A comprehensive itinerary to the best+accessible+affordable places in the Coral Triangle

[Grateful head]

Thanks I will research this as the Philippines is on my short list of dive destinations

 

[Centrals]

Thanks I will research this as the Philippines is on my short list of dive destinations

Getting there is half the fun and the other half could be nightmare!
Indonesia has better diving but getting there is not that easy from USA especially for you in mid west. You would have to make a few connections to get there.
Assuming you have managed to find an acceptable route(time is not on your side), Padang Bai in Bali is very good. Make sure you pick the right time(Jul-Oct) for Mola Mola. Top side attraction in Bali is appealing to many divers.
Koh Lanta(through Phuket) is another option if LoB's schedule is not flexible enough.

 

[Grateful head]

Getting there is half the fun and the other half could be nightmare!
Indonesia has better diving but getting there is not that easy from USA especially for you in mid west. You would have to make a few connections to get there.
Assuming you have managed to find an acceptable route(time is not on your side), Padang Bai in Bali is very good. Make sure you pick the right time(Jul-Oct) for Mola Mola. Top side attraction in Bali is appealing to many divers.
Koh Lanta(through Phuket) is another option if LoB's schedule is not flexible enough.

I just played around with airfare to Bali and it’s extremely expensive, $4500 U.S.

 

[Centrals]

I just played around with airfare to Bali and it’s extremely expensive, $4500 U.S.

Business class?

Singapore Airways from LAX to DPS
05th Sept - 12 Sept
Return fare is US$1,137.17

LAX to MNL by PAL is US$1,324.07 over the same period.

Keep playing with different airlines.

Good luck.

 

[Grateful head]

I will, thanks for the info.

 

[dumpsterpurrs]

Are any parts of this itinerary feasible for two middle aged adults, leaving from the Midwest U.S. and having only a traditional American vacation time allotted (10 days or so)?

Certainly the Philippines, Similan, and Borneo, maybe a little bit of Indonesia if you're lucky with connections. As Centrals has given you great advice for the other two, here's Borneo and Indo:

- Borneo: connection via SIN to KCH or BKI, or if you don't mind 2 stops, then also KUL. Then work out your schedule based on whichever stops you want to add. Borneo is very well connected. My friend and her husband are flying over to travel Borneo with me next month, her for 3 weeks and him for 2. The 10 days with her are all diving, then we'll do 2 weeks of dry traveling around Sabah and Sarawak. I'll probably update sporadically on this topic I'm taking a year off life to travel and dive

- Indo: connections via DPS give you Komodo, Alor, and Bali itself, and also via SIN to MDC, then 10 days can be split between Lembeh and Bangka island. Or via KUL to Banda Aceh for Pulau Weh, but that's quite a bit more involved. Traveling in Indonesia takes a lot of time even for me from within Southeast Asia, unfortunately.

 

[natal_nihilist]

For those curious about the Anilao-PG transport, a private boat now costs 20k php. Private van (2k) plus water taxi (10k) is a bit cheaper and takes ~an hour longer. Private van to Anilao from Manila airport is 6k. Pricey!

Yeah did one trip to Puerto Galera and worked out it was cheaper to fly somewhere like Coron than a return trip via road. Basically works out the same price for me to buy a car second hand and I'll be no worse off if I'm diving at least once a month (plus I don't have to walk to the office during the rainy season or wait over an hour for a Grab). Different situation if you're a tourist but still a ripoff

 

[natal_nihilist]

Centrals, his ferry plan is for onward travel FROM Anilao TO Puerto Galera. Compare the other numbered points; the travel plan is always for getting to the next spot.

Others have posted on this board that Moalboal is still not recovered from Typhoon Odette/Rai in December. Best to research current conditions before heading there. South Leyte, though also hit, is in good enough shape to welcome divers (again, according to posts here).

Just got back from Moalboal. The town is still shot but most places are up and running again and there was a fairly decent crowd while I was there. The shallow reefs were absolutely decimated but the diving was still decent. I had a meeting with a client in Cebu City on Friday so just popped in for the weekend, if I was flying from the other side of the world maybe I would be a little more disappointed. That being said after two back to back disasters now more than ever is actually when a place like that needs your tourist dollars. It's an awful catch 22.

 

[dumpsterpurrs]

Just got back from Moalboal. The town is still shot but most places are up and running again and there was a fairly decent crowd while I was there. The shallow reefs were absolutely decimated but the diving was still decent. I had a meeting with a client in Cebu City on Friday so just popped in for the weekend, if I was flying from the other side of the world maybe I would be a little more disappointed. That being said after two back to back disasters now more than ever is actually when a place like that needs your tourist dollars. It's an awful catch 22.

Was there still the sardine run? I'm going to spend 5 days in Panglao first for tech courses, then fun diving in either Moalboal or Dauin+Siquijor. I heard Dauin was recently hit by another typhoon, so I'm not sure which one would be worse. SB suggested I can do tech diving in Moalboal as there are many deep sites, and maybe those would be less decimated than the shallow reef. Is 3.5 days of diving too much for Moalboal right now? Should I do 2.5 days in Moalboal and spend an extra day in Panglao?

 

[natal_nihilist]

Was there still the sardine run? I'm going to spend 5 days in Panglao first for tech courses, then fun diving in either Moalboal or Dauin+Siquijor. I heard Dauin was recently hit by another typhoon, so I'm not sure which one would be worse. SB suggested I can do tech diving in Moalboal as there are many deep sites, and maybe those would be less decimated than the shallow reef. Is 3.5 days of diving too much for Moalboal right now? Should I do 2.5 days in Moalboal and spend an extra day in Panglao?

Sardine run is there in full force. 3.5 days definitely isn't too much IMHO, I did Pescador Island twice (once east-west and once south-north) and the sardine run twice (since its the house reef) plus Tongo and Talisay walls in the two days I was there and they were different each time. That being said I'm so new to all of this so I can't speak to whether or not you should do an extra day at Panglao.

I was diving between 15m and 25m most of the weekend, once you're over the edge the reefs are fine. Think the bottom was between 50m and 100m, couldn't even see it in some places.