Puerto Galera Dive Sites Archives - Asia Divers & El Galleon Beach Resort, Puerto Galera

Diving

Highlights of Scuba Diving in Puerto Galera

Posted on July 9, 2020July 9, 2020 by blogeditor

09
Jul

No matter what level of diver you are and no matter how many exotic locations you have dived, the diving in Puerto Galera will not disappoint even the most seasoned of divers.

Puerto Galera offers beautiful protected coves with stunning coral gardens and scores of exotic underwater species. Schooling reef fish, including jacks, snappers, fairy basslets, triggerfish, groupers, trevally, drummers and barracuda, set the scene against vibrant coral reefs and passing reef sharks. Turtles, moray eels, cephalopods and macro crustaceans are all found in abundance. And then there’s the thresher sharks – one of the most impressive sharks to see in the ocean.

Puerto Galera offers everything underwater that you would expect from the world-class scuba diving in the Philippines. From macro critters to cruising pelagics, Puerto Galera truly has it all – and in abundance! Here are 5 of our favourite dive sites that should not be missed when you are diving Puerto Galera…

The Canyons:

Three canyons make up this action-packed dive site which is a hot spot for schooling trevally, groupers, drummers, snappers and barracuda. Huge gorgonian sea fans and an abundance of soft corals make this a colourful site. Look out for resting turtles, hiding octopus and passing reef sharks.

West Escarceo:

This long stretch of sloping reef is home to vibrant corals, a plethora of reef fish and huge schools of red tooth triggerfish which occupy the blue. On the reef you’ll find moray eels at all depths and if you venture deeper than 20 metres / 65 feet, look out for blue-spotted stingrays on the sandy bottom.

scuba diving philippines — Resting turtles are one of the highlights of diving in the Philippines

San Agapito Point:

Located off Verde Island, this is a stunning pinnacle site that will entice pelagic lovers and macro fans alike. Schooling jacks and fairy basslets are a highlight along with frequent sea snake sightings, vibrant corals, huge gorgonian sea fans and a myriad of macro crustaceans.

Kilima Steps:

As the name suggests, this dive site offers a range of ‘steps’ starting from 5 metres/ 16 feet down to 22 metres/ 73 feet. Start at the deepest point and work your way up for a range of marine life including soap fish, nudibranch, barracuda, moray eels, lionfish and stunning corals. If you like intriguing topography this site is an absolute must.

thresher shark puerto galera — Thresher sharks have a distinctive long tail fin and are on many divers’ bucket lists

Sinandigan Wall:

If you are a macro photographer or nudibranch aficionado this dive site should be on your list. This beautiful coral wall extends down to 30 meters / 100 feet from where it becomes a sloping reef. Look out for macro critters among the colourful soft corals and resting turtles.

Diving with Thresher Sharks:

If you are hoping to dive with thresher sharks then diving in Puerto Galera must be added to your bucket list. Thresher sharks are generally a deeper dwelling species of shark that spend most of their time below 40 meters. So why then, do they come to the shallower water and dive sites around Puerto Galera? Because of the fish!! Thresher sharks need regular ‘cleaning’ to remove parasites from their body. The small cleaner fish found at our shallower depths are perfect for the job. It’s a beautiful symbiotic relationship – the thresher receives some TLC and the cleaner fish receive a free meal!

Blackwater Diving:

Blackwater diving is a relatively new type of diving in Puerto Galera and it’s when we see some of the strangest and most unusual marine life – which is rarely seen by other divers. Blackwater diving takes place at night and we use powerful lights to attract plankton and larvae stage marine species. The plankton, in turn, attracts some of the weirdest critters from the deep. This is an exciting dive and a must for underwater photographers.

Diverse Marine Life in the Coral Triangle

Puerto Galera is located in the heart of the coral triangle, did you know…

76% (605) of the world’s coral species (798) are found in the Coral Triangle, the highest coral diversity in the world.
The Coral Triangle has more coral reef fish diversity than anywhere else in the world: 37% (2,228) of the world’s coral reef fish species (6,000), and 56% of the coral reef fishes in the Indo-Pacific region (4,050).
8% (235 species) of the coral reef fishes in the Coral Triangle are endemic or locally restricted species. Within the Coral Triangle, four areas have particularly high levels of endemism (Lesser Sunda Islands, Papua New Guinea – Solomon Islands, Bird’s Head Peninsula, and the Central Philippines).
The Coral Triangle has 15 regionally endemic coral species (species found nowhere else in the world), and shares 41 regional endemic species with Asia.

marine life puerto galera — Puerto Galera is located in the Coral Triangle which is home to the most diverse marine life on Earth

PADI Open Water Course in Puerto Galera

If you are new to diving you can also explore and enjoy the amazing underwater world of diving in Puerto Galera! The conditions at our dive sites are ideal for beginners and our team of professional PADI Instructors are experts at guiding student divers through the PADI Open Water course in Puerto Galera. If you want to learn to dive in Puerto Galera then our team would love to teach you!

So are you ready to scuba dive in Puerto Galera with us? If you’d like more information or to make a reservation, fill in our online contact form, or send us an email to: admin@asiadivers.com

We are looking forward to scuba diving the Philippines with you soon!

Diving, News and Events

How to Choose the Right Dive Center in Puerto Galera

Posted on May 1, 2020May 11, 2020 by Asia Divers

01
May

In Puerto Galera, there are many dive centers to choose from, ranging from small to large It can be overwhelming at first to choose the right fit, but if you ask yourself the right questions, and look for trustworthy reviews, the process of choosing the right dive center will be a lot easier. Take a look at our top considerations for choosing the right dive center for you:

Is price a reflection of quality?

Many people would say ‘yes’. After all, in our everyday life, we get what we pay for, and more expensive dive sites would offer the highest quality services, right?

Not quite. Sometimes a high-priced service masks a few weaknesses. Don’t let a luxurious dive center lead you to think that the dive center operates sustainably and safely. At Asia Divers, we are transparent about our activities and dive programs that benefit the environment and the local people.

On the other spectrum, it should be noted that paying a little more for safety can make a huge difference in the quality of your dive (and your peace of mind).

Do they care about the important things?

Many dive resorts lose themselves in providing high-quality customer experience on the accommodation side but pay little attention to the diving activities and the quality of their equipment.

Just like price, a luxurious display on their website doesn’t reflect the dive center at all. Be sure to ask for a tour around the dive center and operations area. Should they refuse to do so, then something is up! Don’t hesitate to find other dive centers in the area if that happens.

Safety and quality diving experience are the cornerstone of our operations at Asia Divers.

Find trustworthy reviews online

Review sites are some of the most democratic places on the Internet, and they are active communities of real people who have gone to the hotel/restaurant/dive center themselves. Who could be more trustworthy than them?

On our blog, we report many positive things that are happening in Asia Divers, but we encourage you to hear about what other people say about us. Dozens of people have made reviews on TripAdvisor and Agoda. These two are trustworthy review sites with a great record for accuracy.

Also, check out our blog

Our blog is a place for our active community to report about all our diving activities and programs. We are also up to date with the latest news and write a post on anything that may impact your holiday experience with us.

Apart from our informational pages, our blog is a repository of knowledge about everything related to diving, written by experts across various sub-fields in diving. Looking to improve your underwater photography skills? Wanting to know more about the dive sites around Puerto Galera?

Our dive bloggers will answer every question related to diving in Puerto Galera so that you can be more informed.

Diving

Advantages of Blackwater Diving in The Philippines

Posted on April 10, 2020April 8, 2020 by Asia Divers

10
Apr

As you scroll down The Atlantic’s result of the 2018 Underwater Photographer of the Year Contest, there is a blackwater photo by Songda Cai of a transparent, bioluminescent conger eel coiling like a spring, darting its eyes upon a lone crustacean.

Some people may think that an underwater robot took this amazing photo at mysterious depths where divers can’t ever possibly go. But this photo was taken manually by a person. Underwater photographers such as Songda Cai can achieve this effect while blackwater diving in the Philippines.

What is Blackwater Diving?

Blackwater diving is similar to night diving. The only difference is that blackwater diving takes place over deep-sea channels or far from the coast, while night diving takes place on shallower water near coral reefs.

In the vast dark void, you can come across many beautiful sightings, often to many beginners’ surprise. As you dive in blackwater, you get to witness a daily vertical migration where pelagic planktons and larvae rise to shallower depths to feed on surface algae. This attracts larger creatures such as tunas, swordfish, cephalopods, and even whales.

What’s even more exciting is that the extremely limited amount of light allows you to spot a few bioluminescent creatures that are only detectable in the dark. This would give you plenty of challenges for underwater photography.

Where are some of the best spots for blackwater diving in the Philippines?

If you ask any seasoned blackwater diver, two locations in the Philippines come to mind: Anilao and Romblon. In these places, you get to see rare pelagic seahorses. Seahorses typically stay within the reef boundaries, but not these ones!

Asia Divers is quite close to another location offering an equally spectacular collection of nocturnal marine animals – The Verde Island Passage. Here you get to see the bioluminescent comb jellyfish, colonies of pyrosomes, and blanket octopuses. You don’t get to see these in the reefs directly in front of Asia Divers and El Galleon Dive Resort!

What are the advantages of blackwater diving?

Photo by Beth Watson

1. You can test your courage of facing the unknown

Remember your first-night diving experience? We can imagine that it felt exhilarating; the feeling of conquering the underwater world at night adds to your personal list of things people wouldn’t do, but you can.

But blackwater diving is a completely different thing altogether. The reefs and colorful corals provide ample reference points for you, even as you navigate in the near dark. When you dive in blackwater for the first time, you will have an eerie feeling of sensory deprivation since you can’t find a reference point anywhere around you.

You’ll instantly feel the need to trust your dive group more than ever as they are one of the few reference lights that are comforting your eyes. Another source of light comes from a modified rope with a buoy that also attracts tiny organisms to swim towards it.

After a while, you will feel that comfort begins to settle into your mind as you feel safe even in such an environment. The transformation from fear to acceptance is something that is quite familiar to divers.

2. You’ll find sea creatures you’ve never seen before

Even if you cross paths with only familiar animals in the blackwater, you’ll notice something different about them.

Under a new light, their behavior will be unlike anything you’d expect. For instance, you might see cuttlefish taking advantage of their dark environment to rapidly change their pigments – making multicolored moving ribbon patterns across their body.

Pelagic squids seem to fly over you like in outer space and bioluminescent zooplankton becomes prey to fluorescent eels and sea snakes. Some vulnerable larval lobsters are translucent while bright-colored pufferfish and boxfish contrast against the pitch-black background.

3. You get to test your underwater photography skills

All these sea creatures look amazing and you definitely want to take photos to preserve them forever on film.

The challenges of underwater photography in blackwater are twofold. Firstly, you need to maintain neutral buoyancy while slowly approaching your subjects, being careful not to stir or push them away from you. Secondly, you need to know the precise camera settings for blackwater photography.

Underwater photographer Mike Bartick has a few suggestions to share. He advises higher ISO values (360-600 for DSLR), higher F-stops (f/18 – f/25), and a middle-low shutter speed of 1/200 sec.

“I prefer higher ISO so that I can push my F-stop higher while using a lower strobe power. This allows my strobes to recycle faster for repeat exposures. If the subject is shiny, quickly increase your F-stop to reduce over-exposures. If the subject is a little further away, open your F-stop” – Mike Bartick.

For more insight related to underwater photography, visit his website at saltwaterphoto.com.

A few things to remember for safe blackwater diving

Remember to stay close to your group and follow your dive instructor. Pay attention to hand signals and how to deliver them with a flashlight. It’s best not to use a diver propulsion vehicle as the engine noise may scare away animals or disturb feeding behavior. Likewise, don’t bring any food to feed the animals.

Dive with Asia Divers

If you’re interested in blackwater diving with us, check out our dedicated blackwater diving page. Make sure that you’ve received basic formal training before taking our PADI specialty courses, which includes night diving and underwater photography.

Diving, News and Events

Our PADI Diving Courses in Puerto Galera

Posted on March 13, 2020March 13, 2020 by Asia Divers

13
Mar

The founders of Asia Divers had been one of the first to operate in Puerto Galera since the golden age of scuba diving in Mindoro – this was 30 years ago when the cove was exclusively an advanced divers’ playground.

Today, Asia Divers’ PADI diving courses welcome everyone from all backgrounds, skills, and ages to come and enjoy a piece of Puerto Galera’s incredible marine biodiversity and beautiful coastlines. We have prepared dozens of courses that will fit your needs – from absolute beginner to pro-diver looking to develop your career in the diving industry.

This article will cover the majority of diving courses that we offer, in which students are all under the supervision and training of Certified PADI Instructors.

Beginner Courses – Getting In The Water

A great part of scuba diving is trust. You must trust your instructors and follow their leadership; you must trust your equipment after you’ve checked it, but most importantly, you must trust yourself that you can operate the equipment properly and make low-risk decisions throughout the session.

Valuable lessons can be learned even as a beginner in the PADI Recreational Courses.

PADI Skin Diver

For children 8 years and above, the Skin Diver course is valuable to build trust and comfort with the underwater environment – think about the time when you first became confident enough to free dive in the deeper part of the swimming pool.

PADI Bubble Maker

Bubble Maker is the course where your child can become accustomed to the diving gear and breathing underwater. This early training is excellent to develop interest in scuba diving later on.

Book PADI Skin Diver and PADI Bubble Maker here.

PADI Discover Scuba Diving

Discover Scuba Diving is for those who have always wanted to try scuba diving at least once in their lives, but aren’t sure about making a commitment to the full PADI Open Water course with a globally-recognized certificate.

PADI Scuba Diver

Another option is to take the PADI Scuba Diver course, which is part of the full PADI Open Water training. If you do well in this 2-day course, at the dive instructor’s discretion, you may credit (upgrade) this towards full certification later on.

Book PADI Discover Scuba Diving and PADI Scuba Diver here.

PADI Open Water Diver

Get your scuba diving certification with the PADI Open Water Diver course – the world’s most popular and widely recognized scuba course. Millions of people have learned to scuba dive and gone on to discover the wonders of the aquatic world through this course.

Book PADI Open Water Diver here.

Advanced Courses – For Serious Diving Business

The college equivalent to the PADI Open Water Diver course is the PADI Adventure Diver course. Learn skills in greater depth. You can opt for several course variations in this particular certification – from Rescue Diver and Emergency Transponders to becoming a Divemaster (minimum age of 18 years).

Book PADI Adventure Diver here.

When your roots are solid, and you want to train for specialized styles of diving, you can do so with the PADI Specialty Courses as listed below:

Intro to Nitrox
Enriched Air Nitrox
Peak Performance Buoyancy Diver
Surface Marker Buoy Diver
Drift Diver
Deep Diver
Naturalist Diver
Dive Against Debris
Equipment Specialist
Multilevel Diver
PADI Digital Underwater Photography
PADI Night Diving
PADI Navigation Diver

Why Us?

Our principle is to provide comfortable and quality training. Our on-land training facility is spacious and modern. We have a private pier to allow safe passage between boat and land. We own a dedicated photography room and rinse tank for photographers.

In addition, our training is rigorous and complete, with no shortcuts. Our small-group classes ensure that proper attention is given to each student. A language barrier will not be a problem as we have instructors who speak English, Tagalog, German, Swedish, Mandarin, and Cantonese.

Completeness of training is the key to success, and we want to ensure that our students receive the best diving education to further their careers, in addition to the fun experience of exploring the underwater world.

Beach Resort, News and Events

Asia Divers & El Galleon: Your One Stop Dive Resort in Puerto Galera

Posted on March 6, 2020March 10, 2020 by Asia Divers

06
Mar

Are you planning your summer vacation in The Philippines? If you ask us, we recommend Mindoro Island, specifically the seaside town of Puerto Galera. Have a quick Google Image search and look at the first images – the beauty of the region is not exaggerated!

Of course, the next question would be, “Where should I stay?”

If you believe that luxury and diving adventure can be fused into a one of a kind summer vacation for you and your family, then you should check out El Galleon Dive Resort, the resort for Asia Divers.

What Exactly Can I Do at Asia Divers & El Galleon Dive Resort?

Convenient diving, getting a good rest and meeting all your holiday needs at once…

Diving can be miserable sometimes. We’ve had our fair share of bad weather, waiting in long queues for annual equipment maintenance, and getting hungry between dives.

Before El Galleon Dive Resort, our team of PADI Instructors and dive guides had to endure these bad days. But when the dive resort was completed, there was no reason to go on a sea adventure without a little bit of luxury and convenience.

How El Galleon Dive Resort Makes Diving More Enjoyable

What was missing back in the day was a modern dive facility close to the dive sites. Everything used to be delivered from Batangas, the closest big city, an hour away by boat.

Now that the dive facility is located near all the beautiful natural underwater features, it takes no time at all to set up, travels to the site, dive, comes back to rest, and repeat this cycle.

Unthinkable Inconveniences Now Eliminated

The world’s best divers don’t care about inconveniences. But most of us are not like them, and it helps to increase the enjoyment of diving when some pain points are eliminated.

Camera room for underwater photographers

A dedicated camera room is available at our facility. We understand that underwater photography requires practice and prompt feedback. Once your photos have been processed, you can quickly learn what to do differently on your next dive the following day.

Private dock

Getting on and off the boat is easy with a dock. No more carrying your equipment high above your waist as you tread the rocky shallows.

Brand new equipment

We have experienced the anxiety of using second-hand equipment at local dive shops. Fortunately, all the equipment at Asia Divers is new. How is that possible? Asia Divers is also a distributor, so you can dive in peace knowing that the equipment is still high quality.

And much more!

Learn more about what you will find in El Galleon by going to the dedicated webpage.

We can’t wait to show you around Puerto Galera, both on land and in the sea. It’s a wonderful holiday destination worthy of consideration. Check out all the cool sights to see and things to do by going to our recreations page.

Beach Resort, Diving, News and Events

Top Reasons to Try Diving in Puerto Galera, Philippines

Posted on February 14, 2020March 5, 2020 by Asia Divers

Recognized for some of the best reef diving in the world, Puerto Galera in the Philippines is known as a spectacular scuba diving haven by divers worldwide.

The fish variety exceeds the fish found in the Red Sea and boasts to consist both of more hard and soft coral variety than the Great Barrier Reef.

The water in Puerto Galera offers excellent visibility all year round with an average water temperature of around 29’C. Colorful and vibrant reef dominates the waters along with an abundance of sea life making the reefs their home. Most of the dive sites of Puerto Galera are suitable for divers with Open Water qualification, but there are still plenty of sites technical divers will enjoy.

Here are the top dive sites in Puerto Galera that should be on your list:

Sabang Wrecks

Sabang Wreck Dive Photo by Beth Watson

Two wooden wrecks and one steel hull yacht are part of the Sabang Wrecks. It’s an excellent dive experience, especially for beginning divers with a max depth of 21m. Be prepared to meet a school of batfish once you reach the first wreck at about 11m. The three wrecks are surrounded by all kinds of marine life.

Monkey Beach, West Escarceo and Dugong Wall

Puerto Galera Underwater
Photo by Beth Watson

A great diversity of marine species and colorful corals are found within these three dive sites as part of the continuous coral garden within easy reach from 5 to 25 meters. This spot is a favorite among marine photographers with the wreck of a small sailboat found in the area.

The Canyons

Puerto Galera Photo by Beth Watson

For a more thrilling and adrenaline-pumping time in the depths, the Canyon consists of 3 canyons with a maximum depth of 32m. Diving in these strong currents is only for advanced divers. You’ll get to watch schools of trevally tuna and even barracudas effortlessly drifting in the currents.

Here are some of the popular dive sites that made Puerto Galera a worldwide diving phenomenon. Other locations include caves, muck dives, other shallow coral fields, and drift dives. Planned to visit Puerto Galera on your next diving trip? Contact Asia Divers for unforgettable diving tours in Asia including the Philippines.

Diving, News and Events

Why go scuba diving in Verde Island Passage in the Philippines

Posted on February 8, 2020March 5, 2020 by blogeditor

08
Feb

Have you heard about the amazing scuba diving in the Philippines? Have you read about Puerto Galera and the world-renowned Verde Island Passage? Read on to find out why diving in the Verde Island Passage needs to be on the bucket list of places to dive for every discerning and adventurous scuba diving. This impressive area, location, situated at the heart of the Coral Triangle (the epicenter of marine biodiversity on the planet), will take your breath away and keep you mesmerized for dive after dive!

Diving Verde Puerto Galera — Our beautiful base in Puerto Galera is ideally located for diving Verde

Where is the Verde Island Passage?

The Verde Passage is a Strait which separates the islands of Luzon and Mindoro in the Batangas province of the Philippines. The strait connects the South China Sea with Tayabas Bay and the Sibuan Sea beyond.

The passage is known as both the Verde Passage and the Verde Island Passage – with Verde Island positioned in the center of the Strait. The 1.14 million hectare passage is extremely rich in marine biodiversity, in fact, it’s among the richest areas in the entire Coral Triangle and one of the most productive ecosystems in the world. These waters continue to yield new species to science, further underscoring its global biological significance.

For scuba divers, the easiest access to the beautiful waters of the Verde Passage is from Puerto Galera – which is why we chose this beautiful town as our base!

(Mantis shrimp) From schooling fish to macro critters, Puerto Galera and Verde have something for everyone

Why Dive Puerto Galera and Verde Passage?

Ask anyone who’s dived here! From beginners through to seasoned professionals, scuba diving Puerto Galera and Verde offers a range of dive sites for all levels, stunning coral reefs, diverse marine life and incredible visibility. Our warm tropical waters are simply bursting with a kaleidoscope of colors and teeming with life. From passing pelagics through to schooling fish and even macro critters, there is something for everyone. If you are an underwater photography enthusiast, both wide-angle and macro opportunities abound, and no matter what your experience level, with over 30 dives sites to choose from, you’re literally spoiled for choice.

For those who have an interest in maritime history, the wreckage of a Spanish galleon that sunk in 1620 was found in the southern part of the Verde Passage. Most of the ancient cargo was salvaged from the wreckage in the late seventies and again in the early 80s but some remnants of her bounty still show up on the beach. Whilst beachcombing it’s sometimes still possible to stumble across pieces of broken porcelain, which date back to the late 1500 and early 1600s!

Canyons — Vibrant, healthy corals and a kaleidoscope of colours in Puerto Galera

Conservation and the Verde Passage

In 2006, a team of marine conservationists declared the Philippines a “Center of Marine Biodiversity” in the world and Verde Island Passage as the “Center of the Center of Marine Shorefish Biodiversity”.

Many threatened species, which include sea turtles like hawksbills, olive ridleys, and green turtles; humphead wrasses, giant groupers, giant clams and the rare red fin wrasse (Cirrhilabrus rubripinnis) are present in the Verde Island Passage.

There is a complete moratorium of all types of fishing in the Batangas Bays and around Mindoro island. The fish sold in the markets of Puerto Galera come from distant places such as Romblon. This is a very healthy sign for the development of marine diversity – there is more work to be done but Verde Passage continues to thrive.

Ready to go Scuba Diving in Puerto Galera?

At Asia Divers, we have over 30 years of experience and our friendly team of professional PADI Instructors and Divemasters are experts in our region. We operate flexible schedules so that you can make as many (or as few) dives as you like, including night dives and blackwater diving. We have a spacious camera room and dedicated rinse tanks for photography equipment for underwater photographers. And we keep our dive groups small so you get the personal service you deserve! Our comfortable, purpose-built speedboat makes day trips to Verde Island easy to arrange without unnecessary lengthy time on the boat.

For more information, or to make a confirmed booking, email us at admin@asiadivers.com, or fill in our online contact form and we will get right back to you.

We look forward to scuba diving Puerto Galera and the Verde Island Passage with you soon!

Beach Resort, Diving

Shipwrecks in Puerto Galera (Near Our Beach Resort!)

Posted on February 7, 2020February 12, 2020 by Asia Divers

07
Feb

If you are looking for one location with one of the greatest concentrations of shipwrecks, look no further than Puerto Galera, particularly the Sabang Bay area.

In fact, we love Sabang Bay so much, our beach resort El Galleon Dive Resort sits right on the hotspot for wreck divers and reef snorkeling lovers! Check out these three wreck sites that are ridiculously close by our beach resort.

The M/V Alma Jane

This shipwreck is just off the end of our very own pier!

At 30 meters deep, the M/V Alma Jane was sunk perfectly in front of our resort and is so diver friendly that it practically becomes our own playground for beginner dive sessions. It’s also a perfect training ground for various dive courses.

The ship was once mixed steel and wooden cargo vessel and was sunk in March 2003 by the Puerto Galera Dive Association (PGDA). This purposeful sinking was to create a reef habitat to counter the receding coral reefs due to the unregulated tourism of the late 90s in Puerto Galera.

The ship has had all hazardous items removed to prepare it as a wreck dive site, so it is possible to get inside the ship! You will discover moray eels in their hiding spots and hard and soft corals such as the gorgonian sea fan and sea whip making the interior their home.

The exterior of the ship is also spectacular – perfect for wide-angle photography. PGDA has left the main mast of M/V Alma Jane intact.

St. Christopher

At a depth of 24 meters, this wreck was truly devastated by the elements – also because of the fact that it is almost entirely made of wood.

The St. Christopher has a rather unique history. Way before it was sunk in 1995, it was a cargo vessel originally owned by local traders. It meandered its way around the calm Batangas Bay, Marikaban, and the north-east of Mindoro in its active days.

The cargo vessel was then converted into a diving live-aboard ship, serving an entirely different purpose and was refurbished. Unfortunately, the service didn’t last long. The last owner failed to settle a dispute – we are not sure about the details, but we do know that it ended with the ship’s untimely demise to the bottom of the sea in Sabang Bay.

Sabang Wrecks

There is not just one shipwreck on this site, but three! Three shipwrecks triple the biota that makes the shipwrecks their home, and this is what makes the visit worth it. Visiting the site itself won’t take too long either. It takes just two minutes from El Galleon by our local Bangka (outrigger) speed boat.

The three wrecks are at various stages of decay. Two are old wooden Chinese fishing junks and are decaying much faster than the steel yacht. However, the three wrecks still retain the shape from their better days. You can explore all three of them in one dive session. Swimming between them should not take more than a few minutes.

The area is perfect for both daylight and night diving. In the afternoon, the shallow 18 meter wrecks can be fully visible, featuring your favorite local critters: the batfish, large surgeonfish, lionfish, damsels, and trumpets. The elusive stonefish and flounder are attracted to the area because of the sandy surroundings. And don’t miss the ghost pipefish and mantis shrimps crawling among the wrecks!

Asia Divers’ El Galleon Resort is located on Small La Laguna Beach, Puerto Galera. Asia Divers offers PADI courses from entry-level to instructor level. Daily diving includes five scheduled daily dives: 8:00, 10:30, 13:30, 16:00 and 18:00 (night) with a choice of dive sites at each time. Join us on your next dive holiday adventures!

News and Events

Halloween Party 2018 & News from Asia Divers

Posted on October 23, 2018October 23, 2018 by Asia Divers

23
Oct

We’ve got the Booze… You Bring the Boo’s!

Join us For Some Haunting Spirits and Wicked Brews at the Point Bar on October 31st 2018.

We still have rooms available. Contact admin@asiadivers.com

Verde Island reefs show resilience to climate change

In the face of climate change, the reefs of Verde Island, situated in the middle of the “center of the center of marine biodiversity” in the world, are showing signs that they are protected from the major impacts of climate change.

Read the full article in the Manila Bulletin

What’s been happening at Asia Divers?

Stunning conditions at Verde Island this week.

Alli snuck on board with Finn and Arthur to do their second dive for their PADI Digital Underwater Photography course. So many great photo opps there! With Elly, Alli, Robert Johnston, Matthew Malekos, Finn Marinkovich-Josey, Simon Josey, Richard Trebus, Omri Hephner, Erich Werne, Mal Howarth, Ron Jackson, Elliot, Jobert Tapia (Cody), Maria and Arthur Nash.

PADI Advanced Open Water & Digital Underwater Photography certs

Congratulations to Finn Marinkovich-Josey on his getting two great PADI certifications this week!

Follow these links for more info about the courses:

The natural beauty of Puerto Galera

Fall colours at The Point. It happens only for a few days every year, but it’s so beautiful…
The elves have been busy preparing for Christmas this past week.

Preparing for a Puerto Galera Christmas

If you don’t have plans for Christmas yet, consider coming down here for very fun time over the holidays. We’ve got lots of special things going on including Santa’s visit on the 24th, scrumptious Christmas and New Year’s Eve dinners at El Gal and fireworks to bring in the New Year.

Underwater Photos Corner

We’ve had a fun time doing the PADI Digital Underwater photography course these past few days with Arthur Nash and Finn Marinkovich-Josey. Both students enjoyed taking photos with the Olympus Tough camera and housing and got some great results. They also got to practice some editing on their phones and tablets.

Arthur and Finn did their PADI Advanced course earlier on in the week, and then went right into the photo course. I was super pleased to see that not only we’re they taking some great photos, but they had excellent buoyancy and awareness under water.

Below are a few of Finn’s photos and we’ll have some from Arthur next week.

I liked this silhouette photo of the fish because of the stunning blue water and the sunburst.

Peace and calmness at the top of the Verde Island pinnacle, again with that gorgeous blue water.

Nice use of framing in macro and a little bit of cropping for the clownfish shot . Gorgeous looking turtle giving Finn the eye.

Click on the gallery images below to enlarge

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Diving, News and Events

What’s Been Happening at Asia Divers?

Posted on October 17, 2018October 17, 2018 by Asia Divers

17
Oct

It’s been a busy week at Asia Divers, which is just the way we like it!

If you have visited the Asia Divers website before, you probably noticed it’s had a major facelift. It was a big job, spanning several months, with many hands involved, but everyone did their part, and we’re very happy with result. Hope you like the new site!

Now you can buy top quality scuba gear from us online!

We’re very pleased to announce that Ocean Dive Supply has a new website and online store. You can see our products at https://divesupply.com.ph/ and visit the ODS Online Store https://divesupply.com.ph/shop/diving/en

Visit the ODS website

A PADI Open Water course 15 years in the making!

Congratulations to Arthur Nash for completing his PADI Open Water course. I’d have to say that this is the longest running course that I’ve ever done….ha ha. Actually, Arthur started the course 15 years ago and never quite finished it, so second time around we made sure it got completed. Now on to AOW and more. Needless to say the family genes are there as far as comfort and ability in the water…a chip off the old block for sure!!

Night dive on the Alma Jane wreck

Diving one of our favourite dive sites with Richard, and Andrew plus 4 instructors! What a great dive to do for the more experienced divers.

What’s our Divemaster Intern Elliot been doing?

Straight from the horse’s mouth:

Over a month now interning with Asia Divers and learning more each week. Passed the Dive Master exams, averaging over 90% and now working with Allison on the PADI Advanced Open Water Course, gaining more great experience training students.

Besides training students I’ve had the opportunity to learn how to work the compressors including the theory of how to repair and analyze cylinders and regulators in the dive shop.

With the number of guests increasing each week there is more and more opportunities to explore and learn the dive sites along with meeting interesting people from all different walks of life. Can’t wait to see how the next month unfolds.

Guilty Pleasures…

They say an army marches on its stomach, and the Asia Divers team is no different. Guess who was very happy to get the chance to go to Batangas SM by speedboat, run in, and get a bag of Big Macs to bring home!