Dive resort in Anilao

[dolesorchard]

We’re planning a trip to Anilao and looking for input on places to stay. We’ve narrowed it down to Buceo Anilao, Crystal Blue and Acacia. Any input would be appreciated!

 

[Nomad-Diver]

We stayed at Buceo Anilao and enjoyed it. We'd go back again.

 

[dirtfarmer]

+1 for Buceo. 3x guest, great operation, guides and diving.

 

[frank707]

I've been to both Crystal Blue and Buceo , CB is a little bit better rooms and restaurant , but they can get expensive if there's nobody to share a boat with .I would go there if I had a group . I've been to Buceo for the last 3 times since they use fixed prices, I find the guides in both places very good.
Frank

 

[Luko]

I will root for Acacia : great location, in the midst of the Mabini peninsula, so there is no problem either going east for fantastic night dives (Anilao pier) , west for great muck dives (Secret garden, secret bay) or even blue water dives (Beatrice, Sombrero).
Small resort and excellent food too.

 

[Luis H]

I've been to both Crystal Blue and Buceo , CB is a little bit better rooms and restaurant , but they can get expensive if there's nobody to share a boat with .I would go there if I had a group . I've been to Buceo for the last 3 times since they use fixed prices, I find the guides in both places very good.
Frank

We have narrowed it down between Crystal Blue Resort and Buceo Anilao.

We are leaning towards Crystal Blue, but I have a question.

Looking at the pictures that show up in Google maps and other places, the rooms in both places looked nice. But the rooms at Crystal Blue look a bit small (specially compared to the ones at Buceo). Is that an optical illusion of the camera or is that real?

We don’t spend much time in our rooms but it is nice to be able to spread out our gear and cloth, especially when we are packing. Are the rooms at CB good size?

Thanks for the help.

 

[Searcaigh]

I'll be back at CBR in exactly two weeks time, this will be my fifth trip there.

My last trip 2 years ago I shared a room there for the first time and it was fine. All of our dive gear was down at the dive level and cameras in the camera room so there wasn't much left to spread around to be honest.

 

[Ironborn]

We’re planning a trip to Anilao and looking for input on places to stay. We’ve narrowed it down to Buceo Anilao, Crystal Blue and Acacia. Any input would be appreciated!

I vote for Buceo Anilao. If nothing else, its fixed diving prices mean that you know how much the diving will cost. Other resorts split the costs among the divers on the boat, which can get expensive if there are few other divers.

Aside from that, I had an incredible experience with them, which I detailed in my trip report. Buceo Anilao may have been my best-ever experience with a dive operator.

 

[ReefHound]

I am at Aquaventure Reef Club at the moment leading a group of 12. I looked at CB and BA but ARC was much cheaper and seemed more amenable to groups. 4:1 FOB ratio is lowest I've ever seen. We go to the same sites as the others. We are on the meal plan and dining buffet options are limited but good. Dive op is run well by Bongski and dining by Bong. Obviously, wifi works albeit can be slow at times. Good for browsing FB, SB, and the news/email. Save the uploading of pics for later. Rooms are very small but as said above you keep most of your gear downstairs in the diving area and there are lots of storage shelves.

 

[Centrals]

The room in ARC is indeed very small but no problem with the rest of the operation.