Dive Apo Island from Dauin

The same forms as for any activity with us. Fill them in online before you arrive at forms.divebongo.com/start, about ten minutes per person, so the 7:45 AM meeting time on trip day is just a coffee and a briefing.

Sometimes, for a short while. Divers and snorkellers share the boat, so now and then it leaves the mooring to collect divers who have surfaced away from it, then returns. Before you get in, tell the crew where you plan to snorkel and roughly how long you’ll be, and follow their briefing for the site. Snorkellers can read how the whole day works on our Apo Island snorkelling page.

Pancakes or pandesal to nibble on the way out, with our home-roasted coffee made in a French press on the boat (a snack rather than a breakfast, so eat before you come). Water, coffee and tea all day, and fruit, usually bananas, with chocolate after the second dive. Lunch rotates with the trips: usually a vegetarian rice dish with a Filipino side such as pancit, and a barbecue when the weather allows. Tell us about allergies or dietary needs when you book.

It depends on the day. Apo sits in open water and feels the wind from both monsoons: the north-east monsoon (Amihan) and the south-west monsoon (Habagat). On calm days the boat rests gently at the buoy; on windier days it rocks, and because there is no sheltered bay at Apo, that can last the whole day. In our experience the north-east monsoon brings the roughest crossings from January to March, and from around April or May to November it is generally calmer, with choppy spells when south-west monsoon fronts come through in late July, August and September. No two years are the same, and it is rare that the sea is too rough to go at all. We go when the Coast Guard clears departures and our captain is satisfied with the conditions, and we choose the calmest sites of the day. If you are prone to seasickness, ask a pharmacist or doctor about suitable medication before your trip.

A guide in the water is an optional extra. The snorkelling day trip includes the boat, three or four sites (weather allowing), mask, snorkel and fins, lunch, morning snacks, coffee and drinks, and you snorkel at your own pace near the boat while the crew stay on board. If you would like a private snorkelling guide with you in the water for the whole day, ask when you book so we can arrange one, and we’ll quote the price. More on our Apo Island snorkelling page.

No. There is no jetty for a boat our size, and anchoring would damage the coral, so we tie up at the mooring buoys and you dive or snorkel straight from the boat; the whole day is spent on the boat and in the water. No guide is required at the sites we visit. The turtle-interaction zone in front of Apo’s main beach is different: snorkelling there needs a local guide booked from the island, and our trip does not go into it.

Safety comes first. Apo Island trips go when sea conditions allow, the Coast Guard permits and our captain is satisfied with the conditions. If we cancel a trip, we do our best to rebook you on the next available date, and your deposit moves to the new date or is refunded in full. See our Terms and Conditions.

Yes, subject to space on the boat. Our snorkelling day trip to Apo Island visits three or four sites, weather allowing, and costs PHP 2,500 per person, all in: lunch, morning snacks and drinks on board, mask, snorkel and fins, and the marine sanctuary fee. A private snorkelling guide in the water can be added; ask when you book and we’ll quote the price. Everything about the day, from the boat to the sea conditions, is on our Apo Island snorkelling page.