Southern Leyte and Bohol .....or Koh Bon / Tachai Koh & Lanta in January? :)

[Andy Gaskin]

Hi all,

Have scoured threads on both areas but hoping to find somebody who has dived both and can give a comparison / recommendation.

Thailand will hit harder in terms of cost as the baht is still very strong, but if the diving is worth it then I'll happily do liveaboard then move across to Koh Lanta for Hin Daeng / Mueng. The alternative is to fly into Cebu and split the diving between Southern Leyte and Bohol.

Travelling from the UK, only get to go diving once a year so want to get it right!

Concerns:
Thailand - Overcrowded, overpriced and overhyped?
PHP - Travel time between places, too touristy in Bohol?, diving may not be as good as a liveaboard in Similans?

Dive history:
200 dives / AOW
Sipidan - loved it
Redang - very good
Peurto Galera - great macro (but done this twice now)
Anilao - world class macro
Moalboal - pretty good for a few days
Dumaguete - Very good
Red Sea - great but too cold in Jan and tricky to fly to now from the UK
Perhentian Islands - was good but now full of backpackers partying
Koh Tao (but I don't like to talk about it )

Help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Tippytoes12]

We have dived both areas in January and found that the Philippines on general is way better than Thailand in terms of quality of the coral, quantity of the fish life and had far far better macro. The diving experience is also infinitely better in the Philippines and the cost lower. This is right in the middle of whaleshark season in Southern Leyte, where the diving is absolutely wonderful, so you stand a very good chance of getting lucky there. The sites are also way less crowded in the Philippines. If you go to Balicasag you should see masses of big green sleepy turtles !

However , the food is much better in Thailand.

 

[Andy Gaskin]

We have dived both areas in January and found that the Philippines on general is way better than Thailand in terms of quality of the coral, quantity of the fish life and had far far better macro. The diving experience is also infinitely better in the Philippines and the cost lower. This is right in the middle of whaleshark season in Southern Leyte, where the diving is absolutely wonderful, so you stand a very good chance of getting lucky there. The sites are also way less crowded in the Philippines. If you go to Balicasag you should see masses of big green sleepy turtles !

However , the food is much better in Thailand.

Thanks Tippytoes!

You're right about the food for sure (my girlfriend is a Philippina though so I'm quiet about that!).

What was the diving like on Koh Bon, Tachai, Hin Daeng, Hin Mueng? Worth a trip one day?...

Flying in to Cebu, better to go to Leyte first then Bohol or the reverse?

If you have any advice on where to stay in Bohol I'd be grateful. Flying solo, like to mix with fellow divers over a cold beer or two but keen to avoid the package tourist crowd!

Andy

 

[Tippytoes12]

These sites in Thailand are beautiful, but they are very very crowded. And it is not uncommon to go to Hin Muang and Daeng and not see mantas. Obviously this is nature, but it’s a very long and very expensive trip if you don’t see mantas.

Do go to Leyte first, that way you can extend your stay if you don’t see what you want. There is a ferry direct from there to a town on the north of Bohol that I caught once. It’s really convenient. There are two options in Bohol, Anda which is very beautiful and has excellent macro. Panglao is more touristy , but is near Balicasag Island with lots of turtles. You can also do a day trip across to Apo Island , which is also lovely. Personally I preferred the diving in Panglao and the location of Anda. Doing both is you can would be best.

Hope thisi helps a bit !

 

[Andy Gaskin]

These sites in Thailand are beautiful, but they are very very crowded. And it is not uncommon to go to Hin Muang and Daeng and not see mantas. Obviously this is nature, but it’s a very long and very expensive trip if you don’t see mantas.

Do go to Leyte first, that way you can extend your stay if you don’t see what you want. There is a ferry direct from there to a town on the north of Bohol that I caught once. It’s really convenient. There are two options in Bohol, Anda which is very beautiful and has excellent macro. Panglao is more touristy , but is near Balicasag Island with lots of turtles. You can also do a day trip across to Apo Island , which is also lovely. Personally I preferred the diving in Panglao and the location of Anda. Doing both is you can would be best.

Hope thisi helps a bit !

Thanks, that's a great help. Hope I can repay the favour one day!