Donsol diving & Steady Eddie Dive Center

[rjjj111]

I am thinking of using Steady Eddie Dive Center, they work out of the Vitton Hotel in Donsol.

Does anyone have an opinion about the dive operation?

I am wanting to go whale shark snorkling and diving at the manta bowl.

They have a branch locations out of Donsol and Legazpi City, main office out of Naga City.


thanks.

 

[pakman]

rjjj. Staffwise, nice people. Provides door to door service from picking you up at the airport to getting you to resort, etc. My only gripe, and in hindsight was really my fault, was not confirming the details in the package. They gave me a package price and I didn't really dig into what the per dive price was. Just make sure you clarify with them before hand on what the diving fees are and what they include as we thought the per dive prices were a bit steep.

Not that many options around there. Maybe shop around. Check with Adventure Bound as well. I think someone said Solana (Anilao) resort has setup shop in the area as well.

For the snorkeling part, I forget the numbers but you can save a bit by just booking yourself at Vitton or the other hotel. Walk over to the Whale Shark Visitor center (right next to Vitton) and arrange everything yourself. I don't have the numbers with me but if you have enough for a whole boat or can join another group, it would be far cheaper than using Eddie's prebooking rates. I think we figured out if we had done it ourselves, what we paid Eddie's for single day of snorkeling (we shared a boat with 2-4 snorkelers each day) amounted to renting out a bangka with guides on our own through the visitors center... On a positive side, it did mean less snorkers on our bangka.

manta bowl is pretty far out, so double check the dive rate including any boat/fuel fees...

 

[rjjj111]

pakman, any thing to do near donsol beside diving manta bowl and whale shark snorkling? any town there or anything? i understand there are beaches with black sand in the general area. thought of maybe going and seeing that and the volcano of course. any feedback on this?

also i am going to Sabang/Puerto Galera with Asiadivers.com, looks like you have already been there too... did you use Asiadivers.com, how are they?

want to give me any feedback about Sabang/Puerto Galera or cool things to do in the area while i am there?

thanks.

 

[Babydamulag]

ASIA DIVERS = GOOD TIME GOOD VALUE
THINGS TO DO = DIVE, DIVE, DIVE, eat a little, DIVE, DIVE......sleep a little, DIVE, DIVE


......................are you getting the idea?

 

[rjjj111]

thanks, any comments about Steady Eddie Dive Center in Donsol or things to do in that area?

 

[chip104]

For Donsol, you can visit the following places: Legaspi (the market at night is bustling), Mt. Mayon Volcano, Cagsawa Ruins, Hoyop-Hoyopan caves, Botong Waterfalls.

Asiadivers is a great op. Things to do in PG: rent scooters and go scootering, Tamaraw waterfalls, rent a bangka and have a BBQ at virgin beach, go up to the mountains and have a mango shake at Ponderosa Golf course, check out the town proper and hear mass at the church (if you're catholic) or checkout the market, hop on a jeepney to hidden paradise (beautiful rock pools), go to the reptile zoo in the mountains, check out dulugan beach or white beach...or just sit and have a beer at the point bar. Where are you staying in PG? El Galleon?

 

[rjjj111]

yes i am staying at El Galleon while in Sabang

is there a black sand beach around Donsol or Legaspi?

is Legaspi a very big town?

 

[pakman]

pakman, any thing to do near donsol beside diving manta bowl and whale shark snorkling? any town there or anything? i understand there are beaches with black sand in the general area. thought of maybe going and seeing that and the volcano of course. any feedback on this?

also i am going to Sabang/Puerto Galera with Asiadivers.com, looks like you have already been there too... did you use Asiadivers.com, how are they?

want to give me any feedback about Sabang/Puerto Galera or cool things to do in the area while i am there?

thanks.

Yes the beaches around Donsol are black sand beaches. edit: actually more brown than black now that I took a look at some pics from my trip last year (see attached photo)...

Hmm, I forget the name of one dive site. Across the bay from Donsol, it had some real beautiful coral gardens in the shallows. Mt. Mayon does look quite impressive during a clear day. We didn't get a chance to do any site seeing around Legaspi City. Near Donsol, I think they promote some firefly tour on a nearby river. Vitton has an outdoor dining and bar area. Nice place to have a dinner and wind down. Not really anything resembling a town that is walking distance around Vitton. We actually stayed at Woodland, further down the beach as the Vitton was fully booked. Walking back from Vitton via the road, I think we saw one tiny rustic shack that was the local karaoke/ drinking hole...

BTW, it looks like Vitton and Woodland Resorts have a facebook site and finally an email address. http://www.facebook.com/s.php?q=vitton&init=q&sid=8f42ae2f42927299e82e94606edfeb80#/pages/Donsol-Philippines/Vitton-and-Woodland-Beach-Resorts/43168717349?sid=8f42ae2f42927299e82e94606edfeb80&ref=s

Not sure what your schedule is, but I reckon 2-3 days in Donsol would suffice if you're primarily interested in the whale shark snorkeling. If you've got more time, it might be worth moving over to the resort(s) closer to Manta Bowl (forget the name).

Big thumbs up for Asia Divers. I primarily use them for my PG trips. Great folks, great dive shop, and great bar . Also they are finally upgrading the restaurant menu (according to latest newsletters I've been getting)! Food's always been great at El Galleon, but the menu hadn't really changed much until recently. I've even gone to Cocos Island with the Asia Diver folks.

 

[rjjj111]

pakman, have you been to the manta bowl for diving?

do you know how deep the dive is?

 

[rjjj111]

thanks for the facebook URL.

i just emailed them.....things are coming together now.

i am thinking of the whale shark snorkling, seeing the volcano and maybe the manta bowl, but i am not sure about the manta bowl thing, i will wait and see. did you do the manat bowl?

any friendly people around the bar i can hang out with?