights easily. If you fly Internationally with PAL then you're baggage allowance applies to your (same ticketed) domestic flights.

I actually don’t like wrecks. We only dove in Coron to get our AOW lol. I prefer lots of healthy coral reefs and Coron sadly disappointed me. Tubbataha on the other hand was wonderful. I also wouldn’t mind one spot for macro but I would like a mixture of things to see.

 

[alunharford]

I would try to keep your number of locations relatively small. Realistically, if you've been diving, it takes more than 24 hours to change location in the Philippines so you lose 1-2 days of diving for every change. Delays and flight cancellations are pretty common. There's lots to see at every diving location so don't try to do too many places.

With 3 weeks, I'd look to do Anilao / Puerto Galara (about 5 days each, with an easy non-flying transfer!) and then fly to do Malapascua / Moaboal (about 5 days in Malapascua and about 2 in Moaboal) - also a non-flying transfer. A day diving near Mactan can also be useful if it helps make the flights work (it's not world-class diving, but it's still good and 15 minutes from the airport!)

 

[borisphotosafari]

You need to consider where you are flying into, Manila or Cebu.

If you fly into Cebu:

1.Dumageute - great variety of dive sites. Apo island not to be missed. Great macro critters.
2.South Leyte - March is whale shark season. Night dive at the pier in Burgos not to be missed.
3.Malapascua - Early morning Thresher shark dive. Thresher Shark Divers have their own mooring on Monad Shoal, avoid crowds.

Those 3 could be done without dealing with Manila airport. 4 terminals ,1 runway. I haven't had a good experience there yet, especially when you need to change terminals. 3 hours is not enough to make your connecting flight if you are going through customs and changing terminals.

Anilao is easy to do out of Manila, 3 hours by car. It's great macro critters.

1 week per place will give you 5 dive days in each destination.

Bohol and Molbol are really crowded, and I avoid.

Enjoy

 

[moorish8idol]

One option to look into, though a total failure on my end, is a diving safari (organized by Thresher Shark Divers) from Donsol/Ticao to Malapascua or vice versa. They tend to run them in March/April. I was booked on this trip last year and it didn't quite work out as planned but the deal is a 7-8 day trip with diving and lodging/food included.

We started in Legazpi (direct flights from Manila daily) and got a pickup at the airport and transfer into Donsol for a morning whale shark snorkeling experience (to be honest, I don't really recommend it - although it is touted as a more ethical option to the horrendous over-tourism/feeding etc going on at Oslob, I felt that the animals in Donsol weren't really respected either with up to 30 boats with motors whizzing around them all day and people jumping on top of the WS... not cool).

Then we had a private bangka transfer over the Ticao resort where we were supposed to have 4 dives a day while there, mostly out to Manta Pass to check out mantas and whales sharks. Partly due to bad weather (and I think partly due to other reasons that weren't very good), we had several dives cancelled... the diving was pretty solid once we got out there though - whale sharks as big as a bus! Resort was nice - nothing luxurious - but it was comfortable and the food was really good and had a nice atmosphere. We were then supposed to have a private bangka transfer from Ticao out to Malapascua with 3 dives on the way. Ours was cancelled last minute due to "weather" which I am comfortable saying was a complete lie. I suspect because our safari was only 2 people (the other weeks were fully booked at around 12 people), they could make more money using the safari boat elsewhere (there were no weather issues)... so we were sent on our way via bangka/transfer/flight (direct Legazpi to Cebu) and then another transfer/bangka up to Malap. Once in Malap, we had a number of dives to choose from for our stay. The thresher dives each morning were fantastic (despite the very early start) but I was pretty bored with everything else (Gato, Kalanggaman, the Lighthouse etc) though others may enjoy them. I am not a macro person! If I could do it again, I would just do morning shark dives and then chill out on the beach, drinking cocktails and getting cheap massages the rest of the time. Malap is a very cute little place and easy to socialize with other divers on the island.

So basically I didn't promote the TSD safari really well but its a good non-flying option if it works out.. something to consider. Otherwise getting from Ticao to Malap (or vice versa) is a real pain even with the direct flight between Legazpi and Cebu.

 

[Tippytoes12]

You need to consider where you are flying into, Manila or Cebu.

If you fly into Cebu:

1.Dumageute - great variety of dive sites. Apo island not to be missed. Great macro critters.
2.South Leyte - March is whale shark season. Night dive at the pier in Burgos not to be missed.
3.Malapascua - Early morning Thresher shark dive. Thresher Shark Divers have their own mooring on Monad Shoal, avoid crowds.

Those 3 could be done without dealing with Manila airport. 4 terminals ,1 runway. I haven't had a good experience there yet, especially when you need to change terminals. 3 hours is not enough to make your connecting flight if you are going through customs and changing terminals.

Anilao is easy to do out of Manila, 3 hours by car. It's great macro critters.

1 week per place will give you 5 dive days in each destination.

Bohol and Molbol are really crowded, and I avoid.

Enjoy

If I had three weeks again in the Philippines , or when I next have this I would do just that...Dumaguete , Southern Leyte and Malapascua.

My husband and I have been lucky enough to have seen whalesharks in several countries. The very best interaction was in Southern Leyte. I would put Oslob next. We saw them snorkelling and diving in the Maldives , twice off Dhigurah Island which was great and once off a liveaboard which was chaos with dhonis and snorkelling boats dropping their non swimming guests ontop of the poor creatures. In Southern Leyte we were the only boat and the whalesharks were so relaxed , it was a beautiful experience. The rest of the diving there is fantastic too !

 

[borisphotosafari]

That's my favorite spots so far in Philippines, other then Tubbataha.

In Dumaguete, you can go to Apo island and to Oslob. The local dives had lots of small critters.

 

[RedFishBlueFish]

One option to look into, though a total failure on my end, is a diving safari (organized by Thresher Shark Divers) from Donsol/Ticao to Malapascua or vice versa. They tend to run them in March/April. I was booked on this trip last year and it didn't quite work out as planned but the deal is a 7-8 day trip with diving and lodging/food included.

We started in Legazpi (direct flights from Manila daily) and got a pickup at the airport and transfer into Donsol for a morning whale shark snorkeling experience (to be honest, I don't really recommend it - although it is touted as a more ethical option to the horrendous over-tourism/feeding etc going on at Oslob, I felt that the animals in Donsol weren't really respected either with up to 30 boats with motors whizzing around them all day and people jumping on top of the WS... not cool).

Then we had a private bangka transfer over the Ticao resort where we were supposed to have 4 dives a day while there, mostly out to Manta Pass to check out mantas and whales sharks. Partly due to bad weather (and I think partly due to other reasons that weren't very good), we had several dives cancelled... the diving was pretty solid once we got out there though - whale sharks as big as a bus! Resort was nice - nothing luxurious - but it was comfortable and the food was really good and had a nice atmosphere. We were then supposed to have a private bangka transfer from Ticao out to Malapascua with 3 dives on the way. Ours was cancelled last minute due to "weather" which I am comfortable saying was a complete lie. I suspect because our safari was only 2 people (the other weeks were fully booked at around 12 people), they could make more money using the safari boat elsewhere (there were no weather issues)... so we were sent on our way via bangka/transfer/flight (direct Legazpi to Cebu) and then another transfer/bangka up to Malap. Once in Malap, we had a number of dives to choose from for our stay. The thresher dives each morning were fantastic (despite the very early start) but I was pretty bored with everything else (Gato, Kalanggaman, the Lighthouse etc) though others may enjoy them. I am not a macro person! If I could do it again, I would just do morning shark dives and then chill out on the beach, drinking cocktails and getting cheap massages the rest of the time. Malap is a very cute little place and easy to socialize with other divers on the island.

So basically I didn't promote the TSD safari really well but its a good non-flying option if it works out.. something to consider. Otherwise getting from Ticao to Malap (or vice versa) is a real pain even with the direct flight between Legazpi and Cebu.

Was that something you booked in advance or when you got to the Philippines? How much was that dive safari?

 

[RedFishBlueFish]

That's my favorite spots so far in Philippines, other then Tubbataha.

In Dumaguete, you can go to Apo island and to Oslob. The local dives had lots of small critters.

Is Dumaguete and Southern Leyte just good for macro stuff or are there nice reefs to see as well? And in regards to Southern Leyte, are you referring specifically to Padre Burgos?