Your Guide to Diving Philippines
includes Puerta Galera, Dumaguete, Anilao, Verde Island, ...

Diving Philippines Overview

Philippines Seasonal Dive Planner

There are only two seasons in the Philippines; wet and not so dry. There are still monsoon rains even on summer months from March to June and from there on typhoon it’s season until the December. That said, locals also assert there is a third season, the cold season, when temperatures drop to around 48°F-60°F (9-16°C). It occurs between October and February. Visitors are under the impression that it is always summer but locals consider that to be April to May when average air temperatures are 80°F ((27°C) matched by a similar sea temperature.

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Diving Philippines Reader Reports and Feature Articles

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Latest Reader Reports from Philippines from the serious divers who read Undercurrent All Reader Reports from Philippines	All 10,000+ Reports
El Galleon Dive Resort Report in Philippines/Mindora "The Wow Moment at Isla Verde" filed May 20, 2022 by Patrick Ritter (Experience: 501-1000 dives)
Most dives follow a typical pattern. Get ready, backflip or stride in, assemble the group, blow some air, and descend together. Clear ... ... Read more
Atlantis Dive Resort Report in Philippines/Dumaguete "Beautiful diving at a well-run resort" filed May 2, 2022 by Cyrus Ginwala (Experience: 251-500 dives, 3 reports, Reviewer )
Our dive club spent a week at this resort on the island of Negros, one hour flight from Manila, in April 2022. Philippines required all... ... Read more
Sea Explorers Philippines/Sea Explorers Malapascua, Cabilao, Report in Philippines/Malapascua, Cabilao, Dauin "Great Dive Trip to 3 different locations Pre-Covid Shutdown" filed Nov 27, 2021 by Claire Rausch (Experience: Over 1000 dives)
My dive buddy and I had decided we wanted to go to a couple different islands in the Visayas area of the Philippine Islands. We used th... ... Read more
Submariner/N/A Report in Philippines/El Nido, Palawan "Nice operation, but some room for improvement" filed Apr 22, 2020 by Carol D Cox (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 20 reports, Sr. Contributor )
I wasn't planning on diving El Nido, but our group detoured there when our liveaboard to Tubbataha cancelled due to the coronavirus. W... ... Read more
Atlantis Azores Live Aboard Report in Philippines/Cebu "12 days around Cebu island" filed Jan 20, 2020 by Craig Howe (Experience: Over 1000 dives, 19 reports, Contributor )
This was my 3rd trip on this boat, so I really like it. The whole trip was great, but the highlights for most on the boat were the Thr... ... Read more

Complete Articles Available to Undercurrent Online Members; Some Publicly Available as Indicated

Diving Philippines Articles - Liveaboards Available to the Public Belize, Bonaire, Florida, Philippines . . ., and a Cozumel dive shop with a great refund policy, 7/15 Problems with the Siren Fleet, divers must evacuate two liveaboards in less than six months, 7/12 Atlantis Azores, Philippines, fantastic liveaboard but only fair diving at Tubbataha Reef, El Galleon good, 10/10

Diving Philippines Articles - Land Based Aiyanar Beach & Dive Resort, Anilao, Philippines, only if you are a macro photographer, 11/19 Anilao Photo Academy, Balayan Bay, Mabini, Philippines , improving your shooter skills in the muck, 9/19 El Galleon Resort & Asia Divers, Philippines, money goes a long way (visibility, maybe) in this dive spot, 6/19 Available to the Public Atlantis Dumaguete Resort, Negros Island, Philippines, an abundance of creatures in clean muck, 6/18 Magic Oceans; Bohol Island, Philippines, another great Philippines bargain, 3/18 Divers Adrift Eight Hours in the Philippines, 2/18 Crystal Blue Resort, Anilao, Philippines, making much of the muck, 11/17 What You Need to Know About The Philippines, 11/17 Managing Dive Trip Expectations, more readers report and tell it like it is, 10/16 The Good, the Bad and the Uncomfortable!, Undercurrent subscribers telling it like it is, 8/16 Mozambique, Mexico, Philippines . . ., more on the Thorfinn, and another Bonaire warning, 10/15 Magic Island and Atlantis-Dumaguete, Philippines, creature comforts, incredible sea life, affordable prices, 4/15 Costa Rica, Montserrat, St. Eustatius . . ., hidden gems, bad air and the jerk of the month, 7/14 Seeking More Exotic Diving?, how about Russia, the Sardine Run, or an underwater cemetery?, 10/13 SeaQuest Dive Center, Philippines, a four-resort, 10-day dive “Seafari” for $150 a day, 8/13 Other Philippines Dive Sites, more destinations for cool critters and great values, 8/13 Kasai Village, Cebu, Philippines, even a typhoon can’t affect the good diving, 3/13 Australia, Grand Cayman, Philippines . . ., and when it’s really the best time to dive in Raja Ampat, 11/11 Anilao, Puerto Galera and More: The Philippines, unique critters, easy travel, inexpensive dive resorts, 5/11 Malapascua and Panglao, Philippines, inexpensive diving on diverse reefs, 5/08 More Philippine Dive Resort Picks, 5/08 Atlantis Dive Resorts, Philippines, wild reefs, tame diving, 9/06 How Safe Are the Philippines?, 9/06 Three Stops in the Philippines, why are Americans missing out?, 9/02

Editor's Book Picks for Scuba Diving Philippines
includes Puerta Galera, Dumaguete, Anilao, Verde Island, ...

The books below are my favorites about diving in this part of the world All books are available at a significant discount from Amazon.com; just follow the links. -- BD

Reef Creature Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Paul Humann and Ned Deloach

Paul Humann and Ned Deloach have done it again, releasing a definitive identification guide to 1600 extraordinary reef creatures of the Tropical Pacific. with this 500+ page softbound guide, you get upwards of 2000 exceptional photos of shrimp and crabs and stars and worms and lobsters and nudibranchs and slugs and squid and bivalves . . . well, all those invertebrates that move along the reefs of this region without fining, so it seems. There are several photos of some creatures to help you identify them during different life stages, and about ten percent of the book is descriptive copy so you can tie down your identification. Even if you have no plans to go to the tropical Pacific, just to thumb through the pages, gawk at the complexity and uniqueness of these animals, and read a thumbnail sketch will give any serious diver vicarious thrills for endless hours.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Reef Fish Identification: Tropical Pacific
by Gerald Allen, Rodger Steene, Paul Humann, & Ned Deloach

At last, here's a comprehensive fish ID guide covering the reefs of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. The generous 500-page text, displaying 2,500 underwater photographs of 2,000 species, identifies the myriad fishes that inhabit the warm tropical seas between Thailand and Tahiti. The concise text accompanying each species portrait includes the fish's common, scientific and family names, size, description, visually distinctive features, preferred habitat, typical behavior, depth range, and geographical distribution. This is an essential book for every diver traveling westward. 6x9 inches.

Click here to buy it at Amazon.

Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef
by Neville Coleman.

With 2900 reefs in 220,000 square miles, the enormous Great Barrier Reef has incredible dives -- and some very ordinary ones. If you're contemplating a trip, Neville Coleman's Dive Sites of the Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea will help you ensure you pick the best. This 176 page book, with good maps and scores of colorful photos, describes the significant sites, the topography and the critters, then rates and ranks them so you can pick the best. Don't even consider a trip to Australia without consulting this. $24.95

Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide
by Gerald R. Allen, Roger Steene.

I was trying to pack light for a change. Surely the Solomon Sea would have good identification books aboard. Not so; the only book on the boat belonged to a fellow passenger. It was one that I had not seen before, the Indo-Pacific Coral Reef Field Guide, by two of the best fish guys around, Gerry Allen and Roger Steene. The problem was this fellow passenger kept it in a plastic baggie most of the trip and I had to beg to see it. Great book, good traveling size, and it covers everything from fish, shells, marine plants, mammals, corals, and invertebrates to sea birds and more. Now I've got my own, and it won't do you any good to beg me to borrow it. This is one of two books that I will not travel to the Pacific without. Good for travel to the Red Sea, East Africa, Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives, Andaman Sea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Australia, Micronesia, Polynesia, and Hawaii, it has 1,800 color illustrations in a 6x8 1/2 paperback format with 378 pages. $39.95.

There's a Cockroach in My Regulator
by Undercurrent

The Best of Undercurrent: Bizarre and Brilliant True Diving Tales from Thirty Years of Undercurrent.

Shipping now is our brand new, 240-page book filled with the best of the unusual, the entertaining, and the jaw dropping stories Undercurrent has published. They’re true, often unbelievable, and always fascinating. We’re offering it to you now for the special price of just $14.95.

Click here to order.

You might find some other books of interest in our Editor's Book Picks section.