Why Moalboal Is the Best Place to Do Your PADI Divemaster Course?

Moalboal is a beautiful coastal town situated on the west side of Cebu island. It is one of the most popular scuba diving destinations for many divers visiting the Philippines. The main reason for this is due to an extraordinary dive spot called Sardine Run, where you can dive with shoals of sardines all year round. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. Moalboal coast has many other beautiful dive sites to offer and the rich biodiversity makes every dive here exciting. What’s more is diving logistics here are very easy – all of the dive sites are reachable either from shore or by a short, no more than 10 minutes, boat ride. On top of this you can end your diving day in one of the many amazing restaurants serving food of all different cultures and cuisines and also enjoy delicious cocktails in many bars and clubs around the town.

All of this makes Moalboal one of the best places to do your PADI Divemaster Course around South East Asia.

Let’s look into more details why.

The Philippines are famous for shore diving, but that doesn’t mean that dive sites here are not exciting, on the contrary – the underwater world is filled with various sea creatures and corals, visibility here is amazing all year round and water temperature is always warm (around 28C / 82F).

Moalboal is not an exception. Local authorities have designated around 20 dive sites on the shore line of the town. Even though the topography of most dive sites are “a wall”, they provide not only opportunities to find a wide range of sea creatures (turtles, frogfish, tuna, crabs and shrimps, nudibranchs and many more) but also make a very good environment to conduct scuba diving courses including the PADI Divemaster Course.

Depth of the dive sites range from 5 to 45 meters (15 to 150 feet), which is perfect for both entry level courses as well as more demanding training like Deep Diving.

One of the most famous dive sites in Moalboal is Panagsama Beach, also known to many divers as Moalboal’s Sardine Run. For many years this site has been a home for shoals of sardines – some say around 9 million of them are here every day. Depending on the weather and sea conditions, sardines provide divers with spectacular shows of dancing “fish school shapes”. Sometimes they form big balls getting a bit away from the reef into the blue, on other days they spread along the reef creating amazing corridors and casting great shadows on the bottom.

Another highlight of the area is Pescador Island. Situated around 2 nautical miles from the shore, this little uninhabited island provides the most amazing dive site topography around the area. Pescador Island is full of beautiful soft corals, has many underwater caverns and on most days provides divers with mild to strong currents, which enables them to have easy drift dives.

The variety of dive sites make every dive not only very enjoyable but also provides many learning opportunities for our PADI Divemaster candidates. There are a lot of opportunities to practice guiding certified divers and assist in courses of different levels.

Some of our most popular dive sites are:

What makes the life of PADI Divemaster worry free? Of course – easy diving logistics. In Moalboal, and especially in our dive shop, the everyday duties of Divemasters are well organised and don’t require a lot of effort. This is due to a couple reasons:

Since Moalboal town was established, it has a reputation for being “a divers town”. Many people come here specifically for diving. That allows everybody to share their common passion and enjoy activities together.

Besides engaging with like minded divers during the day, there are a lot of opportunities to socialize after hours. Many local restaurants, bars and clubs provide a great environment for having an amazing evening out and enjoying local culture and tropical vibes.

Whenever there is a non diving day, there are many activities on land to undertake. Moalboal is surrounded by some wonderful waterfalls with spectacular and lush scenery around. A nearby mountain range, called by locals as “The Dragon’s Back”, provides many opportunities for amazing hikes with friends and to enjoy many beautiful sunsets or even sunrises.

Staying in Moalboal for longer guarantees a chance to make new, like minded friends for life.

Nightlife in Moalboal is bustling. Every day of the week, the most popular bars and clubs are full of people – both tourists and locals. Variety of places for every taste and budgets allows everyone to be picky and choose the best one for a great night out.

On top of this, before a night out, you can enjoy dinner in one of the many restaurants in Moalboal. The town has a wide range of different cuisines and prices enabling you to choose the best place for your preferences. There are over 80 restaurants here, serving different dishes, from premium ones like sushi, steaks or fusion cuisine to more affordable local food.

Cost of living in the Philippines is generally low compared to other countries in South East Asia. Moalboal especially is still a developing area. With many hotels, hostels and private apartments being built every month, the prices are very affordable and there are many choices on where to stay, depending on your budget.

Food in the Philippines, even due its infamous simplicity, can be very delicious, especially when you get to know the best local places and make friends with local vendors.

In general, the cost of living in Moalboal can be very low, but if you decide to spend a bit more money you can find choices of both premium accommodation and food.

Here you can find a detailed description of the costs of living in Moalboal: Living in Moalboal cost and tips