5-Day Cebu Dive Package
Only S$850.00 per diver (excluding Airfare)
Package Includes:
4-Day Cebu Dive Package
Only S$650.00 per diver (excluding Airfare)
Departs every Thursday
Package Includes:
Introduction to Philippines World of diving
Palawan’s insular characteristics endow it with vast fishing grounds. The varieties of fish caught in commercial quantities are milkfish (bangus), eel and moray (palos, pindangga), grouper (lapu lapu, kolapu), sea bass (apahap), snapper (maya maya), surgeon fish (labahita), slipmouth (sap sap), pomfret (pampano), mackerel (tangingi), sardines (tonsoy, tamban), anchovies (dilis), yellow fin and big eyed tuna (albacore, tambacol), swordfish (malasugi), shark (pating), rays (pagi), blue crabs (alimasag), mangrove crabs (alimango), lobster (banagan), white shrimps (hipong puti), oysters (talaba), green mussels (tahong), giant clam (taklobo), squid (pusit), octopus (pugita). About 35% of the total national catch comes from Palawan.
Palawan also has rich deposits of minerals. Actual mining and exploratory operations are ongoing for nickel, mercury (the biggest deposit in South East Asia), chromite, manganese, barite, feldspar, silica, guano, limestone, marble. There are new discoveries of copper, gold, iron, asbestos, talc, quartz, clay and sulphur. In the northeast of the province – offshore – there is oil and gas.
Palawan has 52 rivers, 4 small lakes and countless small streams. The most unique amongst all these is the Princesa Underground River, emptying in St Paul’s Bay on the west coast.
Tubbataha on the southern part of Palawan is strictly 3 months live-aboard destination. The season start from mid-March to mid-June. It has the best diving in the country. Since this area is so remote may large fishes come into the area to feed. Its reefs serve as a breeding grounds, nurseries and bedrooms to hundreds of fish species.
Climate
The east coast has 4 months of dry season with rain possibility during the other 8 months. At our place, November and December are the wettest months. The west coast has 6 months dry and 6 months wet season. The island of Palawan is mostly typhoon free, except for the northern part. The two most prevalent winds are the softer northeast monsoon which blows from October to April and the stronger northwest monsoon which blows from June to September. Sea travel between the islands is best between April to June. Then the ocean is calm and flat as a mirror.
Panglao Island and Alona Beach
Panglao Island is somewhat out on a limb and so tends to be visited by travelers rather than tourists. For divers in the know, Balicasag and Cabilao Islands have some of the best diving in the Philippines, comparable to that off Sipadan Island in Malaysian Borneo though on a smaller scale. Cabilao Island is also easily visited from the Mactan Island Resorts, off Cebu.
Located off the southwestern tip of Bohol, Panglao is a
small coralline limestone island joined to the mainland near Tagbilaran by a
causeway with connecting bridges. The Island is known for its quiet beach
resorts. There are a few unsigned dirt tracks where even the local taxi drivers
get lost, so you can imagine how difficult it can be to find your way about in
your own!
There is a good snorkeling all round the northwest and southeast Coasts, with lots of sea stars, sea cucumbers, sea urchins, corals and a few sea snakes. The area has been a center for the seashell trade, so there are not many shells left.
The best beach is the white-sand Alona Beach, a quiet friendly place which the locals and the dive resorts wish to keep that way, so that it remains attractive to families rather than those looking for nightlife. Apart from the dive operators, there are a few small cottage resorts, quiet bars and restaurants. ‘Bar Girls’ are kept out, and the gate to Alona Beach itself is closed at night (2100-0900hrs) to keep out vehicles.
Everyone is very friendly- they make a point of talking to you and learning your name. That said, it can sometimes be a little too laid-back – I could never get breakfast at what I considered to be a sensibly early time in the morning. I never experienced any power failures, but the voltage was often low. The tap water is too salty to drink so the dive and resort operators buy fresh water daily from the mainland for cooking and for washing diving equipments.
The diving is varied, with good coral gardens near the surface which are also great for snorkeling, but the main attractions are the steep walls with caves, overhangs and crevices harbouring teeming fish and invertebrate life. The small offshore islands are in strong currents, so they to have large schools of fish and big pelagic species. Manta Rays, Hammerhead Sharks and even Whale sharks may be seen here.
The diving bancas tend to be larger than elsewhere as they are often used for longer tris, including overnight safaris. Seaquest’s bancas have two separate engines. You can easily fill four days just diving locally, but for longer periods you should add an overnight banca safari and/or another four days at Moalboal. Genesis Divers also regularly run multi-day dive safaris as far afield as Camiguin Island and Southern Leyte. By combining diving at Alona Beach with that of Camiguin Island and Southern Leytem clients can encounter a large variety of dive sites and scenery on land and meet friendly local people who have not seen many tourists.
The area can be dived all year round. November to May is considered the high season: if you wan to make some overnight banca safaris the best time is April/ May. Live-aboard boats cruise this area.
Balicasag Island
Balicasaf Island, 6km (4 miles) southwest of Duljo Point, is a microcosm of some of the best diving in the Philippines. On the south side, from the buoy outside Balicasag Dive Resort, is 400m of Marine Sanctuary that has been successfully protected. Vertical walls over deep water in strong currents mean healthy corals and good fish life with plenty of pelagic visitors. Hammerhead sharks, and even whale sharks, have been seen here in December and January. There are also lovely beaches.
Cabilao Island
Cabilao Island is southwest of Pangangan Island, which is connected to the west coast of Bohol by a causeway. It is direfctly east across the Bohol Strait from Argao on Cebu. Like Balicasag island and Pescador Island, Cabilao has some of the best diving in the Philippines and is particularly noted for sightings of Hammerhead Sharks in the deeper waters off the northwest point, an exciting dive for the more experienced. The island could be snorkeled all round, but the shallow areas have been damaged by typhoons and there are very strong currents.
Cabilao is 2hr by fast banca from Mactan Island or 3hr from Panglao Island. There is a little resort and restaurant, but the food cannot be recommended.