Dive Review of Easy Diving/Thalatta in
Philippines/Negros Oriental (Dumaguete)

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Easy Diving/Thalatta, May, 2008, by Carl Scott, TX, USA ( Contributor 16 reports with 2 Helpful votes). Report 4155.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity	N/A
Dive Operation		Shore Diving
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$	N/A
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Thallata is quiet, new, and very nice. Only 10 guest rooms, soon to be 12, which will be it. Restaurant has a moderate-sized menu; the food is very well prepared and mostly American style food. Staff is very friendly and helpful. Rooms are comfortable,, all have sea view from the veranda, built as duplex units. Bathrooms have good plumbing fixtures, even good showers. A/C works well, beds typical of Asian accommodations. Swimming pool is saltwater. As of my visit, breakfast was included, but limited to a certain amount (in pesos) daily per person, so there may be a small charge, if you want to pig out on something other than the small buffet of fruits and cold cereal. However, the cost to have something extra is minimal, and you can get some choices without exceeding their budget. The resort may be considering changing this policy somewhat, based upon guest feedback. Diving operation is incorporated into the resort, though owned by a different person, it appears. Staff there is also very friendly and helpful. On important note: Though the resort's web site didn't mention it, and neither did they when I was there, trips to nearby Apo Island and Ducomi Pier require an extra fee (I think they were around $15 and $10, respectively), but it's well worth the extra charge, especially given the relatively cheap price of dives, to begin with. Dive times are very relaxed, and 80-90 minute dives were common for the more seasoned and fit divers. Briefings usually included the statement, "dive time is 60-80 minutes, depending on air". Very easy diving, indeed! As for diving, it is some of the best I've ever experienced. Apo Island is worth 1-2 visits, because the reefs are extremely healthy, and it takes 2 days to see the majority of the sites, 3 to see them all. There is considerable variety, and your head will be spinning with the abundant marine life. Ducomi pier is, as one might suspect, rife with unsual marine life - frogfish are guaranteed, as are pipefish and many other interesting creatures. You could do half a dozen dives here before you (think you) saw it all. Local dives are typically a wonderful combination of muck diving and sometimes very vibrant reefs, depending on the site. Expect to find nurseries with lots of juvenile tropicals. Nudibranches were abundant and diverse during my visit, but this could vary from season to season. Not a lot of large animals (didn't see a single shark or manta), but an occasional large mackerel, or, in Apo, bumphead parrotfish or Napoleon wrasse is possible, with large sweetlips and trevally also common. You may think that skimming the top of sea grass beds at 15 feet deep is boring, but some of the most precious nudibranchs and juveniles were found there, not to mention an occasional anemone with panda anemonefish. Speaking of anemonefish, expect to see thousands, of at least 5 different species. Shore diving gets a 4 only because the only short dive done here lacks a natural reef and may be boring to some. Regarding transportation to Dumaguete, the closest city, I do NOT recommend Air Philippines. Their flights are chronically 2+ hours late. Local transportation is available by taxi (20 minutes from the resort to Dumaguete, 30 minutes by Jeepney, which is dirt cheap at about USD $1 round trip, but not available after 10PM. If you like to mix with the friendly locals, I recommend taking a Jeepney to town one afternoon for the fun of it. I've read from many visitors to this area that the Wednesday Malatapai market is a must-see. I can only figure that the've never been on a farm or to a livestock auction before. You might pick up something interesting here, but, aside from some fresh fruit and roasted pig, I doubt that the average tourist would buy anything there. It might be fun, if you are alert enough to catch some interesting cultural snapshots, however. This area (and this resort) is on my list of places to visit again, and I highly recommend it to all conscientious divers.
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Indonesia (Bali, Bunaken, Lembeh), Philippines, Thailand, Palau, Costa Rica (Pacific), Colombia, Cozumel, Little Cayman, St. Croix, St. Vincent, Panama (Pacific), Belize
Closest Airport		Getting There
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	82-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	2
Water Visibility	60-80 Ft/ 18-24 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	None. Just come back to the boat alive. However, guides typically stayed above 80 ft.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	N/A
What I Saw
Sharks	None	Mantas	None
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
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
UW Photo Comments	Subject matter is phenomenal. Nudibranchs on every dive, some rare, lots of juvenile tropicals on reefs, along with some large fish, as well. Shore facilities were as good as one could ask for, separate rinse tank for every category of equipment. Boat facilities limited to a small bucket, but I never consider anything but shade and protection from accidents to be important to me. In that regard, the large boat is fine, but the 20' boat used for local dives provides nothing. Nevertheless, these dives are within 2-5 minutes, so shore facilities suffice.

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Dive Review of Easy Diving/Thalatta in Philippines/Negros Oriental (Dumaguete)

Easy Diving/Thalatta, May, 2008,

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):

Dive Review of Easy Diving/Thalatta in
Philippines/Negros Oriental (Dumaguete)