Reef
down to 27 m
Wreck Point
A sloping reef of many hard corals between Dungon Bay and West Escarceo, usually dived to about 18 m.
- Open Water
- Turtles
Puerto Galera
Diving in Philippines
36 documented dive sites, 9 of them for Open Water divers. Known for whitetip reef sharks, turtles and tuna.
- Best months
- Dec–May
- Water
- 26–30 °C
- Levels
- Open Water, Advanced, Experienced, Technical
Photo: Ralff Nestor Nacor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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
Puerto Galera in October
Good season- Sea
- 30 °C
- at the surface
- Air
- 30 °C
- 26 °C at night
- Rain
- 400 mm
- one of the wettest months
- Wind
- 10 km/h
- on average
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.
Badladz gives high season mid-December to end of May and low season end of May to mid-December, and says diving is possible any time of year (warm year-round). The low season is shown as good (diveable) rather than possible because the operator stresses year-round diving; December is shown as best as high season starts mid-month.
Dive sites in Puerto Galera
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 m9 sitesReef
down to 16 m
Giant Clams
A shallow beginner reef with giant clams, coral and octopus, at an average depth of 9-10 m.
- Open Water
- Octopus
Muck
down to 12 m
Montani Bay
A 4-12 m sandy muck site where divers have found thorny seahorses, flamboyant cuttlefish and even a hedgehog seahorse.
- Open Water
- Blue-ringed octopus
Wall
down to 27 m
Sabang Point
A colourful wall drops to a fishbowl where the reef and Sabang Bay currents meet, then a second wall falls to sand at 22 m.
- Open Water
- Snappers
Drift
down to 24 m
Manila Channel
A channel drift over hard coral and tropical fish, best on the right tide.
- Open Water
- Turtles
Drift
down to 14 m
Batangas Channel
A shallow channel drift over a gently sloping coral reef, which Action Divers names as a good place to look for nudibranchs.
- Open Water
- Nudibranchs
Wall
down to 22 m
Pink Wall
- Open Water
- Turtles
For Advanced divers
usual dive down to 30 m16 sitesWreck
down to 30 m
Alma Jane Wreck
A cargo ship scuttled in 2003, resting at 25–30 m with batfish, sweetlips and soft coral.
- Advanced
- Batfish
Drift
down to 25 m
Kilima Drift
A strong-current drift continuing from Kilima Steps, with tuna, mackerel, jacks, trevallies and turtles.
- Advanced
- Turtles
Wreck
down to 24 m
Monkey Beach
A 5–24 m coral slope with a sailboat wreck, mantis shrimp and fusiliers.
- Advanced
- Turtles
Reef
down to 25 m
Sabang Point
An 8–25 m point reef with snappers, sea fans and night-dive potential.
- Advanced
- Snappers
Wreck
Dry Dock
- Advanced
- Turtles
Reef
La Laguna Point
- Advanced
- Turtles
Wall
down to 32 m
Boulders
Large rocks scattered over a sloping reef that is home to a school of snappers.
- Advanced
- Frogfish
Wall
down to 30 m
Dungon Wall
A small sheltered bay whose reef reaches into the shallows, with a small wall dropping from 15 m to 23 m.
- Advanced
- Pygmy seahorses
Reef
down to 24 m
Kilima Steps
Stepped reefs with table coral, blue tangs, morays and nudibranchs.
- Advanced
- Nudibranchs
Cavern
down to 27 m
Shark Cave
A 27 m Advanced dive with a cave, rays, turtles and sweetlips.
- Advanced
- Turtles
Drift
down to 25 m
West Escarceo
A sloping healthy reef with whip corals and triggerfish, drifting toward Hole in the Wall.
- Advanced
- Turtles
Macro
down to 24 m
Coral Cove
- Advanced
- Stingrays
Wall
down to 20 m
Hole in the Wall
- Advanced
- Scorpionfish
For experienced divers
usual dive down to 40 m7 sitesCavern
down to 32 m
Ernie's Point
Two small caverns at about 21 and 27 m, with sea fans, groupers and glassfish.
- Experienced
- Groupers
Wreck
down to 45 m
Monkey Wreck
The remains of an overturned boat resting against a short wall in the Monkey Beach area.
- Experienced
- Turtles
Drift
down to 40 m
The Canyons
A drift down a wall into three canyons, with schools of drummers, snappers, sweetlips, batfish, emperors and trevally.
- Experienced
- Manta rays
Drift
down to 40 m
Fish Bowl
A rocky reef top covered in long whip corals and soft tree corals that drops to a sandy bottom in deep water near Escarceo.
- Experienced
- Turtles
Wall
down to 42 m
Odie's Wall
A deep wall, sloping from 25 m to about 42 m, covered with large gorgonian sea fans and whip corals.
- Experienced
- Turtles
Technical and specialty dives
4 sitesWreck
down to 42 m
Japanese Wreck
A tec dive at 42 m on the remains of a WWII patrol boat: engine, shaft and propeller.
- Technical
- Turtles
Pinnacle
down to 45 m
Turtle Rock
A deep/tec dive down the base of Sinandigan Wall to a giant rock at about 45 m, with gorgonian fans and unusual nudibranchs.
- Technical
- Nudibranchs
Marine life
When the big encounters happen, month by month.
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TurtlesSource: badladz.com |
- Peak season
- Seen
Turtles: All year
Also reported here, season not documented yet:
- Whitetip reef sharks
- Tuna
- Barracuda
- Trevally
- Cuttlefish
- Frogfish
- Nudibranchs
- Octopus
- Pygmy seahorses
- Seahorses
- Batfish
- Snappers
- Sea snakes
- Manta rays
- Hammerhead sharks
- Thresher sharks
- Blue-ringed octopus
Where is Puerto Galera?
Somewhere quieter?
Puerto Galera is one of the busiest dive hubs in the world. These destinations dive in a similar way and see far fewer divers: Sipadan & Semporna, Siquijor and Romblon.
See all alternatives to Puerto Galera →Puerto Galera: frequently asked questions
- When is the best time to dive Puerto Galera?
- The best months to dive Puerto Galera are Dec–May. Badladz gives high season mid-December to end of May and low season end of May to mid-December, and says diving is possible any time of year (warm year-round). The low season is shown as good (diveable) rather than possible because the operator stresses year-round diving; December is shown as best as high season starts mid-month.
- Is Puerto Galera good for beginner divers?
- Yes, partly: 9 of the 36 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Wreck Point, Giant Clams and Montani Bay. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
- What is the water temperature in Puerto Galera?
- The water is usually between 26 °C and 30 °C over the year.
- What marine life can you see in Puerto Galera?
- Divers regularly see whitetip reef sharks, turtles (all year), tuna, barracuda, trevally and cuttlefish.
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
- Muelle harbour, Puerto Galera, Ralff Nestor Nacor, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash
