Where to go ...?

[Babydamulag]

BEST DIVING IN VISAYAS!!! I love it....quotes like "must-see, best diving" makes me all warm inside.

 

[rhadamantus]

are u back in pinas, @babyd? were you known to be off somewhere (e.g. abroad) and supposedly crushing something... or was it all a joke?

 

[greatwolf]

palawan, unless u go to the islands owned by really luxurious resorts, is a pretty laid back province. everything is cheap there and everything is basic (e.g. electricity only runs 6 hours every day, no hot showers, etc. etc.) it would be awesome! it would be a very nice backpacking adventure if you guys are up for it. (p.s. do not miss the things i have mentioned about palawan in my previous entry- they are absolute must!)

and with the FX rate, you will definitely find everything affordable.

places to go to in visayas for secluded hideaways would include (top of my head) camotes island in cebu, sumilon island, siquijor island. malapascua and bantayan islands in cebu might be out of the way but have been reviewed to be absolutely must-see (i have been to bantayan when i was a kid, i still have to visit malapascua).

you can click these links for a start: http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/bantayan.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/elnido.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/hondabay.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/malapascua.html

Damn...you're a wealth of knowledge...I'm thinking of backpacking/diving for a week around the Visayas in January. I'll check the places you mentioned. I've always wanted to go to Siquijor...

 

[shugar]

wow, bombarie that looks like a great itinerary and that from a dutchman whahaha.
Good to know I can get get all the info I need from you alone it seems...

On a serious note , the trip you mentioned looks really great however the vacation will will not only excist of diving alone.(have to consider the rest of the party whahaha) that`s why iIwould like to pick two or maybe three spots to from where we can go diving and do other stuff like exploring nature , hiking, sailing and of course relaxing and enjoying some drinks and great food. You mentioned quite some places so I will look them up and see what fits the best. manu thanks for the info on the whalesharks, I also found a park above Manilla where it is possible to swim and snorkel with the magnificent creatures..

the more I read it seems that visayas is the best area to go to so I guess I will put that in the itinerary, probably it is very hard to combine with palawan though. but as rhadamantus said Palawan is great to go for a week or so and there are loads of thgings to do. So maybe Palawan is for the relaxing and nature stuff and visayas for the diving...? I have to see if teh transfer can be done.
Do you guys know any gorgeous and affordable secluded, hideaways on ybot visayas and palawan? Not for the entire three to four weeks but a day of 5 of true luxury would be great...

thanks again for the info, I will check it all out and as soon as the plans get set I will let you know.

Cheers

Rolf

luxury + diving + nature? try Dos Palmas in Palawan - it's a resort built on its very own island in honda bay... http://www.dospalmas.com.ph/

the owner is also a dive master (or instructor now) so there's a dive shop there too... he knows all the best spots and there is rumor of whalesharks there too but ivan (owner) is keeping that a secret to keep the crowds away...

a couple of friends of mine got to stay there (on the water cottages) and said it was absolutely divine... and the food was excellent

Jag

 

[Capi]

palawan, unless u go to the islands owned by really luxurious resorts, is a pretty laid back province. everything is cheap there and everything is basic (e.g. electricity only runs 6 hours every day, no hot showers, etc. etc.) it would be awesome! it would be a very nice backpacking adventure if you guys are up for it. (p.s. do not miss the things i have mentioned about palawan in my previous entry- they are absolute must!)

and with the FX rate, you will definitely find everything affordable.

places to go to in visayas for secluded hideaways would include (top of my head) camotes island in cebu, sumilon island, siquijor island. malapascua and bantayan islands in cebu might be out of the way but have been reviewed to be absolutely must-see (i have been to bantayan when i was a kid, i still have to visit malapascua).

you can click these links for a start: http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/bantayan.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/elnido.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/hondabay.html
http://www.philippinecountry.com/philippine_beach/malapascua.html

Wow you do have great info.. I will check all the links out and see what I can learn..
It is always so hard if there are to many choices...

Thanks again and I will let you know what I find

 

[Bombarie]

Hey Rolf,

Only dove during my trips around the Visayas (with one exception, see below) so can't comment on the area's other non-submerged attractions. If you travel companions are happy to relax on the beach, places like Alona Beach (hehe), Dauin (the gateway to Apo Island just south of Dumaguette) and Siqijor (Coco Loco Resort in the South, the places north have wider beaches but less white, more like Zandvoort...without the crowds of course) would suit them well whilst you go out diving (nice enough beaches to chill out). Am a single standalone unit hardly qualified on the subject, but would expect significant marital stress if you leave your significant other too long alone in a place like Moalboal - the beach blew away in a 1980s typhoon and all that's left is rocky shore, not very appealing. There is a nice beach a few miles away, though. Malapascua is your tropical "bounty island" come true but totally devoid of any non-diving activity. Of course, it could be good fun for your companions to join you on the divetrips, the dive bankas are usually spacious enough and make a great platform for sunbathing and swimming whilst you are diving.

If you need to strike a balance, consider (learning to) surf the waves in Surigao, an island at the eastern end of the Philippines on the Northeast tip of Mindanao. The town where it happens is General Luna. If you start swimming there, the next step is Acapulco in Mexico There's very big surf there, and on the deeper reefs its safe to learn the trade (and if you are a pro, there is some various serious surf out there - a spot called Cloud Nine is said to be similar to Hawai's Pipeline). Nothing happens in this town, but the surfing is very popular. Met a local schoolteacher who told me the local kids would skip classes to go surfing, its fantastic to see these young boys (10, 12 years old may be?) surf really challenging waves, "enter the tube" and all. You get there by taking the night ferry from Cebu City to Surigao on Mindanao, and then a smaller ferry from Surigao to the main town on Siargao, forgot the name. Or fly directly from Cebu Airport. To learn to surf always was a bit of dream for me, definitely haven't mastered it but the few rides on 2m tall waves, just too cool. And its a great workout, paddling all day in the ocean. You could combine it with a stay at Rambo's (see http://www.pansukian.com/) which would be enough luxury to keep you going for the rest of your trip!

Ah the Philippines, if only the boss would let me go again (or just fire me ).

Let me know if you have further questions, happy travel planning! Arie

 

[rhadamantus]

speaking of siargao, there is another island n mindanao (i have never been there but its on the top ten of my list) named camiguin island. its known for the lanzones and the seven volcanoes(!) and you can have waterfalls , hot springs, white sand beaches, and scuba diving as a bonus. this can be reached either from the southern tip of Bohol or from Cebu Airport. While you are in the area, Cagayan de oro (the jump off to Camiguin if you are coming from Manila) is known for white water rafting .

getting around the country, especially to the less-congested tourist areas can be tiring and frustrating so its a good idea you limit your trip to fewer locations. bohol-negros-cebu-(and maybe leyte) trip rocks already but if theres a way you can fit palawan in your schedule, it would be absolutely awesome!

and oh, you can always come back for the rest.

 

[Capi]

Tjeeze guys,

All the info makes it harder and harder to make a choice..
I think I have to agree on the fact that I should not try to put to many things in the travelplan.... better come back indeed

So after rethinking and reviewing a lot of sites I will slightly change the itinerary plans.
I will try to find two spots to stay where there are a lot of things to do and see in the surrounding area. This will mean that I will book nice hotels and from there do my diving and trips, even overnight trips. This will mean that we can travel light..haha doing tehse trips.
For sure one of the spots will be in the Visayas. To finish the vacation I will have to find a nice hideaway, the bounty kind of an island to bath in luxury and do nothing but relaxing, sunbathing, eating, drinking and of course a liitle bit of diving.
My best guess is that the second spot to go to is the Visayas. A lot of things in the neighbourhood good diving, nice resorts inlcuding that hideaway for the last 3/4 days.
The first region to stay I am not sure of. One thing that I read of Palawan is that Malaria is a factor. If I can I try to avoid these areas, I hate to take the pills against it... So my guess is that Palawan will not be included in this trip... annoying because it looks really really great! (hoping for less agressive drugs against)

So lets see if you guys can help and maybe agree on the best options...haha
First region, about 8 days, where to stay?
Second region Visayas(Cebu/Bohol??), about 10 days, what is the best spot??
Last chapter, hideaway, about 4 days, close to the second region....where to stay?

pfew, what a hard task it is, but luckily it is no punishment to look and read all the info on websites and of course see all the gorgeous pictures...

Next timeI will put down some options I filtered from all the info you guys already gave me.. your comments will be welcome...

Ow btw one more thing. I have read on several hotel sites that it would be wise to avoid Manilla as an incoming airport because of the bustravel to the regional airport and delays. From Holland I can easily fly over kuala Lumpur or singapore. Any comments on this ??

Thanks again guys..

 

[Bombarie]

Well here it goes then, taking into account your "three acts":

1. First Act - do the Palawan thing. Fly into Manila or Cebu City (on the flights: the carbon footprint is minimized if you fly via Hong Kong on Cathay from Amsterdam. If you fly via KL or Singapore you descend too much south and need to go back up North) and get yourself to Puerto Princessa (see Cebu Pacific website for tickets) and take it from there. From Manila it's possible to fly on a charter plane to El Nido directly, or so I understand from my scuba diving Filipino colleague here, so guess it depends where you want to go on Palawan what works best. (Need to look into Palawan myself a bit too - looks like there's great diving from the deep south to high North, another trip begging to be done!)

EDIT: Noticed too late that you want to skip Palawan because of the malaria. That would also rule out Siargao. Check wether you need the industrial strength Lariam or wether the Chloroquine / Paludrine combo suffices, I had no troubles with the latter combo (whilst Larium caused very funny dreams, but that may have been due to the whiskey we swalled them down with, too). And in any event, think they only recommend to take the drugs if you stay more than seven days or so, so technically you can get away with it.

2. Second Act - fly into Cebu and take the ferry to Tagbiliran. Get to Alona Beach (if you make the connections work, this is a matter of four hours from touching down on Cebu airport). If you want to go wild, stay at the Alona Palms (http://www.alonapalmbeach.com/english/welcome_new.htm), otherwise I can recommend the Alona Tropical. Dive Balicasag Island from Alona for as long you want. If you get bored, spent half a day travelling to move to Cabilao and finish act two there. Do check that there's entertainment for your companions, those Chocolate Hills keep them busy for one day at max and not sure what else's there's to be done topside.

3. Third Act - the reclusion. Various options:

A. Take ferry from Tagbiliran to Sigijor or Larena both on Siquijor (maybe 60 minutes sail, probably less). Check in at the Coco Grove resort in the southern part of the Island or something else (but it should be south - best beaches). Chill out, dont bother with the diving (niet de moeite waard).

B. Take ferry from Tagbiliran to Dumaguette, take cab or bus to Dauin, chill out in the high quality dive resorts El Dorado or Atlantis. May be dive Apo Isl. if you can't resist.

C. Take ferry from Tagbiliran back to Cebu. Take bus to Maya, five hours to the North, take the banka to Malapascua. Relax on the beaches (and may be try those tresher sharks and manta's on Monad Shoal a try, you'll leave very early in the am nobody notices anyway )

Options A, B and C all put you back in Cebu City within a half day of travel. Sigijor is best if you can only stand so much beach; its a beautiful island u can rent a motorbike a drive around, go looking for the wakka wakka's, there's also waterfalls if you manage to find them. Its big enough island, whith secluded bays in the North. Option B really is just an excuse for some more diving (on Apo - GOOD diving). Option C is adviseable only if your companions REALLY love beaches and haven't had enough of them yet. You will have the option of the early am dives, but they will be stuck in paradise. Sounds weird perhaps, but it can happen, I have seen people OD on tropical white beaches, so take account of that.

If it works with the time and you like the surfing, you could also consider option (D): move back from Tagbiliran to Cebu and fly to Siargao. The Pangsasomething resort I mentioned in previous post is very high quality - the prime minister has spent time there. Definitely a place you'll remember for a long long time, just a bit of a hassle to get there.

Anyway hope this is somewhat helpful. My apologies for misspelling some of the placenames. Let me know if you have any further q's. Groetjes, Arie.

 

[Diver Dennis]

luxury + diving + nature? try Dos Palmas in Palawan - it's a resort built on its very own island in honda bay... http://www.dospalmas.com.ph/

the owner is also a dive master (or instructor now) so there's a dive shop there too... he knows all the best spots and there is rumor of whalesharks there too but ivan (owner) is keeping that a secret to keep the crowds away...

a couple of friends of mine got to stay there (on the water cottages) and said it was absolutely divine... and the food was excellent

Jag

Wow Jag, that is very nice but VERY expensive...