Southern Leyte Diving

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when we were staying with Sogod Bay Scuba Resort, we also had a couple who transferred from Southern Leyte Divers. We didnt find out why though.
 
we were eaten alive, (I slept in an inch of deet) but still had 1000, bites by the end of the night, and after 4 nights I had had it, and was marked from head to toe. The people who stayed at the resorts had no bites.... I'm thinking the mattress had bed bugs as well.

I feel so sorry for you that you had this bad experience.

We often camp out on a beach and live far better than what you describe (nice tent, bbq, shower, no bugs).

Why did you choose to stay there in the first place??? Was it price or by referral?

WWD
 
... I'm thinking the mattress had bed bugs as well. ...
oh man, I hate bedbugs. I stayed at Travelers Inn Makati (manila) my first 2 nights recently and got 4 bites in a row on my arm (left 2nd morning for a better place). That was almost 3 weeks ago and they're just now finally healing.

Agreed the rest of your desc was horrible, that bedbug part makes me want to scratch just thinking about it.

:errrr:
 
You are right to wonder why we stayed there for 4 nights, we were unfortunately with a group of friends (who had better accomodations, some of their rooms were very nice) and were hoping it would get better. It was cheap, so I should have known.

In Southern Leyte we did get to swim (snorkel) with the whale share, we saw 3 of them. It was truly beautiful, underwater. That's the real reason we went there, so to bail, due to bugs, wasn't an option.

Had I known it was rustic, I would have been better prepared, I just heard the word resort and believed it as a resort. Live and learn. Leyte is still a great dive spot, just not necessarily Gunters.
 
Gunters place has a bit of a beach in front of it. It seems to be a nice enough place with a pleasant grounds, and the cottages looked comfortable to me. Bummer the bad experience for the above poster.

Perhaps they were overbooked and didn't handle it well - but it would be good to hear the other side of the story. There is a mangrove nursery between the dive shop and the mainland so it is likely that mosquitoes will be bad if there were no screens on the windows at the place that you stayed by the highway.

I know that Gunter and his wife put a lot of work and years into pioneering the diving in Southern Leyte and limasawa, and hate to see his operation get slammed on a highly read forum without any rebuttal.

Has anyone else dove from Gunters that would care to share their experience?

regards

dp
 
Hi guys
I live in Southern Leyte and have met many divers over the years here. I will not comment on individual dive shops' accommodation, because firstly I have not been inside the rooms, and also I have met both Peter and Gunther in the past. They are not my friends, just acquaintances.
The divers I have met in Maasin City and Padre Burgos usually say the same as is stated above; the accommodation is very basic. For this reason, many of them stay in a different location than that of where they are diving.
The area here has changed somewhat since this article was written, with many more choices for travellers. When I came here in 2006, there was not one 'real' hotel in Southern Leyte. Now I can count five between Maasin City and Padre Burgos, all bar the one inside the City of Maasin have swimming pools. I am not sure of the exact prices, but I guess between $40 and $100 per night. For those on a tighter budget, pensione houses are a option $15 for basic but clean room with aircon.
Most divers I meet stay in Maasin City, because it has several new restaurants, bars, pizza joints, and a new Mall. The fare to say Souuthern Leyte Divers from the city is about 25pesos (60c) and I think it takes about 45mins.

Ang Dagat
 
I am writing this from Peter's Dive Resort.

I have been here two days, staying in a deluxe cottage. The cost is p1600 per night. In comparison to other resorts in the Philippines, I would rate this room quite highly. The room is big, with two single beds, air-con and a large ceiling fan. It is very clean. There is a large, undercover, benched seating area outside the room. The room is solidly built, with no gaps to let in insects / geckos etc. Inside the room is ample storage space, a fridge, hot and cold drinking water, and free tea and coffee. There is a TV with satellite channels. The bathroom is again large, with a hot water shower. The room faces the sea. A friend I made here is staying in a standard room, which I would have been quite happy with, were one available.

The resort has a large swimming pool, bar and restaurant (very reasonable), and a large dive shop area boasting camera tables, three large wash tanks and ample storage and hanging space. There is also a separate shower and toilet (CR). There is a pub just up the road (The Moose and Squirrel) which serves good, cheap food, and cold beers.

The diving seems to be very organised, run by Jun (DM) and Loni (Instructor) who have worked here for many years. There are two large banka boats, that can cope with large groups of divers. In the last two days, both whaleshark watching trips have been succesful, seeing on average four or five sharks during the day. I would say the diving so far has been good, with MUCH better visibilty than in other parts of the country.

If there is anything else you want to know, just ask and I will try to find out for you.
 
Has anyone else dove from Gunters that would care to share their experience?

regards

dp
I was talking to sombody tonight who stayed there recently. He said it was basic but spotless clean and pretty good value considering you are on site. I forgot to ask how much. He said the diving was fantastic also. The bar is very clean with good service, I know from experience.
I have heard simalar stories about Peters DR. Never heard a bad word regarding cleanliness.
 
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