Need info for Divetrip to SE Asia for 2-3 month in budget

[bondasik]

Hi,
I'm planning for my divetrip to SE Asia for 2-3 month to Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Maldive & Indonesia. Starting from May-July 2005. JUST ME, MYSELF & ME GEAR,,LOL .

Philippines, for 21 days as that the visa regulation. Going to Puerto Galera & Malapascua Island. Done some research on net, seem like in Puerto Galera will go with Action diver. cause seem like they have a reasonable package price on the net for US$344 (included Single Ocupancy 7 night, 12 dive, t-shirt & 1 coctail(like that would make me piss lol). or alternate will go with VIP Diver or Big Apple. Atlantis just too expensive for my budget(even they have a good review on the forum). Maybe will stay longer in Puerto Galera if the dive is owesome.
Main reason to dive Philippines to check out the Pygmy Seahorse & Tresher Shark.
Anyone in the forum have a plant to dive in Puerto Galera during this time of my trip ??
Ups, need some info too regarding stay over in manila prior departing & back from trip. Any recomendation where I can stay during 1 days or more, if some one recomended something to check out in Manila, where the action is, club, pub, etc ?? or do i have to stay in Citystate Tower Hotel Or Lotus Garden Hotel for eazy transit to PG ?? not verry vancy, just clean & reasonable, I guess Air con is a must in Manila.
will share transport from Manila to Puerto or what ever, I'm quite flexible & easy going.

Thailand, for 7-10 days need input on liveaboard as much as possible, Where to go to get a reasonable package & good service, but not luxury.

Malaysia, for 4 week or longer, mainly to check out the Borneo, wanna find the mandarin fish & Pygmy again..lol..love the creatures..

Maldive, for 7-10 days, Probably this trip will takes out off 50% of my budget, as you all know is it verry expensive..lol..

Indonesia for rest of my trip days before going back to Sydney. Will check out Pulau Weh & Sulawesi. No Bali Please. Don't need any info for this trip as I got local friend in Sulawesi who will arrange, for dive & stay. she said only gonna cost me below A$10.00 or US$7.50 for double boat dive(included Tank & weigh). :10: . Another big reason trip to Pulau Weh is too see how's life continued after the Tsunami ( My Deepest simpathy for those victim & their family!!! ). Well if you want to post it why not, i'm quite open minded..lol.

If you guys can gave me some info regarding each region country, where to go, night life, who to dive with(Website if possible), any package dive & stay, not over price. If some of local member of each country can recomended me or dive with, it would be appreciated, as I prever treated as a local diver than overseas diver, don't need someone to carry my gear or wash my gear(Yucck, I prefer check my own gear as a responsible diver), as I'm have my own leg & arms , Don't need a luxury 5 star service just reasonable and CLEAN!!!!!!. Guys just reminder I'm travelling for 12 weeks or more, so I try to minimises my expenses as i travel. No Shopping, Diveing & Drinking is a must!!!!!,, :10: .

Diving is my first priority, service, food or even poor service(Will tell them to Bugger off with me finger) is just a plus, at the end of the days when you’re down there and see those beautiful, unique & the most magnificent creature as you can’t imagine, that the most valuable memorable that you can’t erase for the rest of your life. LOL

Cheerss

 

[scubatwinned]

Hi Mike here, I was in Malapasqua and dove with Bubble 07 which I understand is no longer there. The instructors that worked there have started their own shop, don't know the name but the place is so small it wont be hard to find them, up to you. The boat to get to Malapasqua can be an adventure in itself. These guys have taken lessons from the taxi drivers!!! Shark Point if the threshers are there is very very cool really not much else to see. Its pretty much a night dive in reverse, get to site at the crack of dawn 430-5am and it gets lighter as you dive. Can be crowded. The pigmy seahorse is neat too, bloody hard to see but they seem to stay on the same fans so the guide usually can find one. Gato isl. has a couple of great dives and the soft coral there has colours I've never seen elsewhere!! Cave is also very cool. The Donna Marilyn(if you like wrecks) is awesome. They salvaged the props and thats it. A little spooky swimming through passenger areas, the kids toys and personal items are all still there amongst the beds. I did most of my diving in Coron so don't know Puerto Galera. Its the wrong time for whale sharks when you are there but I went to Leyte at the south end to Peter dive center was quiet(not touristy), great shore dives and boat, good food, most expensive room was just under 15us a night(3 years ago). If you email Peter and let him know you are coming someone from the shop will meet you at the ferry which is great as the taxis in Phillipines are something else. What they try and charge you is at least twice what you should pay. Always set price before getting in, this is a good idea for your whole trip. Manila being the worst!! Do some hard barganing with them!! I found that if you approached the head of the line they would ask something ridiculous, go down the line without giving them a chance to haggle and you would quickly get a fair price instead of missing the fare (they see you walk away from their buddy or 2 ahead of them). Use the jeepnies, really cheap and an adventure even if you get somewhere you didn't intend its so cheap just hop on another!! Great way to get rid of change!! Fresh water for rinsing gear is a problem on Malapasqua, the islands highest spot is maybe 6' and 1/2 kilometer across, you are going later so might be more rains. Showers are partly salt water. In Thailand Ko Toa - the pinnacle, forget what time of year the whale sharks are there. I dove Ko Pi Pi also, the walls were great, leopard sharks. I was there in 92 and no big resorts were there yet. I'm jealous have a great trip

 

[Kupu]

I'm back home now after 4 1/2 months in the Philippines, loved every minute of it. Good diving and lots of fun after the sun goes down also. In Puerto Galera I dove with VIP and was happy with my choice. John-O owns the shop, laid back Aussie, good bloke as well as Roscoe and Klaus over at Action. They are basicly the same shop with different locations, mostly using the same boat. I think the rooms at Action are better. Big Apple and Atlantis are good for the post dive drinks.
Getting around is fairly hassle free, just don't take the first offer you hear. If you you want the complete package Citystate will get you to PG for a fair price but several bus companies head to Batangas Pier all day long, just tell the taxi driver you want a bus going to Batangas and make sure he turns on the meter otherwise you get charged triple price. When you get to Batangas head to the ticket counter and get a ticket to PG or even better direct to Sabang Beach. Overall the hassle factor is very low in the Philippines compared to other Asian tourist haunts. Its easy to get a visa extension if you want to stay past 21 days, most travel agencies take care of it for you, easily done in 3-5 days in PG. I stayed in Malate at Manila Manor for 900 pesos per night and it was OK, a fair amount of nightlife in the surrounding blocks. But the real fun is not in Manila, much better to head to the dive areas and enjoy a drink watching the sunset over the palms on the beach, right?!
Malapascua is a nice place also, but threshers are not always around. I did two dives out to Monad Shoals (sp?) where they hang out and saw a manta but no thresher. That site is blown to pieces from dynamite fishing so it can be boring sitting around waiting for your 30 second shark encounter as otherwise the area is only a little soft coral and circles of anemones growing on the blasted coral rubble. Go in the early AM for best chance of sharks. The wrecks and Gato Island made the diving worthwhile. Dove with Philippine Island Divers as they offered me the best price and stayed behind Ging-Ging's Restuarant for cheap lodging. Sunsplash Bar is fun.
In Thailand I did a liveaboard to the Similans on the Excalibur for about $100 US per day and would recommend it although don't know how the tsunami affected the schedule. Sounds like the Similans, Surin, Richlieau, etc didn't have much damage overall.
In Borneo the trip out to Sipidan/Mabul is worth the price if you can swing it. Go to the KK office of Borneo Divers and you can get a walk in price which will save you lots over the standard price, but best to have flexible dates in case they are booked up. Climbing Mt. Kinabalu is a good way to pass the time waiting on your dive time slot to open up. On the Malaysia mainland I recommend the Perhentian Islands for good diving.
Still waiting to get to the Maldives.
What it is, Hope it helps.

 

[bondasik]

Thanks mike & Kupu on verry helpfull info,
telling you guys the truth can't wait to get to the plan, don't wanna wait till may..lol..
I will put every info to my check list, what to do & don't..

Cheers
Ps: Mike, you're more than welcome to join me in my trip, as a dive buddy :10: , I guaranteed you we will having a balll...lol

 

[bondasik]

Malapascua is a nice place also, but threshers are not always around. I did two dives out to Monad Shoals (sp?) where they hang out and saw a manta but no thresher. That site is blown to pieces from dynamite fishing so it can be boring sitting around waiting for your 30 second shark encounter as otherwise the area is only a little soft coral and circles of anemones growing on the blasted coral rubble. Go in the early AM for best chance of sharks. The wrecks and Gato Island made the diving worthwhile. Dove with Philippine Island Divers as they offered me the best price and stayed behind Ging-Ging's Restuarant for cheap lodging. Sunsplash Bar is fun.
In Thailand I did a liveaboard to the Similans on the Excalibur for about $100 US per day and would recommend it although don't know how the tsunami affected the schedule. Sounds like the Similans, Surin, Richlieau, etc didn't have much damage overall.

hi kupu,
thank verry much for your input regarding my traveleing to Philippines.
How do u rate the dive in Puerto Galera scale 1-10 ?? I think i will go with Action diver to while I'm staying in PG. Uuhh, how do u contact the Action Diver ?? do u just walk-in rates or make a booking through the net or phone ????
I need more info regarding Malapascua, as I hear many pro & con regarding Philippine Island Diver. And what is included on the package?, how many dive, night Accmd, what included, etc?? Do u directly call him, walk in, agent or over the net?, paying cash, travelers cheque or card ? In cebu, where do u stay, how's the transfer to the Malapascua & back ?? Is there any other Dive operator on the Malapascua ??. How's Cebu city anyway ?? any recomendation on Cebu ??
In Thailand, where do u get the info regarding the Liveaboard ?? any contact or web site should I check, or just walk-in to their office?? And where do they depart from? R u depart from Phuket ??

 

[Kupu]

The diving in PG is good, I would do a search here to find more info and opinions. I did around 40 dives there and depending on the conditions and site would give a rating of 5 to 8.
Action Dive Intl phone # 63 432 873320, local 043 287 3320. website http://www.actiondivers.com. I did a walk in but I guess since you have time it would be worth booking ahead, maybe they have arrangements for transportation from Manila?
Getting to Malapascua is easy from Cebu City, take a taxi out the Cebu North bus station where there are regular buses headed to Maya where the boats to Malapascua leave from. It takes around 6 hours for the trip. There are several dive shops to chose from there, I went with Philippine Island Divers (www.phildivers.com) because at the time they had only a couple of other divers and I prefer small groups. Sea Explorers (www.sea-explorers.com) has a shop there which stayed busy. Also Exotic Divers (www.malapascua.net) and Divelink, Bubble 07 was closed and for sale when I was there. Credit cards are accepted but might have 7-8% service charge, no ATM so bring plenty of pesos. I always walk in because I prefer meeting the crew and seeing the shop before I chose. Check out the packages on offer at the web sites and see what you think.
For the Thailand liveaboard you need to book in advance to make sure you have a spot on the boat, they tend to fill up a few weeks before departure which is from Phuket. Do a web search for Thai liveaboards, I found several sites that had price and rating comparison. From there you can access the individual boat schedules.

 

[Zippsy]

You plan on diving at Pulau Weh??? Bring your own boat, compressor & tanks. Let me know how you make out getting the special permits to get into Aceh. Most non-indonesians say it can take weeks and a hell of a lot of "fees".

 

[wahlaoeh]

You plan on diving at Pulau Weh??? Bring your own boat, compressor & tanks. Let me know how you make out getting the special permits to get into Aceh. Most non-indonesians say it can take weeks and a hell of a lot of "fees".

Zippsy: Lumba Lumba (run by Ton & Marjan) on Gabang beach can help you with the blue book permit for bandah aceh. No fee involved, all you'll all need to bring 4 very > small (only 3x2cm) size color passport photo's, and some 5 copies of passport. For registration later in Sabang/Pulau Weh,(which we will take care of!) you need to bring another 2 (normal sized) passport photo's.

Unfortunately, part of their dive shop was damaged by the tsunami & they are now rebuilding...hopefully, it will be up & running soon..

http://www.lumbalumba.de/

Bondasik: I didn't make it to Pulau Weh on the 26-Dec....would love to join you if you are planning to go in June/July.

Jovin-

 

[bondasik]

Bondasik: I didn't make it to Pulau Weh on the 26-Dec....would love to join you if you are planning to go in June/July.

Jovin-

Jovin, you're more than welcome to join me, the more the merier. Either we meet up in Medan or what ever. As my dive trip plan while in indonesia were: Kalimantan, Sulawesi then Aceh, straigh to Pulau WEH (I'm gonna swim if I have too..lol.)
I'm definetly gonna go there as part of my dive trip. Or maybe I'm gonna stay there longer than I'm planned. Permit ??? is my good look good enough ??? :dazzler1:
BTW, have U dive there before ?? can you rate it for me 1-10. Heard is really beautifull dive there, nice local people(despite the Policital issues).

Bon
Ps: Jovin, private msg me I will send you me e-mail, if you're interested dive in WEH on July.

 

[Wisnu]

Bon
The_cat_keeper just back from pulau weh just before the tsunami, he still owe the report. Please check the following threads:
http://www.scubaboard.com/t81302-.html