Dive Review of Exotic Island Divers in
Philippines/Malapascua

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Exotic Island Divers, May, 2009, by Jason Pellegatto, MA, USA ( Sr. Reviewer 8 reports). Report 4844.
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	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	From Cebu City, getting to Malapascua takes a 3 hour car ride and an additional 45 minute boat ride. If you land at night after flying in from the US, I suggest that you spend your first night in Cebu City. I stayed at and recommend the Marriot which was about 20 minutes from the airport and had very nice and comfortable rooms. I went to Malapascua to see the thresher sharks. In my 4 days of diving, I went to Monad Shoals 3 times ( at 6am ) and saw the shark once, for about 5 seconds. While looking for the thresher shark, I was also treated to 3 manta ray sightings. Not bad, but not exactly what I had hoped to see. I talked to a couple of other divers. One guy saw the thresher 2 out of 3 tries. Another fellow didn't see the thresher and was on the island for 16 days. Rather unpredictable. I do recommend diving on nitrox to get the max bottom time to increase your chances. There isn't really anything else to look at at Monad. Just look out into the blue and hope for the best. My other morning and afternoon dives were closer to the shore at sights around Malapascua. Not much fish life due to local fishing, but very good Macro. I saw both red and yellow, pygmy seahorses, dozens of frogfish, and lots of nudibrancs, shrimp, etc. The resort has it's own house reef and protects it from fishing. Here I saw schools of bat fish, baracuda, cuttle fish, squid, and lots of other tropicals around a man made reef area. There are also day trips to Gato Island. We did see 4 or 5 white tip reef sharks, but I think the macro subjects at the local Malapascua sites were beter. Overall, I think that if you make the trip, it's good diving for about 4 days. It will become repetitive after that. The dive shop at Exotic was good. On many dives I was the only one using nitrox so I was given a private dive guide and allowed to dive my own profile. The other groups were also small, 3 or 4 divers. Your equipment will be carried to and from the boat, but it is the divers responsibility to set up their own equipment and to wash it after diving. The guides work hard to find all the small things that you'll never see yourself. The resort, Malapascua Exotic, is a good place to stay. Unlike the rest of the island which gets electricity only in the evenings, Exotic has 24 hour electricity. I even had air conditioning and a television. However, the water is cold and a little salty. The rooms are basic, but clean and comfortable. They do a good job based on the limited resources available on Malapascua. From what I observed walking around the island, this is the nicest place to stay on Malapascua. The restaurant / bar area is also good. Fast, friendly service and decent food that is very inexpensive compared to US prices.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Bunaken, Lembeh, Galapagos, Cocos, Turks and Caicos, Bonaire, Cozumel
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, dry	Seas
Water Temp	83-83°F / 28-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	1
Water Visibility	30-60 Ft/ 9-18 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Requested 1 hour dives but were not upset if you went longer.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	1 or 2	Mantas	1 or 2
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	1 or 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	There isn't a dedicated table or bucket on the boat for cameras. You just lump it in with everyone elses bags and stuff. The crew will hand you your camera once you've jumped in.

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Dive Review of Exotic Island Divers in Philippines/Malapascua

Exotic Island Divers, May, 2009,

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 Exotic Island Divers in
Philippines/Malapascua