Apo Island diving guide

About Apo Island

Apo Island is a small volcanic island of about 72 hectares, around 7 kilometres off the south-east tip of Negros. It is part of the municipality of Dauin. Its waters are home to more than 650 species of fish and over 400 species of coral, which is why it is one of the best-known dive destinations in the Philippines.

A pioneer of community conservation

In 1982, with help from Dr Angel Alcala and the Silliman University Marine Laboratory, Apo Island's fishing families chose an area of reef to protect as a no-take marine sanctuary. Fish numbers recovered inside it and spilled over into the fishing grounds around it, and Apo became an internationally influential model of how local communities can protect their own reefs. The island and its waters are now a protected landscape and seascape under Philippine law, and the fees divers pay help look after them.

The marine sanctuary today

Typhoon Sendong in December 2011 and Typhoon Pablo in December 2012 destroyed most of the coral in the sanctuary itself; surveys by the Coastal Conservation and Education Foundation recorded coral damage of 99%. The sanctuary has been closed to divers ever since, so the reef can recover. New corals are spawning there, and schools of juvenile jacks swim in the protected area. Read more on our Apo Island Marine Sanctuary page.

The rest of the island's reefs are open, and they are the ones we dive.

The dive sites we visit

Which sites we dive depends on the day's conditions. These are the ones on our list:

• Largahan: volcanic bubbles, a wall and hawksbill turtles
• Chapel: a wall, sea snakes and bumphead parrotfish
• Katipanan: a gentle coral slope with turtles, ideal for newer divers
• Rock Point West: a steep coral slope with hawksbill and green turtles
• Rock Point East: a wall, a coral slope and turtles in the shallows
• Mamsa Point: a coral amphitheatre with giant frogfish and eagle rays
• Cogon: a dramatic drift with schooling jacks and passing pelagics
• Coconut Point: Apo's thrilling drift dive for advanced divers
• Kan-uran: some of Apo's most dramatic walls, with sea fans and pelagics

What you might see

Apo is the wide-angle side of a trip to Dauin. Expect hard and soft corals, sea fans and lots of reef fish, and turtles are a regular sight, both green and hawksbill. Depending on the site, look out for banded sea snakes, jacks and bigeye trevally, marbled groupers, giant frogfish, eagle rays and, with luck, bumphead parrotfish.

Your day trip with us

• 7:45 AM: meet at the dive centre. We walk to the boat at about 8:00 while the crew clears our departure with the Coast Guard.
• 8:15 AM: we leave for Apo Island. Three reef dives, with lunch, drinks and towels on board.
• 3:30 to 4:00 PM: back in Dauin.

The day trip is PHP 5,900 per person with full equipment, or PHP 5,500 with your own gear, plus a temporary fuel surcharge of PHP 600 per diver. Sanctuary fees are included; they are currently PHP 300 for three dives and are expected to double by the end of 2026, so we will confirm the price with you before you book. See Apo Island day trips for the details.

Snorkelling at Apo Island

Snorkellers can join our Apo trip if there is space on the boat. The snorkelling trip visits three sites and costs PHP 2,500 per person, including lunch, snorkelling equipment and marine sanctuary fees. Let us know when you enquire.

When to go

Apo Island trips run all year and are rarely cancelled. When they are, it is usually because a typhoon is sending big swells our way and the Coast Guard has issued a warning. Plan a few days in Dauin around your Apo day, so there is room to move it if the weather changes. See when to dive Dauin for the seasons.

Getting to Apo Island

Staying with us, you walk from the dive centre to our boat. If you are travelling independently, public boats to Apo Island leave from Malatapay in Zamboanguita, about 30 minutes away by boat.

Ready to plan? Build your dive trip and add an Apo Island day. You might also like our guide to muck diving in Dauin.