Main Menu
Join Undercurrent on Facebook

The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975 | |
For Divers since 1975
The Private, Exclusive Guide for Serious Divers Since 1975
"Best of the Web: scuba tips no other
source dares to publish" -- Forbes
X
 

Dive Review of Crystal Blue Resort in
Philippines/Anilao

Crystal Blue Resort: "A Different Perspective Than Most", Apr, 2019,

by Rose Mueller , TX, US (Sr. Contributor Sr. Contributor 27 reports with 13 Helpful votes). Report 10910 has 3 Helpful votes.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 1 stars Food 2 stars
Service and Attitude 3 stars Environmental Sensitivity 2 stars
Dive Operation 4 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling N/A
Value for $$ N/A
Beginners 4 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments This is our 7th trip to the Philippines, but our first to Anilao. We chose this hotel as it was recommended by our guide in Puerto Galera. This review doesn't include our feelings for the Filipino people that took care of us while there. They were ALL gracious and kind and caring. I polled many guests as to why they chose this resort and ALL replied, "it's cheap!" That it is, but is it worth it? The room was so small there was no where to put anything. In fact I could barely move in it. There is mold, especially in the shower. The stairs aren't for the faint of heart. The food is buffet style and again on the cheap. For a mature clientelle the use of curry is too much. The food is cold as it's buffet style and the burners don't work. They made sure I at least had salad and mango at every meal as there was little I could eat. On one occasion, we arrived at 12:07 pm with lunch to begin at 12:00 and there was hardly any food left. They did try to replenish if this happened, but on this occasion they didn't. The facility for diving and the camera room is very good. Our guide, Pong, was exceptional. Yes, we paid for a guide because of the photography, although another couple had one guide and didn't pay. The biggest problem came with the manager/photographer, Mike. Unless one chose to pay for his services, one was personal non grata. Unfortunately for us, he was on our dive boat as he was hussling another guest to use some of his services. Mike smoked on the boat with no regard for our feelings about the subject. It was unacceptable to say the least. He and the other man on the boat wore gloves on the dives. That has been a NO No for longer than I can remember. I feel there are serious problems in terms of the treatment of the reefs with the use of the 105 mm lens. I watched on several occasions the diver laying on the reef for stabilizing the camera for photos. The book in the room states there is absolutely NO solo diving yet the other diver did it with Mike's approval. This little foray managed to lengthen our stay on the boat unnecessarily. No, we weren't asked if it mattered to us. Mike also left us waiting for over 35 minutes on one dive while he continued his personal quest for a photo. I was most offended when he accused me of jeapordising the health of his dive masters. We were into our 2nd day and we'd waited 50 minutes after the first dive. I asked if we could go in for the second dive. He told me we could do so, but he'd never allow his divers to do this. The dives were under 60' and lasted 50 minutes. The norm where we've gone is 1/2 hour wait. I'd NEVER risk danger for anyone. In fact, we were instrumental in bringing NITROX to Splash in Palau. Also, it was with our insistance and paying that Scuba Du in Cozumel began giving NITROX to the dive masters. To make it worse, he immediately turned around and told his guide to accompany the other diver for his return attempt to capture the jawfish with eggs without waiting an hour, the magic number. On a happier note, the macro life is remarkable and beyond what we saw in Puerto Galera. There is little we didn't see. I have mantis shrimp, zebra shrimp and jawfish with eggs. I have the ambon scorpionfish, the purple oscillated octopus, the wunderpus, the mimic and more frogfish than I can count. The only thing I didn't see was the blue ringed octopus and it wasn't for not trying. We are returning with our family in July, but it won't be at Crystal Blue!
Websites Crystal Blue Resort   

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience Over 1000 dives
Where else diving Most places it's warm
Closest Airport Manila Getting There As UA clients we flew Tokyo/Manila

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, windy Seas choppy
Water Temp 80-82°F / 27-28°C Wetsuit Thickness 5
Water Visibility 20-50 Ft/ 6-15 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile ?
Enforced diving restrictions Their book specifies NO SOLO DIVING BUT IT HAPPENED
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks None Mantas None
Dolphins None Whale Sharks None
Turtles 1 or 2 Whales None
Corals 3 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish 1 stars
Large Pelagics N/A

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

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 1 stars
Overall rating for UWP's N/A Shore Facilities 1 stars
UW Photo Comments There is a separate camera room which is excellent. There is a soak well for just cameras.
Was this report helpful to you?
Report currently has 3 Helpful votes
Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here
 

Subscribe Now
Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 524 dive reviews of Philippines and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

 
Featured Links from Our Sponsors
Interested in becoming a sponsor?
Reef & Rainforest, Let our experience be your guide -- Reef and Rainforest
Reef & Rainforest
is an agency for travelers that scuba dive. We specialize in planning scuba diving adventures to the Philippines.

Want to assemble your own collection of Philippines reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

Undercurrent Home


Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email.
And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent

Free Undercurrent Issue
Get a free
monthly email and
a sample issue!


Find in  

| Home | Online Members Area | My Account | Login | Join |
| Travel Index | Dive Resort & Liveaboard Reviews | Featured Reports | Recent Issues | Back Issues |
| Dive Gear Index | Health/Safety Index | Environment & Misc. Index | Seasonal Planner | Blogs | Free Articles | Book Picks | News |
| Special Offers | RSS | FAQ | About Us | Contact Us | Links |

Copyright © 1996-2024 Undercurrent (www.undercurrent.org)
3020 Bridgeway, Ste 102, Sausalito, Ca 94965
All rights reserved.

Page computed and displayed in 0.11 seconds