Where to stay and Dive in Philippines, with reluctant diver husband - advice needed please!
- Thread starter Milly Mandl68
- Start date
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The government banned banka boats between Batangas and PG. I understand there is a larger ferry, with a much less frequent schedule. It's a shame, because the diving in PG is excellent, and the lack of bankas has hurt the dive shops' business.Think Bali is my favourite choice, just wanted a little reassurance about the weather, although know there are no guarantees where the weather is concerned,just trying for the best options we can . The Hubby wont be keen doing risky rough crossings in a Banka, I'd have to sedate him..he's a worrier.
FT
Contributor
Luko is right. Bali Bali Bali.
+1 for Bali, but also +1 for Moalboal.
Bali is fantastic, Padang Bai is one of my favourite places in the world, laid back, easy to get to, and it has the Sunshine Cafe...
However, if you're set on Philippines (which is where my wife is from so I'm biased), Moalboal south of Cebu is a great choice. You have 2 options to getting out there, either a private car from the airport (costing roughly 2800-3500php) or taxi to the bus station and a public bus, which honestly is 10% the cost and not really much more hassle (if you don't have many bags I suppose..) My first time to Phils I went there, and the 5 days I spent were worth it. The sardines was a sight to see, for starters. I didn't find it so bad where I was, depending on the season I suppose (last Jan/Feb was way worse, but it was also Chinese New Years and everything was chaos). For a dive shop rec, I'd say Cebu Dive Centre is the place to go. Cameron, the manager, is a UK expat, and is probably the key reason why the shop is successful. He employs great guides and instructors, and its definitely budget friendly. First time I stayed at the shop in a hostel room (wouldn't recommend it for a couple), but last time we stayed at this really amazing resort down the road (5 minute ride from the shop) called Garden Village Moalboal. It's owned by a French man and his wife, and they rent out little villas for a reasonable price. Great food, close by, and the pool should be finished in Oct/Nov. They treated us like gold in February this year, and since we were about to get married, they gave us a bottle of champagne as a gift.
Regardless of whether you choose Bali or Philippines, be prepared to be smothered with friendly locals. Both places are great, and I couldn't choose one over the other.
Bali is fantastic, Padang Bai is one of my favourite places in the world, laid back, easy to get to, and it has the Sunshine Cafe...
However, if you're set on Philippines (which is where my wife is from so I'm biased), Moalboal south of Cebu is a great choice. You have 2 options to getting out there, either a private car from the airport (costing roughly 2800-3500php) or taxi to the bus station and a public bus, which honestly is 10% the cost and not really much more hassle (if you don't have many bags I suppose..) My first time to Phils I went there, and the 5 days I spent were worth it. The sardines was a sight to see, for starters. I didn't find it so bad where I was, depending on the season I suppose (last Jan/Feb was way worse, but it was also Chinese New Years and everything was chaos). For a dive shop rec, I'd say Cebu Dive Centre is the place to go. Cameron, the manager, is a UK expat, and is probably the key reason why the shop is successful. He employs great guides and instructors, and its definitely budget friendly. First time I stayed at the shop in a hostel room (wouldn't recommend it for a couple), but last time we stayed at this really amazing resort down the road (5 minute ride from the shop) called Garden Village Moalboal. It's owned by a French man and his wife, and they rent out little villas for a reasonable price. Great food, close by, and the pool should be finished in Oct/Nov. They treated us like gold in February this year, and since we were about to get married, they gave us a bottle of champagne as a gift.
Regardless of whether you choose Bali or Philippines, be prepared to be smothered with friendly locals. Both places are great, and I couldn't choose one over the other.
Luko
Contributor
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