Hello! You may or may not know, but I have a fascination with the ocean and also am very fascinated with sharks. I think they are beautiful creatures and some I would even call cute. In the Philipines there is a small island off the northern tip of Cebu that is well known to have regular sitings of the elusive Thresher Shark.

My trip to Malapasqua began with me flying to Mactan International Airport in Cebu City on Cebu Islands. From there I organized transportation all the way to Malapasqua Island which consisted of a four hour drive and a 30 minute boat ride. I chose to organize with a dive shop named Thresher Shark Divers (TSD). You can get to Malapasqua using public transport and public vans for much less, but I chose convenience over cost as I only had 4 days in the country.

I arrived on Malapasqua very early (around 6 am). Luckily I was there during the off season and the hotel I booked was not super busy which allowed me the opportunity to check-in early.

After settling in and a quick rest, I made my way to the dive shop, which was only a few minutes walk on the beach path. Before getting to the island I organized 5 dives over 2 days with them as part of an Advanced Open Water (AOW) scuba course. Earlier this year I got Open Water dive certified. The AOW course increases your depth limit from 18 meters to 30 meters. In addition the AOW course advances your skills under water. The 5 dives I chose to do (in order) were:

• Dive 1 (local reef) – Peak Performance Buoyancy (Normally not obligatory, however it came highly encouraged by TSD.
• Dive 2 (local reef) – Navigation (Obligatory)
• Dive 3 (shark dive 1) – Deep (Obligatory)
• Dive 4 (shark dive 2) – Underwater Imagery
• Dive 5 (local reef) – Underwater Naturalist

For 4 of the 5 dives above I was not permitted to bring my camera as it distracts from the course. For the underwater imagery dive it was encouraged as part of the course. I chose to do one of the two shark dives as my Imagery course, so that I can include pictures of the threshers.

What an amazing experience to swim with this amazing animal. I had two awesome dives with them. We probably saw over a dozen of them during each dive.

In addition to the 5 dives I had with TSD, I also did 4 dives with a smaller shop right underneath my hotel called Mabuhay. I did one night dive with them (and Topi the dog who came on the boat (but didn’t dive)) after my second AOW dive. My night dive was amazing (sorry no footage). I got to witness the nightly mating ritual performed by the adorable and colorful mandarin fish. I also got to see a few other nightly critters like octopus.

The day after I completed my AOW I did a 3-tank dive trip to El Gato. On Malapasqua they say “People come for the sharks, but leave with Gato in their hearts.” El Gato requires 3 dives as it is located an hour by boat from Malapasqua.

On Day 4 I had to abstain from diving due to the 24-hour no fly rule after diving. I spent the day on the beach, snorkeling for baby black tip sharks, at the spa, and just relaxing, and packing of course. In the afternoon that day it was time to leave. I took a boat back to Cebu island and a van to the airport. I had a very early morning flight the next day and I arrived to Cebu city a number of hours before my flight. I asked the driver if he could recommend a good lechon (bbq pork) place, he stopped at a place called Rico’s Lechon. The pork was delicious and tender.

My time in Malapasqua was short but was the perfect diving getaway. If I had more time I was told the beaches in the north of the island were beautiful with powdery white sand. Whenever I travel I sometimes get tips from the locals on what else I can do, sometimes I have time to fit those things in, and sometimes I just take note of them for next time.

If you are a diver, then this is a must do. Thank you for reading and as always Saif Travels!