Dive Review of Aggressor Philippines in
Philippines/Cebu Island

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Aggressor Philippines: "Aggressor Philippines in Cebu", Aug, 2023, by Giorgio Bonmassar, MA, US ( Reviewer 6 reports with 6 Helpful votes). Report 12928.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	I saw thresher sharks in Kimua shoal, nudibranchs in almost every dive, sea snakes and an incredible cave penetration in Gato Island, drift dive in chocolate, glass shrimps in Capitan Cillo, pipe and frog fish in Lamanok, great night/drift dive in a secret place :), in Pelican Is I saw Eels, Gow fish, glass shrimps with fantastic vis, turtle/octopus/frogfish in Spanish Tower, school of Jacks in Balica Sag, giant crab in a night dive in Alona Dojo, color garden in Coconut Is, seven (!) whale sharks in Oslob (some guests commented that it seemed like being in a zoo. Thus they did not appreciate it very much), small moray eel in Sumilan. It was a great trip; however, there were also unhappy feelings since we all acknowledged that the food was below par (strange for a liveaboard) and that the Aggressor director did not behave very professionally with a female guest. My video of this trip (only UW action) can be seen at: [youtube.com link] Aggressor Day 1 Saw Red Banded Snapping Shrimps, Batangas, Clown Fish, Sweetlips, White Crabs, Glass Shrimp, Jellyfish, Lionfish, Urchin, nudibranchs, Sea stars, Soft Coral, Sea cucumber, Tube worm, and a Thresher Shark [youtube.com link] Day 2: nudibranchs, baby pufferfish, Toby, Green Nemo, Snake, Drift, millipedes, urchin, flounder, mandarin coupling, cowfish, catfish [youtube.com link] On the third day of diving in the Philippines, I encountered a walking coral, a tube worm, mantis shrimp (Mantis shrimp are carnivorous marine crustaceans of the order Stomatopod. Stomatopods branched from other members of the class Malacostraca about 340 million years ago. Mantis shrimp typically reach a length of about 10cm, while some can reach up to 38cm (in this little film, the shrimp was at least 20cm), the usual thresher shark (Jacques Cousteau's terror), and lots of coral. On these dives, I concentrated more on taking photos since fewer animals were observed. [youtube.com link] Another magic video from Cebu of last year, liveaboard day N. 4. I saw Tentacle Anemone (spectacular, it was mesmerizing!!!), a toby close and personal (perfect video star, he could not care about me not even at the least!), bonnet, snake eel, chromis, goniobranch, large clownfish, gorgonian shrimp, barnacle, blue phyla, facelline nudibranch, reticulidia nudibranch, fan coral, king prawn, baby squid, hypselodoris, and many soft corals... [youtube.com link] 5th day scuba diving in the Philippine Aggressor in Cebu island. I saw a bat volute (conch shell), a box crab, a boxer crab, a broad barred firefish, a glass shrimp, many corals including the brain, a cowfish, an eye spot sea slug, a finger sponge, a school of fish, a white flounder with a blue ribbon, an heteroxenia (waving soft coral), a long eyes crab, a pigmy horse, a pimped nudibranch, a porcelain crab, a pulp, reef fish, a sea cucumber, a snail, a turtle, a worm coral and my AMAZING instructors Zie and Ann... [youtube.com link] This was the 6th diving day in Cebu, Philippines. I saw a in order: Robe Hem Hypseiodoris, an anemone with a clownfish hidden inside, a school of Trevallies, anemones with spotted shrimps, divers taking a shot, a hermit crab, an anemone, a gardener's banana nudibranch, corals composition, a tube, a starfish, a banded snake, a black stone fish, a coral, a scorpion fish, a coral, a tiny spotted shrimp, worms, a long arm prawn, a stone crab, a moray eel, a hermit crab, a school of damsels, and a pipefish. [youtube.com link] Now, we are moving to the 7th day of diving in the Philippines in Cebu 080823. I saw more behavior (in the movie's order): a polka dots octopus, a Leopard Goniobranchus, a spotted clownfish, a Sea Star, a soft coral, a baby squid, a Flamentous Scorpionfish, a leaf fish, Two Crested Nembrothas, a Spotted Swimming Crab, a bubble eruption, a Reptilian Snake Eel, crab and fish encounter, Napoleon Snake Eel, a Narrow Lined Pufferfish, Nodulose Heavy Bonet, Longhorn Cowfish, cuttlefish, scorpionfish, a lomanotus, another Napoleon Snake Eel, a swimming crab with fishes, and a pencil sea urchin. [youtube.com link] This 8th-day movie (Cebu 08/09/23) is about a fantastic actor (apart from an even greater one at the end: me 😁)! The whale shark, scientifically known as Rhincodon typus, distinguishes itself as the largest fish species currently existing. It is characterized by its gentle nature and specialized filter-feeding mechanism, akin to a carpet shark's. The record for the largest specimen stretches to an impressive 18.8 meters in length. Notably, the whale shark is recognized for its considerable size within the animal kingdom, holding the title of the heaviest living non-cetacean organism. These magnificent creatures roam the open seas of all tropical oceans, preferring the warmer waters above 21°C. Their lifespan, intriguingly, is estimated to range from 80 to 130 years. This estimation is derived from meticulous studies examining the growth rings on their vertebrae and observations on the growth rates of sharks living freely in the ocean. Equipped with vast mouths, whale sharks are dedicated filter feeders, a rare dietary habit shared only with two other shark species: the megamouth shark and the basking shark. Their diet primarily consists of plankton and small fish, rendering them completely harmless to humans. The term "whale shark" is a nod to the fish's immense size and whale-like appearance despite being a fish and not a mammal. Unlike whales, whale sharks are sharks and thus are not closely related to the mammalian giants of the sea. However, their feeding method through filtration parallels the feeding habits of baleen whales, showcasing a fascinating example of convergent evolution across distant species. Last day (sadly): [youtube.com link] Please like the videos. It will keep me going!
Websites	Aggressor Philippines
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Whitsunday Islands, Palau, Venice, Cozumel, Palmarola, Cancun, Honolulu, British Virgin Islands, US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, La Paz, Florida Keys, Isla Coronado, San Diego, Cape Cod, Cape Ann (MA), Newport (RI), Puglia, Galapagos, Big Island, Komodo Island, Roatan, Cebu
Closest Airport	Mactan-Cebu International Airport	Getting There	Taxi to the Mactan Wharf Marina
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas	calm, choppy, surge, no currents
Water Temp	81-83°F / 27-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	- Ft/ - M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	?
Enforced diving restrictions	Depth limit of 100'
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	None
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	> 2
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	Lots of space for equipment, a very good charging area, and lots of care for photo equipment, I only had a GoPro, but I am upgrading to an SRL.

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Dive Review of Aggressor Philippines in Philippines/Cebu Island

Aggressor Philippines: "Aggressor Philippines in Cebu", Aug, 2023,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Aggressor Philippines in
Philippines/Cebu Island