Reef
down to 18 m
Katipanan
Gentle Apo Island slope that rarely exceeds 18 m, where green sea turtles graze constantly.
- Open Water
- Turtles
Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island
Diving in Philippines
15 documented dive sites, 5 of them for Open Water divers. Known for turtles, barracuda and trevally.
- Best months
- Jan–May
- Water
- 25–30 °C
- Levels
- Open Water, Advanced, Experienced
- Nearest airport
- DGT
When to go
Pick a month: the diving season, from published sources, and the typical weather.
Pick a month
- Best
- Good
- Possible
- Closed
- Not documented yet
Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island in October
Good season- Sea
- 30 °C
- at the surface
- Air
- 30 °C
- 25 °C at night
- Rain
- 400 mm
- average for the year
- Wind
- 5 km/h
- on average
The warmest water of the year.
Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind) and 2023–2025 (sea), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.
Diveable year-round. Dry season Jan–May (DTW), shown as best. Zublu: main season Oct to early June, monsoon Jul–Sep (avoid). DTW: rainy season Jun–Nov, June wettest. Oct–Dec is shown as good (main season per Zublu, still rainy per DTW; Oct–Jan is best for flamboyant cuttlefish and rare octopus). June is shown as good (early June is still main season).
Dive sites in Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island
From the easiest to the most demanding. Levels with a dashed outline are estimates we are still verifying.
Open Water friendly
usual dive down to 18 m5 sitesArtificial reef
down to 18 m
Dauin South
Shore-accessible muck slope to 18 m with seagrass patches and artificial reef modules, hiding critters such as blue-ringed octopus.
- Open Water
- Blue-ringed octopus
Muck
down to 15 m
Masaplod Norte
At dusk mandarinfish perform their courtship dance above the sand, while hundreds of spotted garden eels wave from their burrows by day.
- Open Water
- Mandarinfish
For Advanced divers
usual dive down to 30 m7 sitesMuck
down to 21 m
San Miguel
A black sand slope with seagrass in the shallows, where guides find painted frogfish among other muck critters.
- Advanced
- Frogfish
Muck
down to 25 m
Secret Corner
Dauin octopus slope where mimic octopus, wonderpus, poison ocellate and blue-ringed octopus all turn up regularly.
- Advanced
- Blue-ringed octopus
For experienced divers
usual dive down to 40 m3 sitesDrift
down to 35 m
Coconut Point
Apo Island's classic drift dive over a reef dense with soft corals and barrel sponges, with large schools of jacks and fusiliers.
- Experienced
- Trevally
Drift
down to 28 m
Cogon Point
- Experienced
- Turtles
down to 25 m
Mamsa Point
- Experienced
- Reef sharks
Marine life
When the big encounters happen, month by month.
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CuttlefishSource: zubludiving.com | ||||||||||||
| TurtlesSource: zubludiving.com | ||||||||||||
| FrogfishSource: zubludiving.com | ||||||||||||
| NudibranchsSource: zubludiving.com | ||||||||||||
| SeahorsesSource: zubludiving.com |
- Peak season
- Seen
Cuttlefish: Oct–Jan. Turtles: All year. Frogfish: All year. Nudibranchs: All year. Seahorses: All year
Also reported here, season not documented yet:
- Barracuda
- Trevally
- Blue-ringed octopus
- Ghost pipefish
- Mandarinfish
- Mimic octopus
- Pygmy seahorses
- Scorpionfish
- Clownfish
- Garden eels
- Sea snakes
- Whale sharks
- Manta rays
- Reef sharks
- Dolphins
- Eagle rays
- Mobula rays
- Bumphead parrotfish
Where is Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island?
- Nearest airport
- DGT
Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island: frequently asked questions
- When is the best time to dive Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island?
- The best months to dive Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island are Jan–May. Diveable year-round. Dry season Jan–May (DTW), shown as best. Zublu: main season Oct to early June, monsoon Jul–Sep (avoid). DTW: rainy season Jun–Nov, June wettest. Oct–Dec is shown as good (main season per Zublu, still rainy per DTW; Oct–Jan is best for flamboyant cuttlefish and rare octopus). June is shown as good (early June is still main season).
- Is Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island good for beginner divers?
- Yes, partly: 5 of the 15 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Katipanan, Dauin South and Masaplod Norte. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
- What is the water temperature in Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island?
- The water is usually between 25 °C and 30 °C over the year.
- What marine life can you see in Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island?
- Divers regularly see cuttlefish (Oct–Jan), turtles (all year), barracuda, trevally, blue-ringed octopus and frogfish (all year).
- How do you dive Dumaguete, Dauin & Apo Island?
- The nearest airport is DGT.
About this page
Seasons and marine life come from the sources below. Site levels and depths marked as estimated come from our original catalogue and are being checked one by one. Conditions change: always confirm with a local dive centre.
Your next dive is somewhere out there.
Find my next dive tripPhoto credits
- Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash