Dive Safari Jan 23 - 27, 2013
Dive Safari from Moalboal (Cebu) to Sipalay (Negros).
We’ve been trying to get a Safari trip going for 2 years and we finally got it to happen. Unfortunately as our original plan of going from Mactan to Moalboal (via Cabilao, Bohol and Negros).
Eight of us went from Cebu’s west coast to Negros’ west coast. (Anthony, Cath, Dylan, Joy, Ken, Kimberly, Misa and Sisse).
What’s a “dive safari” ?
It’s like a mix of live-aboard and resort diving. During the day you’re on the boat and late afternoon you get on land and eat/stay at a resort.
22nd January, five of us flew to Cebu where we arrived very early in the morning. The weather was perfect for a few dives.
The other 3 arrived late in the evening.
We boarded the “GOYA” early in the morning of Feb 23 and were soon getting ready for our 1st safari dive.
This boat would be our home during the day for the next 5 days. There were 2 other divers from Austria/Germany, Adeline and Daniel on board too.
During our dives the previous day, 22nd, we noticed that the viz wasn’t as good as it can be. Initially disappointed we learnt that we were actually lucky. The Adeline and Daniel had been in the area for 10 days already and managed only 1 day of diving b/o the daily torrential rain.
Day one was a “slow” one, with a visit to some waterfalls. Though beautiful and refreshing, we preferred to dive.
The trip had us diving at different places, with the boat moving during our surface intervals.
We started in Moalboal, went south and around Cebu’s southern tip up north to Oslob. (Whalesharks).
Though great to see up to 5 Whalesharks, it was saddening to see them “begging” with fisherman for food. It might be the only reason why they are there. If you’ve never seen a Whaleshark, you’d probably like it, others might not.
From there we went south again. Dived around Dauin and Apo Island, the former is a great place for macro enthusiasts. We also found patches where the sand at the bottom was warm/hot, courtesy of the volcano on the island.
On the last day we motored around the southern tip of Negros to Sipalay on the west coast. We stopped and dived on our way.
The crew on board and the food were fantastic. The resorts we stayed during the evenings ranged from “OK” to “great”.
This was our first experience with this kinda trip. Despite not everything going as smooth as we hoped for, we had a great trip. We all got along well with the crew and the 2 other divers.
Now that we’ve done our first trip, we know what to do/organize (in advance) to make it even better. Fortunately some flexibility is possible in arrangements and schedule.
We finished in Sipalay and stayed at the “Easy Diving Sipalay Resort”.
The resort and rooms are beautiful and really nice, probably the nicest “dive resort” I’ve been to in the Philippines. The rooms are definitely worth the higher prices. We didn’t dive there though so that’s something we’ll have to find out about next time.
It’s a great place to go for an “all in” experience. Room, full board and your diving all-in-one since the nearest alternative for food or diving is in Sipalay town.
Oh yes, photos.
Photos will be up later, check our website for updates re photos later this month.