Where is the best diving in the Philippines? Those who have visited Southern Leyte dive sites around Sogod Bay say this is some of the best diving they have ever done. Described as an undiscovered divers’ paradise, there is something to suit all divers’ preferences; pristine coral reef wall dives at Napantao, muck diving and super macro at Maltibog Lembeh, shore dives at Max Climax, incredible night dive at Padre Burgos Jetty/Pier and everything in between.
However, Southern Leyte’s biggest draw is November to May when you can swim with whale sharks.
If you like your dive destinations off the beaten track, and to be the only boat at a dive site, Southern Leyte is the place for you.
Still largely unheard of, a trip to Southern Leyte provides divers and underwater photographers with a special experience. The journey in itself is an adventure, but when you dive the marine protected waters, the rewards are worth it.
Feet Do Travel take you to one of the best word-of-mouth destinations we have discovered, and show you the fantastic diving at Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte; an undiscovered paradise.
However, Southern Leyte’s biggest draw is November to May when you can swim with whale sharks.
If you like your dive destinations off the beaten track, and to be the only boat at a dive site, Southern Leyte is the place for you.
Still largely unheard of, a trip to Southern Leyte provides divers and underwater photographers with a special experience. The journey in itself is an adventure, but when you dive the marine protected waters, the rewards are worth it.
Feet Do Travel take you to one of the best word-of-mouth destinations we have discovered, and show you the fantastic diving at Sogod Bay, Southern Leyte; an undiscovered paradise.
Where is Leyte in the Philippines?
Country: Philippines
Region: Visayas (Eastern)
Island/Province: Leyte
Municiaplity/Town: Padre Burgos
The Philippines is split into three main island groups, Luzon (for Manila), Mindanao (for the Philippines highest peak, plus the Guinness World Record’s largest clam and eagle) and the Visayas, which is where Leyte is located.
Leyte is a long, thin island much like it’s neighbour Cebu and for diving, you will head to Southern Leyte and the area around Sogod Bay. There is hardly any road traffic and palm trees line the coast rising high onto hilltops all around.
If you have heard of Leyte, you may know you can have an ethical swim with whale shark experience here. Whale Shark Season runs November until May, January/February is when Leyte receives the most rain (I can vouch for that!).
What you can expect diving in Southern Leyte
Country: Philippines
Region: Visayas (Eastern)
Island/Province: Leyte
Municiaplity/Town: Padre Burgos
The Philippines is split into three main island groups, Luzon (for Manila), Mindanao (for the Philippines highest peak, plus the Guinness World Record’s largest clam and eagle) and the Visayas, which is where Leyte is located.
Leyte is a long, thin island much like it’s neighbour Cebu and for diving, you will head to Southern Leyte and the area around Sogod Bay. There is hardly any road traffic and palm trees line the coast rising high onto hilltops all around.
If you have heard of Leyte, you may know you can have an ethical swim with whale shark experience here. Whale Shark Season runs November until May, January/February is when Leyte receives the most rain (I can vouch for that!).
What you can expect diving in Southern Leyte
|
There are 22 dive sites around Sogod Bay offering divers a bit of everything. Huge pristine coral walls and stunning coral formations, large schools of reef fish, world-class muck diving, super macro, and more nudibranch than you can shake a stick at. At times there can strong currents, sometimes waves, other days the water is as flat as a pancake.
Sogod Bay is a natural place to view whale sharks. They migrate through this area between the months of November until May using the plankton rich waters of the Coral Triangle as a feeding station. Viewing them here is 100% sustainable and ethical which means no feeding. Local law only allows you to snorkel with whale sharks, however if you are diving at a nearby site, you may be lucky to see them as they migrate through the waters |
Temperature: We visited mid-January and the water temperature was 25-26°c. We both wore full wetsuits as we didn’t want to risk being cold on our dives. If you are muck diving, it can become a little chilly as you generally don’t move a lot when searching for the cool critters hidden in the sand. You may wish to wear a rash vest under your wetsuit, and/or a hood if you feel the cold.
Conservation in Sogod Bay
There are a total of 12 Marine Protected Areas around Sogod Bay which require a sanctuary fee per person per dive. The marine park fees for specific dive sites are set by the Local Government, and the money goes directly to each respective village as a sustainable way of protecting the reef and its fish.
Conservation in Sogod Bay
There are a total of 12 Marine Protected Areas around Sogod Bay which require a sanctuary fee per person per dive. The marine park fees for specific dive sites are set by the Local Government, and the money goes directly to each respective village as a sustainable way of protecting the reef and its fish.
|
Napantao was the first Marine Protected Area to be introduced in 2002 by UK conservation specialist Coral Cay Conservation as an attempt to stop the destructive fishing practices of cyanide fishing and coral harvesting. It was so successful that surrounding villages followed suit, with the help of the few dive resorts located in the area. In places such as the Philippines where the minimum wage is 350PHP per day, arguments for preserving the richness of the marine life/coral versus putting food on your family’s table always crop up. |
|
Marine Sanctuary Fees:
100 - Medicare (North and South)
100 - Max Climax
100 - Jetty (for night dive)
100 – Limasawa
150 - Malitbog Lembeh
200 - Napantao (North and South)
100 - Medicare (North and South)
100 - Max Climax
100 - Jetty (for night dive)
100 – Limasawa
150 - Malitbog Lembeh
200 - Napantao (North and South)
|
|
Be a good diver/photographer
Never forget that as a diver, you are a visitor to the underwater world. BE A CONSIDERATE DIVER TO OTHERS, AND TO MARINE LIFE.
All diving was carried out with Peter’s Dive Resort. All travel times by boat are from Padre Burgos. A detailed review of Peter’s Dive Resort, is at the bottom of this post.
All photographs taken with an Olympus TG5 with Olympus PT-058 Underwater Housing. A popular choice amongst divers - easy to use, and you can buy additional parts such as stropes etc as you progress.
Never forget that as a diver, you are a visitor to the underwater world. BE A CONSIDERATE DIVER TO OTHERS, AND TO MARINE LIFE.
- Do not harass marine life by chasing them or move critters for a better photograph
- Do not take lots of photographs with flash/strobes, you don’t like it when a torch is flashed in your eyes and marine life are the same. Save the critters retinas.
- Maintain excellent buoyancy when diving/photographing – if you are taking a photo of a 5mm frogfish and lay your fins in the sand, you could be resting them on another small critter
- Don’t hold onto coral to take your photo – buoyancy remember!!
- Back away from coral carefully – learn to back fin if you want to do it properly and professionally
- Learn how to frog kick – flutter kicking is not good for macro photograph
- There’s no need to touch a sea fan or rush to photograph a pygmy seahorse, it’s not going anywhere!
- Do not push in front of other photographers, wait your turn and give them space. Similarly, don’t photograph a subject for too long when others are waiting, take it in turns
All diving was carried out with Peter’s Dive Resort. All travel times by boat are from Padre Burgos. A detailed review of Peter’s Dive Resort, is at the bottom of this post.
All photographs taken with an Olympus TG5 with Olympus PT-058 Underwater Housing. A popular choice amongst divers - easy to use, and you can buy additional parts such as stropes etc as you progress.
|
|
The underwater housing without the camera - to show you how it looks
|
Buluarte and Max Climax – Peter’s Dive Resort House Reef
Sanctuary Fee for Max Climax: 100PHP per person per dive
Buluarte, Max Climax and Voltairs Rock are three overlapping dive sites which stretch for nearly a kilometre right outside Peter’s Dive Resort.
A gentle sloping reef with plenty of healthy coral; gorgonian fans, hard and soft corals and beautiful coral bommies in amongst sandy areas – the perfect environment for every size marine life. We weren’t fortunate to see big reef fish on this particular dive, but we saw small schools of rainbow runners and yellowtail fusiliers, small reef groupers (peacock groupers, and black tip groupers). There were plenty of colourful reef fish; Angel fish, Butterflyfish, Box fish, Damselfish, Cardinal fish plus Candy crabs, Guard crabs and cuttlefish.
Dive site: Buluarte
Sanctuary Fee for Max Climax: 100PHP per person per dive
Buluarte, Max Climax and Voltairs Rock are three overlapping dive sites which stretch for nearly a kilometre right outside Peter’s Dive Resort.
A gentle sloping reef with plenty of healthy coral; gorgonian fans, hard and soft corals and beautiful coral bommies in amongst sandy areas – the perfect environment for every size marine life. We weren’t fortunate to see big reef fish on this particular dive, but we saw small schools of rainbow runners and yellowtail fusiliers, small reef groupers (peacock groupers, and black tip groupers). There were plenty of colourful reef fish; Angel fish, Butterflyfish, Box fish, Damselfish, Cardinal fish plus Candy crabs, Guard crabs and cuttlefish.
Dive site: Buluarte
Yellow Boxfish
Hairy Squat Lobster
White Eye Moray Eel
Nudibranch eggs create this beautiful flower
Dive Site: Max Climax
Sexy Shrimp
Glass Shrimp
Peek-a-boo
|
|
Malitbog Lembeh including Juhn’s Wreck
Drive time by boat/car: 30 minutes
Sanctuary Fee: 150PHP per person per dive
The name of this dive site means “Little Lembeh” in other words, it is similar to the famous Lembeh in Indonesia, the muck diving capital of the world. Does it deserve its name? Yes, in a way it does. It has brown-black sand similar to its Indonesian namesake, some trash which is good as this is where the weird and wonderful hide, and we did get to see some cool critters.
There are two small wrecks/steel-hulled cargo boats which were sunk at the end of the last century. They aren’t big by any stretch of the imagination, and not recognisable as a wreck, however they are covered with coral, gorgonian fans and a plethora of reef fish. I just sat back and watched as a small school of reef fish darted around me; I enjoyed that very much! We did our longest dives at this site, but Sy is a huge super macro and muck diving fan.
Various Nudibranch
Drive time by boat/car: 30 minutes
Sanctuary Fee: 150PHP per person per dive
The name of this dive site means “Little Lembeh” in other words, it is similar to the famous Lembeh in Indonesia, the muck diving capital of the world. Does it deserve its name? Yes, in a way it does. It has brown-black sand similar to its Indonesian namesake, some trash which is good as this is where the weird and wonderful hide, and we did get to see some cool critters.
There are two small wrecks/steel-hulled cargo boats which were sunk at the end of the last century. They aren’t big by any stretch of the imagination, and not recognisable as a wreck, however they are covered with coral, gorgonian fans and a plethora of reef fish. I just sat back and watched as a small school of reef fish darted around me; I enjoyed that very much! We did our longest dives at this site, but Sy is a huge super macro and muck diving fan.
Various Nudibranch
Faithful Seaslug
Chromodoris Geometrica
Faithful Seaslug, Chromodoris Fedilis
Sacoglossa Seaslug
Sacoglossa Seaslug
3 Lobed T-Bar Nudibranch
Blue Dragon Nudibranch
2 Ornate Ghost Pipefish
Ornate Ghost Pipefish
Slender Ghost Pipefish
Headshield Slug
Sexy Shrimp
Mantis Shrimp
Decorator Crab
Cockatoo Waspfish
Jeuvenile Painted Frogfish
Striped Pufferfish
Sea Pen
|
Sea Pen
|
Longhorn Cowfish
2 Needle Cuttlefish
Needle Cuttlefish
There is so much healthy coral and reef fish around Juhn's Wreck
|
|
Shameless underwater selfie
|
Hide and seek amongst the coral
|
Bunga Bend
Another reef slopping down at an angle of 45 degrees. It’s filled with pristine hard and soft corals which means plenty of reef fish in the shallows dashing around. We had a medium current so when we weren’t hanging out looking at marine life it was a cruisy drift dive.
Another reef slopping down at an angle of 45 degrees. It’s filled with pristine hard and soft corals which means plenty of reef fish in the shallows dashing around. We had a medium current so when we weren’t hanging out looking at marine life it was a cruisy drift dive.
Goniobranchus Reticulatus
Snowflake Moray Eel
Snowflake Moray Eel
Napantao South and North
Drive Time: 30 – 45 minutes by boat
Sanctuary Fee: 200PHP per person per dive
Across the bay from Padre Burgos is arguably the best dive site in Southern Leyte (apart from a night dive at the Jetty). It’s a huge sloping coral wall so deep and wide, its split into two dive sites.
The coral is pristine and stunning, on par with any we have seen in Komodo or Raja Ampat in Indonesia. Such a diverse range of gorgonian fans, green branch coral, tube sponges, table coral seriously the formations were beautiful to look at in their own right without taking into consideration the plethora of reef fish all around.
Yellow, green and purple anthias, orange damselfish all dash in and out of hard and soft coral interspersed with hunting Giant Trevally, Midnight Snapper, Longfin Bannerfish, Peacock Grouper, Angelfish, Butterflyfish, Indo-Pacific Sergeant Majors ... the list goes on. Schools of rainbow runners, two-spot snappers and fusiliers swam in a long line up from the deep all the way to the surface. I was transfixed. I was in heaven.
After passing through the thick layer of thousands of reef fish, we were on a macro finding mission. The coral wall was filled with enough nudibranch to please any muck diver on a mission.
Nudibranch on North and South Napantao
Drive Time: 30 – 45 minutes by boat
Sanctuary Fee: 200PHP per person per dive
Across the bay from Padre Burgos is arguably the best dive site in Southern Leyte (apart from a night dive at the Jetty). It’s a huge sloping coral wall so deep and wide, its split into two dive sites.
The coral is pristine and stunning, on par with any we have seen in Komodo or Raja Ampat in Indonesia. Such a diverse range of gorgonian fans, green branch coral, tube sponges, table coral seriously the formations were beautiful to look at in their own right without taking into consideration the plethora of reef fish all around.
Yellow, green and purple anthias, orange damselfish all dash in and out of hard and soft coral interspersed with hunting Giant Trevally, Midnight Snapper, Longfin Bannerfish, Peacock Grouper, Angelfish, Butterflyfish, Indo-Pacific Sergeant Majors ... the list goes on. Schools of rainbow runners, two-spot snappers and fusiliers swam in a long line up from the deep all the way to the surface. I was transfixed. I was in heaven.
After passing through the thick layer of thousands of reef fish, we were on a macro finding mission. The coral wall was filled with enough nudibranch to please any muck diver on a mission.
Nudibranch on North and South Napantao
Tambja Olivaria
Persian Carpet Flatworm
Mating Kubaryana Nembrotha
Gloomy Tambja
Mushroom Coral Reticulidia
Colmons Chromodoris with Anna’s Chromodoris
This Anna’s Chromodoris is reaching out from the reef
|
Chamberlain's Nembrotha
|
North Napantao
Pink Anenomefish
Common Lionfish
Pregnant White Tip Reef Shark in a cave
Healthy coral teeming with reef fish were everywhere
Thousands of fish swam from the depths all the way to the surface, I just lay back and watched
Beautiful healthy fans
South Napantao
Flasher Scorpionfish
|
Giant Frogfish
|
False Clownfish
Healthy coral with plenty of reef fish
Banded Moray Eel - Sy took his photo and promptly backed away, he doesn't look in the best of moods!
Night Dive – Padre Burgos Jetty/Pier
Monday, Wednesday and Friday only
Sanctuary Fee: 100PHP per person
I have an instructor friend who said this was the best dive she has done – ever! Many agree that this is the best night dive site in the whole of the Philippines, if not all of South East Asia. That’s a VERY bold statement.
It’s a working pier with a lot of boat traffic during the day, and local fishing at night. Divers and fishing lines don’t mix very well, so a local agreement has been made that divers can come here on three nights of the week only, and the remaining four nights are for fishermen.
As with all excellent muck diving sites, there is trash, but these man-made wonderlands are where you will see the special stuff. Don’t forget to look inside shoes, tyres, bottles and see every single piece of trash as a home for something special.
In the sandy bottom, look out for eyes peering back at you – there are plenty of Stargazer’s to be found and they are fascinating. I swear most creatures you see on a night dive are actually aliens.
|
|
Devil Scorpionfish
Jeuvenille Painted Frogfish
A Stargazer under the sand
|
A Stargazer
|
A Stargazer - Sy helped this little dude by cutting off a long piece of fishing line hanging from his mouth
When is the best time of year to visit Leyte?
The Philippines are a tropical archipelago of 7,641 islands so the weather varies depending on where you are. Generally there are two seasons, the wettest months are November to April, drier months are May to October, however there isn’t a lot of difference in rainfall between “wet” and “dry”. Typhoons tend to come in September/October. In truth, a tropical climate means it can rain at any time, any day of the year for any length of time and the weather doesn’t adhere to “seasons”.
Choosing your dive centre and accommodation
You will get a better diving experience if you research your dive centre and accommodation. We learnt this the hard way in the past and have not always had the best time!
There are many resorts to choose from, we opted to dive and stay with Peter’s Dive Resort. If you are on a budget, they are the cheapest in the area so you can spend your hard-earned cash on more dives.
The Philippines are a tropical archipelago of 7,641 islands so the weather varies depending on where you are. Generally there are two seasons, the wettest months are November to April, drier months are May to October, however there isn’t a lot of difference in rainfall between “wet” and “dry”. Typhoons tend to come in September/October. In truth, a tropical climate means it can rain at any time, any day of the year for any length of time and the weather doesn’t adhere to “seasons”.
Choosing your dive centre and accommodation
You will get a better diving experience if you research your dive centre and accommodation. We learnt this the hard way in the past and have not always had the best time!
There are many resorts to choose from, we opted to dive and stay with Peter’s Dive Resort. If you are on a budget, they are the cheapest in the area so you can spend your hard-earned cash on more dives.
Peter’s Dive Resort Review
Peter’s Dive Resort have been in Southern Leyte since 2001, are well established and have an excellent reputation. They have a range of rooms to suit all types of travellers and their budget.
Location: Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte. Around 3 hours by car from the airport, 90-120 minutes from the port of Hilongos and 45 minutes from the port of Massin.
Peter’s Dive Resort have been in Southern Leyte since 2001, are well established and have an excellent reputation. They have a range of rooms to suit all types of travellers and their budget.
Location: Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte. Around 3 hours by car from the airport, 90-120 minutes from the port of Hilongos and 45 minutes from the port of Massin.
View overlooking Sogod Bay from Peter's Dive Resort
Spacious Dive Centre
|
Wide range of rental equipment
|
Dive Centre: Large, spacious dive centre. A good selection of different sized equipment, all in excellent working order and well maintained. I would like to add that the full Cressi front-zip wetsuit I rented was extremely comfortable and warm (I don't usually like full wetsuits). The regulators breathed smooth and clear. Nitrox is available. On-site compressor, fresh water cleaning facility. Courses are available to further your dive knowledge.
Dive Guides: There are a few guides, all are very friendly and personable. A small briefing is given before the dive and they do their best to adhere to “wish list” requests (sadly we didn’t get to see a blue ring octopus riding a whale shark).
Dive Boat: Two big, comfortable, spacious dive boats in good condition. Fresh water bucket for cameras, tea/coffee/water/snack provided. Tank racks at the front which not all dive boats have. Our personal opinion is this is important to diver safety and equipment protection, but we know others will disagree. Fresh towels supplied each day for the dive.
Dive Guides: There are a few guides, all are very friendly and personable. A small briefing is given before the dive and they do their best to adhere to “wish list” requests (sadly we didn’t get to see a blue ring octopus riding a whale shark).
Dive Boat: Two big, comfortable, spacious dive boats in good condition. Fresh water bucket for cameras, tea/coffee/water/snack provided. Tank racks at the front which not all dive boats have. Our personal opinion is this is important to diver safety and equipment protection, but we know others will disagree. Fresh towels supplied each day for the dive.
One of the dive boats
Spacious dive boat with tank ranks and fresh water bucket for cameras
Rooms: Budget and solo travellers can stay in a dormitory or budget room with shared bathroom. All have bunk beds and are located above the dive centre facing the main road. If you are a light sleeper, I would suggest wearing ear plugs as there sometimes noise can be heard from guests arriving/leaving at 4.30pm, security guards talking, and equipment set up in the morning. Air con and Towels provided.
For families, friends and couples: There are a range of ocean-facing rooms with balcony. Air con, fan, private bathroom and TV. Towels provided.
For families, friends and couples: There are a range of ocean-facing rooms with balcony. Air con, fan, private bathroom and TV. Towels provided.
Our Budget Room
|
Our ocean-facing Duplex room
|
Restaurant area: The main area to hang out after your day’s activities. Cold water to refill your bottle, free tea/coffee at breakfast.
Food: Their menu has a wide range of local and western dishes at reasonable prices. Suitable for vegetarians. Beer is P60.
Customer Service: Excellent. Pre-communication via email was fast and efficient. At the resort, any minor issues were resolved quickly.
Food: Their menu has a wide range of local and western dishes at reasonable prices. Suitable for vegetarians. Beer is P60.
Customer Service: Excellent. Pre-communication via email was fast and efficient. At the resort, any minor issues were resolved quickly.
View of Sogod Bay outside the restaurant and dive centre
How to get to Padre Burgos, Southern Leyte
By Air to Tacloban (Daniel Z. Romualdez airport)
The two main ports of entry into the Philippines are Manilla and Cebu. Daily domestic flights are available to Tacloban, north Leyte with Cebu Pacific and Philippines Airlines. A private transfer can be arranged to take you to Peter’s Dive Resort, the journey time is approx. 3-4 hours.
By Boat from Cebu:
General list of Ferry Schedules - www.schedule.ph
RoRo = Roll on roll off which means you can take a scooter or other vehicle
There are 8 different companies leaving from 6 wharfs from Cebu to Leyte, this equates to over 80 options, so I will only list the best choices. As with all boat trips, departure times and journey times can change, boats may even be cancelled due to bad weather. It is best to check the company websites ahead of travel.
A terminal fee of P25 per person is payable from Cebu City, and the ticket office closes approx. 36 minutes before the boat is due to leave (they say 30 minutes, but take their time from a clock which is wrong and refuse to sell you a ticket once they have closed the bookings).
Cebu to Massin – From Pier 1
This is your quickest option. If the fast ferry is running it takes around 3 hours, the regular ferry takes 6 hours. Peter’s Dive Resort is around 45 minutes away from Massin.
Fast Ferry - Weesam Express – Daily at 6am
Website: www.weesam.ph
Cost: Economy P600; Tourist Class P700; First Class P800
Regular Ferry - Cokaliong – Every Sunday, Monday and Wednesday at 12noon and 7pm
Website: www.cokaliongshipping.com
Cost: Economy P400; Tourist Class P600; Business Class P900
Transfer to Peter’s: A private van can be arranged for P1,000 per van (not per person).
Cebu to Hilongos – From Pier 3
This is your next best option. The semi-fast ferry takes 3.5 hours, the regular ferry takes 5-6 hours. Peter’s Dive Resort is around 1.5 – 2 hours from Hilongos.
Semi-Fast Ferry - Gloria G-1 – Daily at 2pm
Website: www.superferry2go.com/gabisan-shipping-schedule-rates-cebu-to-hilongos-and-vice-versa/
Cost: Economy P320; Tourist C P380; Tourist B P450; Tourist A P480 (see photos below)
Fast Ferry – Roble Shipping – Daily at 6am
Website: www.robleshipping.com
Cost: Economy P550; Tourist with Aircon P650
Regular Ferry - Roble Shipping – Daily at 12noon
Website: www.robleshipping.com
Cost: Economy B P265; Economy A P275; Deluxe – P310 & P330; Tourist P370; Cabin P585
Gloria G1 Economy Section
|
Gloria G1 Tourist B Section
|
Gloria G1 Tourist A Section
|
Transfer to resort
Budget: You can book your seat on a shuttle bus to Padre Burgos when on board your ferry. Pay for your ticket on the bus and tell them you want Peter’s Dive Resort, they drop you at the door.
Cost: P110 per person
Comfort: Ask Peter’s to arrange a private transfer if you are arriving/leaving early/late
Cost: P1,800 per van (not per person)
Philippines Travel and Visa information
Budget: You can book your seat on a shuttle bus to Padre Burgos when on board your ferry. Pay for your ticket on the bus and tell them you want Peter’s Dive Resort, they drop you at the door.
Cost: P110 per person
Comfort: Ask Peter’s to arrange a private transfer if you are arriving/leaving early/late
Cost: P1,800 per van (not per person)
Philippines Travel and Visa information
- Language – English is widely spoken to an excellent standard.
- Currency – Philippine Peso, £1 = P70 (or PHP)
- Plugs & Electricity – 2-pin plugs (same as US/Canada/China/Japan, flat parallel, also known as Type A). Some places are also Type B (same as UK) and Type C (known as the “Euro” plug) Standard voltage is 220 V and the standard frequency is 60 Hz.
- Wi-Fi – Available mainly in the restaurant
- ATM’s – There is no ATM in the area, but Peter’s Dive Resort accept VISA and Mastercard at no extra charge.
- Driving – Right hand drive
- Visa - A 29 day free visa is given at the time of arrival. You can easily extend at a local immigration office for another 29 days, the nearest is in Cebu City.
- Airport – Tacloban is the nearest domestic airport in Leyte. Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines fly here. The nearest International Airport is Cebu City. NB. A Terminal tax is payable when you check in/before boarding on some International flights out of the Philippines. From Cebu the cost is P850.
- Religion – 80% Catholic
Have you heard of Leyte as a dive destination in the Philippines? Have you been? Is it somewhere you would go after reading this post? Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below.
Disclaimer: This post contains some affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, it won't cost you any extra, the small commission we may earn will help support the FeetDoTravel community.
If you care about coral reefs, please use REEF SAFE SUN CREAM
Bonus - these products DO NOT CONTAIN PALM OIL
Bonus - these products DO NOT CONTAIN PALM OIL
Do you want to be a better traveller and reduce your single use plastic? Hop over to our Travel Shop for inspiration. Refillable water bottles, reusable cutlery, bamboo straws, bamboo toothbrush, toothpaste power, shampoo bars and many more ideas.
Book your holiday, or weekend break hotel through our website. We always use Booking.com, and are proud to have a partnership with them. Visit our Hotel Booking Page and search as normal. (If you are on a mobile phone, turn the device horizontally, the “search” button will be bottom right).
Check out these related links for Scuba Diving Inspiration:
Sardine Run, Moalboal, Cebu: Diving the Philippines
Ethical Swim with Whale Sharks in Leyte
Diving in Dauin, Negros: Muck Diving in the Philippines
Diving in Borneo - Always Awesome
Diving the World's Number 1 Dive Site - Sipadan
Scuba Diving the Gili Islands
Manta Madness
Diving Raja Ampat
Lembeh - A Magical Muck Diving Experience
USS Liberty in Bali - Highly Wreck-Ommended
Nusa Penida: Diving with Mola Mola, the Ocean Sunfish
Sardine Run, Moalboal, Cebu: Diving the Philippines
Ethical Swim with Whale Sharks in Leyte
Diving in Dauin, Negros: Muck Diving in the Philippines
Diving in Borneo - Always Awesome
Diving the World's Number 1 Dive Site - Sipadan
Scuba Diving the Gili Islands
Manta Madness
Diving Raja Ampat
Lembeh - A Magical Muck Diving Experience
USS Liberty in Bali - Highly Wreck-Ommended
Nusa Penida: Diving with Mola Mola, the Ocean Sunfish
If you like this post, please Pin & share it!
The #FeetDoTravel blog link-up!
We are proud to host the #FeetDoTravel blog Linkup. If you have a blog post you would like to share, feel free to click on the picture below which will take you through to our Facebook Community and drop your link there. The link-up is open from Friday 12.00am (midnight UK time) and will close Sunday 12.00pm (midnight UK time). We are a fun and loyal group who are more than happy to comment, share and reciprocate! Happy Travelling Feet Fans!
