Background
Reading trip reports can be challenging as each writer brings their unique perspective, shaped by their background and expectations, including me. For context, I was certified in the early 1990s and spent much of my early diving years in New England waters with full 7mm wetsuits and on Pacific liveaboards, with some land-based operations. I loved both diving and underwater photography, using a housed N90s in a Subal setup for both macro and wide-angle shots.After nearly a decade of diving, life led me on a different course—I married a non-diving spouse, had kids and dogs, and took a break from diving until my oldest child got certified two years ago. This trip marked my first Pacific diving experience in 10 years, with my last one being a brief visit to Anilao, Philippines, in 2016 after a business trip. My daughter is a new OW diver where this is her second post-certification dive trip and first Pacific dive trip.
For this adventure, I rekindled my love for underwater photography with a new Olympus/OM Systems EM-1 Mk3 and AOI housing.
Overview
My daughter handled the booking through Bluewater Travel, and we were thoroughly impressed with the package, pricing, and communication. We chose the budget room (details to come) and signed up for 11 days of unlimited diving. Shortly before departure, we received a comprehensive, printed itinerary, which included information about transfers, entry requirements, emergency contacts, and more — all neatly organized. The same details were also available in an offline-accessible app.I booked a Delta itinerary from Boston to Manila via Seoul (KE92/KE623), with the same routing on the return (KE624/KE91). The flights are on older 777-300ER equipment. WiFi was available for an extra charge (~$5 for messaging, ~$20 for full access on the BOS-ICN segment) on outbound, none on return, but premium economy seat upgrades were not offered (these are reportedly coming soon). Travel times to Puerto Galera (PG) were as follows: 15 hours and 30 minutes, a 2-hour layover, and a 4-hour and 15-minute flight. On the return, the timings were 4 hours and 5 minutes, a 5-hour layover, and a 13-hour and 50-minute flight.
The seatback screens offered a wide selection of movies, but after this trip, I’ve had my fill of them—sleeping on planes is no longer as easy as it used to be! The BOS-ICN leg included two meal services, one hot snack, and a self-serve galley with chips and sandwiches. Meals leaned heavily on Korean dishes. The ICN-MNL leg offered one meal service with a choice between Korean and Filipino options.
Upon arrival in Manila, I used one of the ATMs outside the arrivals area to withdraw local cash (after three attempts to find one compatible with my card). I was informed that we’d need P350 for the tuk-tuk driver the next day, as well as a terminal fee (P30) and an environmental fee (P120) upon arrival in Sebang. (A Schwabe account is good for fee-reimbursed withdrawals!)
Traveling from the U.S. to the Philippines means losing two days—one to the International Date Line and another to travel time. I departed around noon on Thursday and arrived in Manila at 11 p.m. on Friday. From the airport, I used Grab (the local Uber equivalent) to transfer to the Manila Lotus Hotel. We selected the Manila Lotus based on reviews suggesting it had slightly more updated rooms compared to the City State Tower Hotel, though we didn’t directly compare the two. For an overnight stay after ~24 hours of travel, our main requirements were simply a bed and a shower. The Manila Lotus was affordable (~$62), clean, and included a decent breakfast buffet. Conveniently, it’s located just across the street from the City State Tower Hotel. After breakfast, we wheeled our luggage down the street to the departure point.
After some internal deliberation and multiple re-deliberation, we opted for the inexpensive yet convenient Si-Kat bus/ferry transfer package to Puerto Galera. This all-in-one service handles bus tickets and ferry transfers, and passengers simply show up at the City State Tower Hotel an hour before departure. The cost was $56 round-trip per person. Schedules vary seasonally, but in our case, the bus departed at 9:30 a.m., reached Batangas port at 12 p.m. (with a snack/bathroom stop along the way), and connected to the 12:30 p.m. ferry. The Si-Kat bus also offers drinks and sandwiches for purchase. We purchased vouchers for both the inbound and return trips online via the 12Go website and exchanged printed copies for bus and ferry tickets at both ends. The Si-Kat staff will walk you into the terminal and purchase your ferry tickets. After that it’s go through security and either wait for the ferry to board or head directly to the ferry (in our case).
(On the return you have to get your ferry tickets at the ticket offices outside of the terminal. Our tuk-tuk driver took us to one ticket office and the woman at the counter took out vouchers two doors down to get our ferry tickets – make sure when you get them back that it’s for the right time. Ours were for the 11am ferry, but another woman who was departing at the same time was given 1pm tickets – she had to go back to the office to point out they had screwed up.)
The transfer to El Galleon involved a tuk-tuk—a three-wheeled motor scooter. This was the only hitch in our inbound travel. Although we were supposed to be met at the pier, a delay led us to take one of the waiting tuk-tuks instead. The main difference was cargo capacity; the pre-arranged tuk-tuk would have accommodated our luggage more easily. Instead, two divers and three large checked bags made for a very tight 15-minute ride. We started walking toward El Galleon and were eventually met by a couple of staff members who helped with the bags.
Upon arrival, Ashley greeted us with a cold drink and provided a briefing on the resort and dive operations. Exhausted from the journey, we spent the rest of the day unpacking, setting up our gear for the next day, and decompressing – next time I would pre-book myself a massage for arrival day before the diving begins.
El Galleon
We booked a stay, dive, and breakfast plan. The included breakfast menu (from memory) is no different than the a la carte breakfast menu. All breakfasts include tea, coffee or orange juice. We opted not to go full-board and instead did lunches and dinners a la carte. Prices average P400-P600 for sandwiches or entrees, with some outliers like steaks at P1300-P1550. As others have noted in past reviews, the full-board menu is a subset of the a la carte menu. A la carte had offerings of appetizers (we usually did not order appetizers), soups, salads, sandwiches, burgers, pasta, pizza, mains. A vegan menu was also available. My daughter really liked the chicken Ally wrap for lunches (and the chocolate milkshakes/frappes). I liked the chicken bacon “burger”. The chicken bacon pizza was also very good. A different daily special was on the chalkboard each day. The food, IMO, was very good, portions were good-sized, and there was lots of variety.The room was basic, but comfortable. We had a twin bed and a full bed. As previous reviewers have noted, there are no bureaus. There was a corner half-closet which was tall enough to hang shirts with a room safe underneath. In our budget room, there was very little extra floor space. There was a wicker night stand between the two beds, a room mini-fridge that was stocked with a few sodas, waters, and beer (mini-bar items are charged but were reasonable costs unlike some places). We used the fridge for sun tea and some of our chocolate we brought. My daughter’s suitcase fit under her bed, but my bed frame was lower to the ground so our additional two bags were stored in the dive shed above the storage crates. Shower had plenty of hot water.
Bonus: The owner has 3 dogs: Aiya, Scottie, and Wilma. Aiya is a frequent visitor in the outdoor dining area. She’s more interested in trying her hardest to convince you to violate the “don’t feed the dogs policy,” but she’ll occasionally stop and tolerate you giving her scratches. Helps with pet separation anxiety. Scottie is less frequently around (he’s an older boy) but will sometimes be snoozing on the sofa and is more than happy to get scratches.
