May go to Hong Kong- where to dive from there?

[LeChateauWinery]

I may go to Hong Kong in mid February on business. I might have a chance to get in some vacation time before or after the business part of the trip and would like to possibly do some diving while over in that general area. Should I dive Palau or Indonesia or the Phillipines or where? I have only about 20 dives under my belt so am not up to any highly technical dives and would be looking for a more budget oriented diving experience as opposed to luxury. Thanks, Brian.

 

[Centrals]

Philippines would be your obvious choice.
It is less than 2 hrs away and from Manila you can branch out to Anilao, Puerto Galeara or Subic Bay. While Cebu is 3.5 hr away but with more destinations to choose from eg. Bohol, Dumaguette, Malapascua, Moalboal and Southern Leyte.

For a relative "inexperience diver" Anilao is THE place. And if you are into wreck than fly into Clark and Subic Bay is just an hr away.

Palau is nice but not really suitable for "inexperience".
Indonesia is as good as Philippines but the flight is more expensive. With the exception of Bali, you probably need another domestic flight to reach your final destination.
Another suggestion will be joining a local diving trip from various dive operators in HK.

 

[Mucksavage]

I agree with Centrals. Cebu Pacific flies (cheaply) at midnight from HK and lands in Cebu at 4. With a private transfer you can be diving in Malapascua by 930. Or Moalboal. Or Bohol.

Conditions here are usually great. Many dives can be 20 to 30 metres deep so you will need AOW or at least a Deep Adventure dive but the conditions are still easy. In Malapascua you can see the best of the Philippines - big stuff like Thresher Sharks, Mantas, Devil Rays - and the best of Filipino macro - pygmy seahorses, squat lobsters, Bobtail squid etc.

Indonesia is of course great but a lot of the best places are at least 2 flights from HK via Jakarta - like Lembeh / Bunaken, Komodo etc so a lot depends on what time you have available.

 

[LeChateauWinery]

Thanks for the replies. I did a search and found Anilao. How would I get there from Hong Kong? Direct flight to Manila and then what? What is it about Anilao that makes it ideal for inexperienced divers? I have only OW certificate but I have done a couple dives at 100' depth or so- maybe 33 meters with no problems. I am not really all that interested in wreck diving. Is the diving right around Cebu more advanced than at Anilao? If so in what regard? Any particular outfits you would recommend for Anilao diving? Would flights from Hong Kong to Cebu typically be more expensive than to Manila? The added cost of getting from Manila to Anilao might make it cheaper to just dive out of Cebu City area?

 

[Centrals]

Fly to Manila and then.......cheap or expensive ways to Anilao. Enough infomation in this forum.
Anilao is relatively protected from strong current and not too deep.
Some of the dive sites off Cebu(Visayas region) are really "open water" with occasional strong current.
The places that I had mentioned are miles away from Cebu city. Some of them require ferry as well as road transport.
Flight to Cebu City by Cebu Pacific Airway is not that expensive than to Manila by the same carrier.

If you want cheap and cheerful than you should consider Moalboal. Public bus from the Southern Bus station(Cebu City) is cheap, frequent and SAFE. Another motor tricycle ride to the "beach" is peanut. You can dive with Nelson(Ocean Safari Philippines) for P800.00(own equipment) per dive!!
The huge school of sardines is the main attraction. How long they will stay there is anyone guess. It is mainly wall dive in the area and I find it monotonous after a while.

 

[Rhone Man]

World is your oyster from HK. I come here twice a year and I always try to get in a side trip or two for some diving. Philippines is very close, as is Thailand. Slightly further afield you also have some great options for Malaysia, Indonesia and Okinawa.

The worst problem with HK is that there are too many great options, and too many easy flying options connecting them...!

 

[LeChateauWinery]

Thanks so much for the help. A complicating issue is that I would be traveling by myself. So far all of the resorts I have looked at cost immensely more if travelling as a single. Any recommendations on how to dive cheaply in this area as a lone traveller (mainly talking about accomodation)? Any particular outfits you would recommend for Anilao diving? Nelson in Moalboal looks attractive price wise. I would probably only get in 3 days of diving so I am guessing I would not get bored with the wall diving there that soon.

 

[DevonDiver]

Cheapest diving, including accommodation/travel costs, for HK divers visiting the Philippines is probably Subic Bay. Fly to Clark Airport, grab a 45 minute bus (US$3-4) to Olongapo and then trike to resort. There are also several tourist mini-buses per week (~US$20)... or you can hire a taxi (~US$100). Once there, you can get a fan room for 700php (approx US$15) a night. Air-con for 1000php (~US$20) at a beach resort.

Dives are mostly wrecks, but there are some nice reefs also. Visibility isn't as good as Anilao, but there is no current and it's a very sheltered dive location.

More info on diving in Subic Bay

 

[LeChateauWinery]

[h=1]Pescador Island[/h]
I saw this info on the website of a place to stay in Moalboal (http://www.pacificolodge.com/pescador_island.php) and found it to be rather alarming. Does this overfishing and rock damage scenario apply to the entire Moalboal area or just right around Pescador Island?

"Pescador Island is a small limestone island in the Tañon Strait, 3km of the western coast of Cebu Island in the Philippines. It is under the jurisdiction of the municipality of Moalboal, Cebu. The marine habitat around the island is a marine reserve, protected by the Moalboal Municipal Water User's Fee System for 2006 in accordance with Resolution No. 044-2006.
However it is just a marine park by name as the local fisherman spear fish exhaustively the entire reef. Experienced divers notice the lack of large fish compared to other similar areas such as the nearby Apo Island. Local dive operators concede that the economic benefit to Moalboal derived from the dive tourism is far greater than the traditional fisherman's and the current abuse of the area is resulting in a decline of the islands attraction to scuba divers. Fisherman also have been using rocks as anchors destroying coral and continually entangle the delicate coral with their nylon fishing lines."

I will look into Subic Bay some more but I really am not that interested in wreck diving, more interested in seeing healthy populations of colorful fish both large and small as well as turtles, sharks, rays etc along with healthy and colorful coral.

 

[Centrals]

Three days is all you need for Moalboal.
See for yourself if the comment on Pacific Lodge is accurate or not. I don't buy it.
That school of sardines is attracting large fish eg. thrasher shark and tuna!!
BTW, no one will normally drop anchor along a deep wall.
There are several trip reports on Moalboal in Philippines section. Look it up.
You can fly to Clark from HK but the return flight is 07:15 am so you cannot really dive the day before!! Well unless you would like to sample the nite life of Angeles.
As for Anilao, try Pier Uno or Aquaventure.