Luzon is the largest island within the Philippines, and away from the capital city of Manila, has some great scuba diving locations. The majority of these dive sites, are located around the main diving resorts such as Subic Bay, Batangas, Bicol and La Union.
Subic Bay, situated on the west coast of Luzon, is approximately 60 miles (100kms) northwest of Manila. Formally a US Naval Base, Subic Bay is nowadays a major commercial area, with a large range of shops and hotels catering for the increasing amounts of tourists coming into the area. The majority of the diving in Subic Bay is on the wrecks which lay scattered across the seabed of the harbour and history has seen a large number of both Japanese and American vessels sunk at Subic Bay. In total, there are over 30 accessible wrecks in the Subic Bay area, which although accessible, are in varying states of decay.
Throughout Subic Bay there are a number of well known wrecks, including the USS New York and The Hellship, the Oyoku Maru. Although these two are the most commonly dived sites, there are a number of other dive sites worthy of a visit. In particular the San Quentin and the El Capitan are both excellent dive sites.
The Bicol region is located at the southerly tip of the island of Luzon, and is overlooked by the towering presence of Mount Mayon, a fully active volcano which rises majestically to a height of over 8,000 feet. Dubbed, for obvious reasons, as the worlds most perfectly shaped cone, Mount Mayon stands proudly over the capital city of Legazpi, the capital city of Bicol. Despite the fact that the majority of the dive sites here are unexplored, there is one major reason for scuba divers to visit the Bicol area, and that is the opportunity to snorkel with the multitude of whale sharks which inhabit the waters around Donsol. These whale sharks, or Butanding, which can grow up to a length of 15 metres, are drawn to the area by the large amounts of krill and plankton that flow down from the San Bernadino Straight and into the Visayas. Each year, large numbers of these whale sharks can be seen here, and although the best months for viewing are between March and May, it is possible to begin seeing them from the middle of December.
Since the whale sharks of Donsol were discovered in 1988, increasing numbers of people have flocked to the area to encounter one of the true giants of the ocean. As such, a number of restrictions have been put in place to ensure the protection of this truly magnificent spectacle, and subsequently the waters around Donsol are a declared national park.
The province of Batangas in Anilao has some excellent dive sites, the majority of which are focused around Balayan Bay and Maricaban Island, which lie just off the Luzon mainland. There are a number of dive sites in the area, including Sombrero Island, the Cathedral and Twin Rocks. Good amounts of coral and marine life can be seen at most of the dive sites throughout the Batangas Bay area, and there are good populations of Butterflyfish, Batfish, Parrotfish, and Wrasse throughout the area.
La Union, located north of Manila in the Ilocos Region, is a thin strip of land situated between the South China Sea and the Cordillera Mountain range. The main attraction of La Union for scuba divers is the long stretches of reef at Long Beach. Here, a number of offshore reefs provide some excellent dive sites, many of which are home to a wide variety of marine life.
For the fans of wreck diving, there are some good wrecks on Faggs Reef, which is a 40 minute boat trip from La Union. This site, also known as the Tanks, is where three World War Two M10 tanks were dropped off a barge at the end of the war. They now rest on a ledge at a depth of 39 metres, and have become the home for a large number of fish including Dorado's, Spanish Mackerel and Barracuda. Also spotted in the area have been a number of Leopard Rays and Whitetip Sharks.
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Anilao and Batangas
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