Malaysia, Philippines or Indonesia for best diving in november?

[snowfish]

Hi to all fellow divers
Hope some of you could help!
We will de travelling Vietnam in November and visiting friends in Boracay ,Philippines
early december.
In between, we would like to spent 1 week of extraordinary diving.
Considering the time of year, the itinerary,the fact that we have never dove Asia
(mainly carribean) what would be your recommendation.
We would prefer a nice dive resort , or liveaboard as a second choice
We would like to find big fish , that we don't normally find in the Caribbean
Our all time dream :whale sharks, mantas.
I read that november is not the best time to find whale sharks in Donsol ?
Any advice is welcomed !

 

[gravity]

Mantas are not protected in the PI and there are not many places to reliably see them. Apart from congregations certain times of year, seeing whale sharks are almost always more luck than anything else. I don't know of any congregations that time of year in Asia.
The thing that sets the Coral Triangle apart from the Caribbean is macro more so than big animals. The diversity will be unlike anything you have seen before. Think about bringing a camera and doing some macro diving--you may be surprised by how satisfying it is.
Komodo Islands and Raja Ampat both have mantas and amazing diversity. I think that will be around the end of the season in Komodo and the beginning of the season in Raja Ampat, so depending on when in december one or the other might not be an option.
Since you are going to be in Boracay and only have one week, sticking to the PI is probably a good idea. Anilao and Dauin are both convenient from Manila and have great diving. I haven't dove Boracay, but it might be worth looking into. Some people seem to say it is great for diving, but many also say it isn't very good--so I don't know what to think.
There are so many options encompassed by the PI and Indonesia that I hesitate to give you too many specifics. There are literally hundreds of places you could go that would be terrific. If you get it narrowed down to a handful of possibilities you will get lots of feedback about what people do and don't like about each one.

 

[snowfish]

Thank you,
I think it would make sense to choose a destination taking in account the facility to get to from Vietnam and then to Boracay , also the weather in November.
We are looking at Lembeh , Manado or Mabul/ Sipadan
Any additionnal recommendations ?

 

[Quero]

snowfish, the Mabul/Sipadan area and Manado/Lembeh are going to be experiencing their rainy seasons at that time of year, though it is possible to dive year round. Between Manado and Sipadan, I'd go for Manado myself (and in fact am on my way to Lembeh in less than a week). But in neither place are you likely to see mantas or whale sharks. One option that is possible starting from Vietnam is Thailand's Andaman coast. November/December are early in the peak season here, and liveaboards will be going out to Thailand's top dive sites in the Similans and Surins.

 

[snowfish]

thank you Quero,
This is the information we are looking for ,
We are from Canada , never dove in Asia . Our trip is a mixture of trekking in Vietnam , diving, and visiting friends in Boracay Philippines , total 5-6 weeks
The weather is a big factor , beeing Canadian we don't want it to hot !!! , a little rain is fine if it doesn't last all day !

We will not travel around the world to dive during rainy season , we want everything at it's best , if possible...
Any other place in Southeast Asia aside Similans Surins offering good diving /weather conditions Mid November ?
Thk

 

[Hank49]

Contrary to popular belief, there is good diving on and around Boracay. You're within a few days of a lot of small islands and there are a few boats out of Boracay that do these. Fisheye Divers has an 80 foot boat that's very nice. Coron shipwrecks are near, Apo Reef, Maniguin, Panagatan...the list goes on. Not to mention the reliable Yapak 2...always good, right off Boracay.

 

[Quero]

thank you Quero,
This is the information we are looking for ,

You are more than welcome. Feel free to PM me for more detailed information.

We are from Canada , never dove in Asia . Our trip is a mixture of trekking in Vietnam , diving, and visiting friends in Boracay Philippines , total 5-6 weeks
The weather is a big factor , beeing Canadian we don't want it to hot !!! , a little rain is fine if it doesn't last all day !

It is going to be hot. No getting away from it. The best way to beat the heat is to be on a boat!

We will not travel around the world to dive during rainy season , we want everything at it's best , if possible...
Any other place in Southeast Asia aside Similans Surins offering good diving /weather conditions Mid November ?
Thk

I assume you mean besides the Philippines? Of course there are some other places, but they are not as convenient to get to. You could dive the Tarutao Marine Park in the far south of Thailand, for example, from the island of Koh Lipe, or you could get yourself to Pulau Weh in Indonesia. Both of these places are relatively unspoiled as dive destinations, but again, going to either of them would require an adventurous spirit and a fair amount of time for travel by air, road, and water before you even reach the islands.

 

[snowfish]

What about diving in the Philippines in mid November any thoughts ? anyone ?
It may be our best option afterall !

 

[Hank49]

There is the chance of a late season typhoon in Nov. But this is the start of the 'peak" season for resorts there. I had some great dives that time of year. I specifically remember 100 plus foot vis in Oct-Nov off Boracay.

 

[CODMAN]

Snow, I definetly think diving the PIs will be a good idea since you are already in the country to get to your friends, and there are many many areas with great diving there!

If you want very varied diving, Puerto galera is the place to be. It has everything (macro, pelagics, drift, wreck, deep, muck, etc...), but is a specialist in nothing! Lots of variety. If you want specifically certain things, there are specific areas to visit.

Anilao, dumaguete, apo island for great macro.
Bohol, cabilao for more pelagics,
Donsol, southern leyte for whale sharks (only in season though, which is not your cas I believe)
Subic, Coron for wrecks
Apo reef for pelagics and other more typical reef critters
Malapascua, a specific diving destination to see Thresher sharks as well as manta rays, along with other typical reef life.

You could easily pic 1 or 2 destinations from this list and spend 1 or 2 weeks there diving, before heading to Boracay.

As said above, the variety of marine life is mind boggling when compared to the Caribean. You will love it. And the country and people are great.

You can go to other countries (you got some good suggestions above), but that will eat into your travel time. When I went I spent 5 weeks in Puerto Galera, dove every day, and didn,t get bored at all!

If you want more specific info on the Philippines, I suggest you post your questions in the Philippine paradise divers section. There are tons of very knowledgeable and helpfull people in that section who will answer all your questions about diving/ visiting the Philippines!

Hope this helps!

What about diving in the Philippines in mid November any thoughts ? anyone ?
It may be our best option afterall !