Dive Review of Palau Sport in
Philippines/Tubbataha

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Palau Sport: "World Class Diving Aboard Sturdy Vessel", Apr, 2024, by Catherine May, ON, CA ( Sr. Reviewer 10 reports with 8 Helpful votes). Report 12940 has 2 Helpful votes.
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	The Diving: Tubbataha overall is the most pristine diving we've had the privilege of experiencing, thanks to its limited dive season, lack of nearby inhabitation, & designation & protection as a World Heritage Site. The diving is all about being big, big schools of fish (trevally, snapper, barracuda, & assorted smaller fish), lots of various reef sharks, dogfin tuna, turtles, bumphead parrotfish, etc. & big, unpredictable currents. The other dive group saw a whale shark, 3 mantas, & 2 divers saw a hammerhead. The corals are wonderfully diverse, plentiful, healthy, & colourful. Other than 2 morning dives on the last day of diving, 4 dives were offered daily, 2 morning & 2 in the afternoon. Night diving is not permitted in Tubbataha. My husband & I each completed 18 dives total. The Dive Operation, Palau Sport: The boat was large, stable, & fast which we appreciated during the long crossings. The dive deck was spacious & organized, with each diver assigned a station for gearing up & storing equipment. There were separate rinse bins for cameras & neoprene. The dive sites were a quick 5 minutes away by solid bottom metal boats. A simple roll back was required for entry & there was a ladder for exiting the water with the option of removing your BCD before ascending it. The divers were split between 2 groups, with the number of dive masters dependant on the size of the group. Our group of 6 had 2 dive masters, both of whom were the 2 owners of the boat. Due to the strong, unpredictable currents, the dive briefings & dive safety were the number one priorities. The dive masters kept a close eye on all of us, indicating to come closer together &/or change direction depending on the current. Due to the nature of these conditions, the location of dive sites was changed accordingly, ensuring safety first. We were surprised & disappointed the dives were limited to 45 - 50 minutes, unlike the usual 60 minutes we are accustomed to. Certainly, if dive conditions warranted it, this would have been understandable, but quite often we would be in a shallow area, with little or no current towards the end of the dive, have sufficient remaining air, & were still limited to this dive time. After travelling so far & with the expense, it reduced the value we received overall. Although the focus was on the big stuff, there were smaller fish & critters in the shallows at the end of the dive, & despite my request to the dive masters to point things out, this was rarely done. There was a camera charging area down the corridor leading to the dive deck. Charging of all devices was only to occur here or while in our cabins. Safety patrolling occurred 24/7. Accomodations: Other than the suites, the cabins were very small, with little storage room, & tiny bathrooms & showers. Unless laying down, there was no place to read or relax so we were in the dining/lounge area when not diving or sleeping. We used the dive deck showers after the last dive so we wouldn't have to cram ourselves into our private one. Food: The food was okay, but not great, likely prepared by a 'cook' vs. a 'chef'. Neither my husband nor I eat seafood or pork as we indicated in advance so our options were limited since beef was seldom served. Most of the desserts were a local dish consisting of jello, tapioca, & coconut milk which was good, but variety would have been nice. The best snacks were the homemade cookies & popcorn. The staff: All were friendly, approachable, & responsive to any request. It was wonderful having the 2 owners on board & diving with us. They knew what was going on & run a safe, enjoyable operation as a result.
Websites	Palau Sport
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	Over 1000 dives
Where else diving	Komodo, Bali, Palau, Banda Sea, Raja Ampat, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Philippines, Hawaii, Maldives, Caribbean, Mexico, USA, Canada
Closest Airport	Puerto Princesa	Getting There	Manila flight to Puerto Princesa airport
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy, dry	Seas	calm, choppy, currents
Water Temp	81-82°F / 27-28°C	Wetsuit Thickness	5
Water Visibility	40-100 Ft/ 12-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	45 - 50 minute dive time. Night diving not permitted in area. No gloves. No pointer sticks. No touching corals or critters.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	1 or 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	[None]

Report currently has 2 Helpful votes

Subscriber's Comments

By Allen Wood in NV, US at Apr 24, 2024 12:30 EST

Great review. Gave me some things to think about. This location is on the short list for our 2025 Philippines trip, so the info is very helpful.

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Dive Review of Palau Sport in Philippines/Tubbataha

Palau Sport: "World Class Diving Aboard Sturdy Vessel", Apr, 2024,

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):

Subscriber's Comments

Dive Review of Palau Sport in
Philippines/Tubbataha