Donsol, Philippines

This place at the southern tip of Luzon has recently made a reputation for being the mecca of whale sharks congregating in its plankton-rich waters. Whale shark spotting in Sorsogon became a word of mouth passed on to every diver in search of adventures of gigantic proportions. As thousands of visitors arrive each season to swim and witness their friendly behavior, the once sleepy town of Donsol now benefits from higher revenue brought by the presence of these gentle giants locally called "Butanding".

Nothing matches the feeling of awe inspired by seeing the world’s largest fish species upclose. Swimming with whale sharks was featured as the Best Animal Encounter in Asia by Time Magazine in 2004. The official whale shark season starts from November and runs until end of May, when the sea of Donsol is at its clearest and calmest. To maintain safety and to defend the creatures from over exploitation, guidelines on whale shark watching and interacting have been established and strictly implemented by local tourism officials and professional divers.

Donsol hosts what is arguably the largest known annual congregation of whale sharks in the world. Over the last six years, visitor records reveal that 95 percent of tourists that flock to Donsol in the season that runs from November to May, actually get to interact with whale sharks – an amazing record. The greater majority of tourists report up to six interactions in just a single morning

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Malapascua Philippines

Malapascua Island is just off the north tip of Cebu, Philippines. With a size of about 2km by 0.5km, you can walk around it in 1-2 hours. It has a population of around 4000, most of whom live off tourism, fishing, boat building or coconuts.

Malapascua Island has something for all divers, so come and dive the best kept secret of the Philippines - indeed of South East Asia. The Philippines is the new Thailand, but with much better diving and without the crowds. So make your next scuba diving trip to Malapascua Island!

Malapascua diving offers: the only daily thresher shark sightings in the world, whitetip sharks, mantas, hammerheads (seasonal), wrecks, mandarin fish, countless nudibranchs, pygmy seahorses, cuttlefish, beautiful unspoiled coral gardens and a huge diversity of marine life.