ANILAO AREA
South of Manila, west of Batangas, the Anilao area offers the best-known diving in the Philippines, particularly because of its close proximity to Manila. The relatively shallow water is noted for its profusion of smallest fish and invertebrates. These are some good deeper dives for more experienced divers and lots of easy dives for novices. The sites are mostly gentle slopes with coral patches, together with some large rock formation and small walls. Pelagic creatures may be encountered around the offshore reefs, but all the excellent for fish, sea cucumbers, sea stars, colorful crinoids and nudibranchs. There can be some strong current here, so a dive master who can accurately predict slack water can make a considerate difference to the quality of the diving. Most of the dives are a short banca ride from the resorts. This area has good facilities for all water sports, particularly wind surfing, bit has poor beaches.


BALICASAG & PANGLAO ISLAND (BOHOL)
Balicasag is a microcosm of all that is good in Philippines diving. Part of the reef is a marine sanctuary, home to large shoals of Bigeye Trevally. There are deep vertical walls and overhangs, with huge gorgonian sea fans, barrel sponges, soft coral, excellent boulder, table and whip corals, black corals and all the reef fish and invertebrates you would expect. Colorful crinoids are everywhere, together with large groupers, Napoleon Wrasse , Grey, and White tip Reef Sharks and barracuda. It is an excellent area for all standard of diver.


BORACAY
Boracay, better known for having one of the world’s best beaches, has now become a fully fledged diving destination. As with Puerto Galera, there is everything here from quiet beaches to discotheques, though on a much smaller scale. The diving varies from gentle slopes in shallow water teeming with reef fish, excellent for snorkellers and underwater photographers, to deep walls and high-voltage drift-dives, where bigger fish and pelagic are encountered.


MACTAN ISLAND
The Mactan Island area is one of the best-known resort areas in the Philippines; it is characterized by up – scale beach resort with their own private beach access. The resorts are isolated from each other with very little interaction. The accommodation range from plush 5 stars Shangri-la to smaller mid-scale resorts. The Mactan resorts are only 20 minutes from the Cebu international Airport. Mactan has dive sites just offshore, with good coral, abundant, reef fish, wall and caves.


NORTHERN PALAWAN AND BUSUANGA
Northern Palawan is little known to the international diving community expect for a few expensive, remote report that offer diving almost as an after thought. The Busuanga and Coron Island area is huge, with beautiful islands ringed by step limestone cliffs and hundreds of tiny isolated sandy coves, offering you your own private beach. It is beginning ton attract non-diving cruises, but the future for divers here is immersed. There are good shallow coral gardens, intriguing freshwater lakes and under water caverns but, more importantly, the area is littered with World War II shipwrecks. In a addition there are may remote islands between Northern Palawan and the Visayas that offer good diving from live-abroad.


PUERTO GALERA
A 2 hours ride across Batangas bay from pier, Puerto Galera offers picturesque beauty and good beaches, plus night life for those who want it. It is fast becoming an international diving destination. There is great variety here, in both underwater terrains and marine life. There are shallow coral gardens, excellent for snorkellers and underwater photographers, and easy dives for novices, plus walls and high voltage drift-dives for the more experienced. All the reef fish are here; smaller pelagic species are regularly encountered and large animals; both pelagic and reef dwelling, are often seen. Most of the dive sites are a short banca drive from the beaches.


WESTERN CEBU AND MOALBOAL
Moalboal is a diver’s resort area on the Island of Cebu. Everyone who goes to Moalboal is a diver. In five minutes of walking you can see all of its restaurants, bars and discos. After a few days everyone in town will know you. The area looks a tropical paradise on a post card. The accommodations are new bungalows with or without aircon. Moalboal is known for its walls, corals and reef fish. It is an excellent place for photography. Sharks and bigger animals can be seen by those who want to go deep.


THE SULU SEA
The Sulu Sea, the Philippines’ last frontier, is strictly for live-abroad boats, the reefs of Tubbataha, Jessie Beazly and Basterra having some of the best diving in the archipelago. There is everything here but, in particular, steep walls over deep water with strong current, giving good visibility, big fish and regular encounters with large pelagics. The walls are cover with huge barrel sponges, large soft corals and gorgonian sea fans. You will be followed along by shoals of jacks, trevalliers, snappers, surgeons, pannanfish and Moorish Idols. White tip and Grey Reef Sharks, Manta Rays, Eagle Rays and turtles will be seen on almost every wall dive.
The shallow water teems with all the smaller reef fish and invertebrates. Guitar (shovel-nose) Sharks and Leopards (Variegated) Sharks are common in the sandy patches, and Nurse or White tip Reef Sharks are found resting in caves during the day. The current vary from gentle to fierce and unpredictable.
Drifting-diving is the norm, and novices should always be accompanied by experienced divers. The season is short and the weather can be rough, so pick your dive boat with care. The better ones offer up to five no-decompression dives per day, with excellent food and accommodation. These reefs are must serious divers.