Scuba Time with Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center

Last Updated on February 12, 2024 by Travelationship

Before landing in Palawan in the Philippines, we had only heard and read about the buzz surrounding scuba diving off El Nido and Coron. Our goal was to experience diving in Puerto Princesa and El Nido and find out for ourselves if one location was that much better.

In our experience, when one place receives all the hype, one or more nearby areas are just as excellent but underrated. To find answers, we partnered with Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center to see if Puerto Princesa was one of those neglected dive areas.

Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center

After two morning dives with DPP, it was evident Puerto Princesa should not be dismissed as a prime scuba diving location. Not only was the diving incredible, but the professionalism and experience with DPP were remarkable. We felt relaxed, comfortable, safe, and looked after by Nap, our Divemaster.

DPP has two locations in Puerto Princesa. Dive Center 1 serves more as the educational and merchandise center. Dive Center 2 is the meeting hub and departure location for all dives. Upon arrival, Nap and Romel fitted us with our gear and asked about our diving records, if we had any health or safety issues to discuss, and what kind of dive we would like to experience. Romel took note of every answer and adjusted our gear as needed.

Our Divemaster Nap and Romel - Scuba Time Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center.
Our Divemaster Nap and Romel.

As in most locations, especially during the rainy season, the weather plays a critical part in planning each dive site for the day. Each diver requires flexibility and patience to enjoy the day as it unfolds. We were lucky and had a beautiful sunny day with light wind. Nap took us to two dive sites and one swim site for the morning.

Heather getting some sun on our swim break.
Heather is getting some sun on our swim break.
The beautiful crystal waters of Puerto Princesa.
The beautiful crystal waters of Puerto Princesa.

Scuba Time!

During our two dives, we saw lots of fish, a purple ribbon eel, stone fish, a few clownfish, turtles above water, shrimp, tons of corals, and the funniest remora, who followed us our entire second dive. Sadly, we saw sections of bleached coral (when water is too warm, corals will expel the algae living in their tissues, causing the coral to turn completely white) caused by El Niño and rising temperatures. This was my first experience witnessing the impact of coral bleaching in SE Asia, which was unsettling.

A couple of Clownfish.
A couple of Clownfish.
A Lionfish munching on the coral.
A Lionfish munching on the coral.
Our remora friend that followed us for the whole dive.
Our remora friend followed us for the whole dive.

A favorite part of our experience with DPP was we never saw our divemaster touch, harass or feed any animals. He had a pointer he used to indicate animals or corals to us. This was the first dive either of us had ever completed in which the divemaster & other divers entirely left the sea life alone. Diving ethically caring people who made it a point not to stand on or touch the coral or chase the fish made our experience that much sweeter.

The diving around Puerto Princesa was beautiful. Even with the bleached sections, it was rich in colorful coral and animal life. The overall serenity of the location set the tone for the morning. Matt experienced his two best dives, and we both attributed his impressive experience to the tranquil location and our Divemaster, Nap. His calm and attentive manner made all the difference.

Coral.
Just a few of the colors we saw on our dive.
These are just a few of the colors we saw on our dive.

A Must Do

When in Puerto Princesa, Palawan schedules at least one morning to dive or snorkel with Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center. Puerto Princesa’s dive locations hold their own and are just as rewarding as El Nido dive sites. Romel and the entire team will show you the best the island offers.

Travelasics

Contact Romel at their office for current available dive packages and prices.

Travelationship Rating:

4 out of 5 Travelationship High Fives. We had the pleasure of diving with a local who regularly uses DPP for her dives. When you have folks returning to a business repeatedly, that’s a sign of a good establishment. Type of traveler rating – adventure, relaxation, historical, diver, conservation, animal lover, sea lover, nature lover

A few of the dive sites off of Puerto Princesa.
A few of the dive sites off of Puerto Princesa.

See More Photos on Flickr, and Please look for us on FacebookTwitter, and Instagram!

* Thank you to Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center for the complimentary dives. As always, our opinions are ours – honest, not biased, and as we experienced.

45 thoughts on “Scuba Time with Dive Puerto Princesa Dive Center”

  1. Sounds like a great trip. I haven’t dived but love hearing how attentive and customer service oriented Puerto Princesa Dive Center was. If I get certified, they’d be the only dive shop I would use in the area.

    Reply
  2. Wow, those beaches look gorgeous! Bet it was an amazing experience. I’d love to scuba but I can’t unfortunately, too many issues with my inner ear 🙁 Looks so amazing!

    Reply
  3. Great post. I have dived only once and it was one of the best experiences of my life. Oops, your blog reminded me that I have to write my own blog on diving experience.

    Reply
  4. Thank you for calling out the responsible dive master. That’s so important in any sort of wildlife expedition, and especially in such a fragile, beautiful place. And now I want to get my dive cert.

    Reply
  5. I already noticed your beautiful photos about this diving trip on Instagram. I’m very happy to hear that this diving center works with people who are respectful and approach their environment with awareness!

    Reply
  6. I wanna do Scuba diving but the water phobic me is not sure what crazy things I will do before I actually take the dive.
    Dint know about coral bleaching part and I am glad too to learn that the divemaster did not touch, harass or feed any of the animals.

    Reply
  7. Cant believe this has been your first dive crew thats respectful! I find most are (and if they are not I certainly tell everyone to avoid!) … However looks like Phillipines needs to be my next stop. Be on my radar for a while but I keep hearing more and more about it these days!

    Reply
  8. Oh my goodness. I’ve been hearing about Palawan for years but really need to move it up my travel list, don’t I?

    Reply
  9. Looks another stunning dive location (but for that bleached coral).

    It does surprise me (and concern me) that this is the first dive operator who has been totally respectful of the marine life!

    Reply
  10. Those are some pretty epic photos! I have never tried diving, I already suck at snorkelling. But your photos made me really keen on seeing the ocean in the Philippines.

    Reply

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