Best dives in Philippines in 10 days

[Mango's Dive Center]

Puerto Galera Yacht Club | The Philippines Sailing Club

PUERTO GALERA YACHT CLUB the Best Philippines sailing club for cruising information sailing courses where to learn to sail plus listing best beach resorts hotels Typhoon weather regatta photographs

www.pgyc.org

There is also a yacht club in Subic Bay.

Diving wise PG is far better in term of everything(variety and vis) except wreck. One dive at a time because most of the sites are within 10-15 mins away. Verde Island is highly recommended for the experience(current).
USS New York is the main attraction in Subic but it was NOT always possible to dive it(pre-Covid time) for some reasons.

Yes, the New York is located in the middle of the harbor. (Not the bay...the harbor) We have to contact "seaport" (kind of like ship-traffic-control) the morning of the dive to get permission to dive the wreck. They allocate a time that we can moor and dive on it based on ship traffic. If there is ship traffic (freighters, warships, etc) when we want to dive on it, they do not allow it. Plus the traffic churns things up a lot as the bottom composition is silt and Mount Pinatubo ash from yonder years...and the New York is not that deep. No one can ever guarantee a dive on the New York. But we try hard and if a diver is around for a few days there is a pretty good chance they will get to dive on it.

 

[Blackcrusader]

So it is fine to go and stay longer! LOL

Yeah I will do my TDI Advanced Nitrox and Deco course there and stay a couple of weeks later this year. But that is only because it is where the instructor I am doing the course with lives. I am quite familiar with the place and can get by. There is some good deep diving there I have enjoyed in the past where a lot of dive centers do not take most divers. Even in the best of times Moalboal is not worth a day trip. Unless the place really improves I won't be doing too many dive vacations there in the future.

 

[Blackcrusader]

Really? A group of us are going there in May, it's a 2020 trip that has been postponed twice until now. We don't have a choice, it's go or lose our money, but is it really that bad? Btw we're only travelling from Australia, not the other side of the world.

It is in poor condition. A friend of mine lives there. The typhoon really did a lot of damage and the repair works are going very slowly. The dive center which he will manage won't be open to close to the end of the year perhaps. I enjoy the diving there and there are dive centers that are open. But that is in Panagsama Beach area which is around 4km from the Moalboal village area. So you need a scooter to get to a pharmacy and the supermarket and some good food outlets as well. A lot of places were destroyed by the typhoon so reconstruction is going on everywhere. I often stayed at Sumised Lodge but don't know if it is open atm.

Just be prepared that it is not advanced. It's an adventure to get there from Mactan Airport and I assume you have a car or van to pick you up? It's in rough shape right now and not too many tourists are going there yet so for diving you might have some dive sites to yourself. Pescadore Island is an often requested dive site around 20 minutes from the dive shops.

 

[Davez3]

Girls in Sebang videos look awfully overweight. Kind like in some places in Mexico.

 

[Davez3]

Is theft something one has to worry about on a ferry ride in Philippines when one has to leave his suitcases unwatched to use the bathroom?

 

[Blackcrusader]

Is theft something one has to worry on a ferry ride in Philippines when he has to leave his suitcases unwatched to use the bathroom?

Would you leave your suitcases unwatched in NY? If the temptation is there things can get stolen. Your suitcase would be locked yes?
I've not had things stolen from my luggage on the ferries in Philippines when I went to the loo, but it can happen.

 

[Searcaigh]

Really? A group of us are going there in May, it's a 2020 trip that has been postponed twice until now. We don't have a choice, it's go or lose our money, but is it really that bad? Btw we're only travelling from Australia, not the other side of the world.

Yes I'm afraid so.

A lot of the access coastal roads will have to be rebuilt along the west coast of Cebu, power is still not 100% in most areas.

I have two friends who work for the coast guard there and they are helping with coral transplanting in that area.

I was looking to go there also in the coming month but changed my plans to go to Indonesia instead.

I suggest you check YouTube for Typhoon Odette to see what happened.

 

[Mike1967]

Thanks for the info lads, I've never been to the Philippines so hopefully it's still good enough to be a memorable trip. All flights and transfers are included, there's 10 of us so I assume a bus. We're staying at Magic Island Resort Moalboal and doing 10 dives with them, then a 1 Day visit to Oslob for a dive and snorkel.

 

[Mike1967]

Typhoon Odette

Holy crap, it WAS bad wasn't it? And only 3 mths ago too

 

[Searcaigh]

Thanks for the info lads, I've never been to the Philippines so hopefully it's still good enough to be a memorable trip. All flights and transfers are included, there's 10 of us so I assume a bus. We're staying at Magic Island Resort Moalboal and doing 10 dives with them, then a 1 Day visit to Oslob for a dive and snorkel.

We all look forward to a trip report.

From what I understand Oslob wasn't hit so bad.