VISAYAS

Centrally located and with thousand of islands to choose from, it is no
wonder that this part of the Philippines contains the most number of diving
destinations, with new finds being added every so often. 

Half an hour from Mactan International Airport in Cebu City is Marigondon
Cave , Nalusuan and Hilutungan Fish Sanctuary. Coral covered slopes give way
to an impressive wall covered in areas with yellow dendronephtya soft coral.
The top opening of a huge cave that extends 100 meters deep starts at 28
meters and drops to the depths.

Hilutungan Fish Sanctuary is popular with photographers who want to add
pictures of schooling fishes to their portfolios.

Fast gaining worldwide attention is Malapascua Island, off the Northeastern
Coast of Cebu. Its claim to fame are the Thresher Sharks and Manta Rays that
regularly visit the cleaning stations on Monad Shoal in the early morning.
Further out, there are several wrecks, including a Japanese warship that
lies upright with the shallowest portion at about 40 meters and the Dona
Marilyn, a passenger liner that went down in a typhoon over 20 years ago and
is conceivably the most beautiful wreck in the Visayas due to the profusion
of dendronephtya and black coral bushes that cover most of the ship. 

Gato Island meanwhile, is a marine Sanctuary. There is an 80 meter long
tunnel that cuts through the Northern tip and divers will find the walls
covered with yellow sponges and all kinds of shells. The immediate
surroundings contain huge boulders and ledges where nurse, white tip and
bamboo sharks congregate for a midday nap.

From the Malapascua area, we will sail down the western coast of Cebu Island
to Moalboal/Pescador Island .

Pescador Island, Between 4 to 10 meters, expect to see a sloping reef filled
with both hard and soft corals and the requisite reef fishes. But it is the
drop off and the sponge covered walls that extend down to about 55 meters
that pique the diver's interest with lots of cracks and crevices to explore,
and overhangs to swim through . It is the larger pelagic fishes like Tunas,
Napoleon wrasses, white tip and even hammerhead sharks that are seen here.
The walls are vertical gardens of sea fans as well as Tube and barrel
sponges. 

This diving profile can likewise be applied to the whole area, from Copton
and Tongo Points. 

Next stop is Dauin/Apo Island. The coastline on the southeastern side of the
province of Negros Oriental is host to many dive centers and resorts. The
beach of Dauin itself is fast gaining popularity as a muck diving site where
photographers can find Blue-finned Lionfish, dragonets, several species of
octopus (including the famous mimic), bobtail squid, snake eels, ghost
pipefishes , cockatoo waspfish and sea horses. Several areas have been
declared marine reserves and, for a small fee, allow divers to explore their
protected reefs. Masaplod Sanctuary has a sloping reef of intact hard
corals.

It was delightful to see so many varieties of juvenile fishes in residence
while Apo Island , the area's most popular divesite , is where the bigger
pelagics such as immense schools of jacks, several colonies of clownfishes
can be found. The local officials had implemented an strict No-Gloves-while
-Diving policy a few years back and despite the heavy number of divers that
visit the island, unbroken fields of both soft and hard coral still cover
the reefs that surround this small island.

A must -see is Ducomi Pier, a privately owned working port whose supporting
beams have turned into a veritable forest of corals. Seafans, sponges, black
coral trees and tunicates have covered every inch of the concrete pillars.
These in turn host species of fishes too numerous to list down. Schools of
pompano, long nosed emperors and jacks run wild among the posts.

Painted Frogfishes in pastel shades, nudibranchs, seahorses, flamboyant
cuttlefish , ghost and ornate pipefishes are also pier residents. 


BOHOL

Beautiful Bohol, famous for the Tarsier Monkeys and Chocolate Hills also
boasts several premier dive sites. 

Balicasag Island is the centerpiece. It is surrounded by a shallow reef,
perfect for snorkeling, However it is the 4 and 5- star rated dive spots
that draw in the web-footed visitors. Black Forest, Rudy's wall, thrive with
jackfish and sea fans with colorful reef fishes. 

The chance to see Turtles, Bumphead Parrotfish and Napoleon wrasses are what
divers go to Pamilacan for. Its healthy reefs are a photographers delight
with both soft and hard corals providing shelter to a profusion of reef
fishes. 

Closer to Alona Beach, the dive sites are coral rich slopes that drop off to
a wall that extend past 40 meters. Arco Pt or Hole in the Wall , where one
can pass through a small hole on top and exit mid reef is also the fish
feeding area where friendly damselfishes and Sergeant majors swim up to meet
the divers. Gorgonians, fan and tree corals as well as the beautiful
dendronephtya soft corals are common sights along the slopes and walls.
Surgeon fish and small Tunas cruise along at mid-depth.

CABILAO

This island is blessed with a variety of dive sites. 

South-Point is considered one of the most beautiful sites in the Visayas
with its flat areas covered in massive colonies of table corals. Spill over
from a nearby protected area means a healthy fish population. Coconut wall,
just north of South point features gorgonians and black corals. Large
schools of barracudas  inhabit the area. 

Just below the lighthouse is a plateau covered in seagrasses hiding the
requisite macro critters. Sea moths, sea horses, nudi-branchs all make an
appearance. Always a good pick for a night dive.