3 Days Diving during mid-January for a beginner

[pakman]

Thanks for the tips! I think I want to go to Dumaguete for 2 days for my Advanced Open Water certification (hopefully get to go to Apo Island), then head over to Malapascua for 2 days for a chance to see the Thresher Sharks and mantas. I have a few more questions... While waiting for the Thresher Sharks, are there other things to see??? I find that during dives when I don't see anything, I tend to focus on my breathing too much (after all, I am a beginner diver!). Are there small stuff to look at?

Not really... But there are some little stuff around like the annoying little cleaning wrasses that'll try to clean your wetsuit...

How long does it take to get to Malapascua from Dumaguete?

Malapascua to Cebu City is gonna take you at least 4 hrs depending on traffic. Then from Cebu City, the ferry will take you 3 1/2hrs... you will likely have to overnite it in Cebu as the ferry leaves early morning.

 

[rhadamantus]

pak, what is the likelihood of seeing turtles in apo island?

 

[pakman]

pak, what is the likelihood of seeing turtles in apo island?

pretty good I think... I only did a day trip and came across this young fella munching away near a mooring line...:blinking:

 

[rhadamantus]

whoa! exactly what i want to see!!!! u know how to melt a woman's heart, pak . *snickers*

@ marianne, im sure you will enjoy apo island. dont forget to share with us how it was for you afterwards. and btw, you might be there on the same dates as my dm/buddy's apo island trip!

 

[marku]

Thanks for the tips! I think I want to go to Dumaguete for 2 days for my Advanced Open Water certification (hopefully get to go to Apo Island)... I have a few more questions... Another thing... Were Dumaguete and Malapascua dive sites affected by the last typhoon? Is typhoon season over in January? I'm a little scared because I'm traveling by myself! :-(

Hi Marianne! Glad to hear that you'll be coming down. If you want to get details about the AOW course that you're planning to take just ask UWRUDI. that's him--> He's the best instructor that I know and I'm sure you'll have a great course and be a better diver if you do the AOW course with him.

A good thing about Dumaguete is that we miss out on most of the typhoons. During the last typhoon that went through (3 days ago) we had great weather. Flat seas, slight breeze, a little rain to cool things down a bit. Typhoon? What typhoon? The typhoons usually hit the Northern parts of the Philippines; Dumaguete is in the central part.

Hope to see you soon!
marku

 

[pakman]

whoa! exactly what i want to see!!!! u know how to melt a woman's heart, pak . *snickers*

now where's Larry...

Oh I think that turtle was hanging out at the end of our Coconut Point drift dive which can be a roller coaster ride when the current are running (it was pretty calm when we dove it).

 

[rhadamantus]

i believe there is a dive site called turtle point there.

and oh hey, look who ive found in scubaboard! marku! i used to work at the bio lab where he and the rest of the bio students hang around during my good, ol silliman days.

 

[Mike Veitch]

uh oh.. Pak.... watch out!

 

[marianne777]

okay, it turns out that i'll only have 3-4 days of diving this time around so i'm going to have to stick to one place. i'm thinking dumaguete... i'll be in boracay with my family before this trip. do you recommend i get my AOW in boracay before heading to dumaguete? do you recommend any schools in boracay? or should i get my AOW in dumaguete? i know boracay is not known for great diving but i'm thinking that maybe i should get my AOW there so i can do better dives in dumaguete. thoughts???

 

[pakman]

That might be a good idea... Diving isn't great on Bora but it might be a good way to utilize your time, knock off the AOW while hanging out with your family, and then hit Dumaguete and maximize your dive time. Hopefully one of the locals will recommend an instructor, as I recall some earlier posts about a few good shops there.

Now there is something you should think about before committing to Dumaguete... what do you want to see? Are you into macro stuff (little critters) or do prefer drop offs, walls, huge barrel sponges, large sea fans, turtles, barracudas, and other big stuff? If it's the small but really interesting stuff you're after, then Dumaguete is great (plus there's a number of really nice resorts there). If it's the big stuff you like, then I would almost recommend try to stay over on Apo Island (especially since you only have 3-4 days) or maybe spend two days over there and 1-2 in Dumaguete. If you prefer the small stuff and shallow dives, then spend more time in Dumaguete and sneak off to Apo Island for a day trip. Either way, I think you'll have a great time.