Devocean Divers
Devocean Divers center has a wonderful location, right on the main Bounty beach of Malapascua. Malapascua Island can be found at the north tip of Cebu Island. To get there from Cebu city (the second biggest city in the Philippines) you need more or less 3 hours. The dive shop, which is spacious and light, is located on the premises of the Hippocampus Beach Resort. Out front, there are some comfortable tables, chairs, benches and bean bags set up for you to use in the sand or on the big wooden deck before or after a dive. Hang out after a dive and debrief with your new dive buddies. Share experiences and look up the marine life you spotted but had not seen before in one of their fish and critter almanacs. The instructors also like to teach their students in the shade on the wooden deck or under the trees on the beach in front of the shop.
Currently Devocean operates 2 spacious Bangka dive boats. A Bangka boat is a local outrigger boat made of wood and outfitted with bamboo outriggers to the sides for balance. These boats are remarkably comfortable dive boats while maintaining a very local flair. They also operate a large speedboat outfitted with a 75HP Yamaha engine. And there are two smaller flat-boats for transferring divers, equipment, and gear from the beach to the dive boats. The dive boats are equipped with first aid kits, oxygen and communication devices.
The dive shop is internationally owned and counts with both local and foreign staff. The local guides know the island and the dive sites like the back of their hand. Most of them were born and raised on Malapascua or one of the nearby islands and all of them have many years of experience guiding visitors from all over the world. All dive guides provide clear briefings, thoroughly explain the dive, and give you an overview of some of the expected aquatic life and corals. Mandatory to their equipment is a a dive computer, surface marker buoys, storm whistle, a positive attitude, and a pair of eagle eyes. Besides guides, there are also foreign and local PADI instructors. They have developed a deep knowledge of the area and they speak an array of different languages to suit the needs of the guests. They have certified many divers that started to learn and those that continue to learn up to pro level.
The diving highlight at Malapascua Island is the close encounters with the elusive and graceful Thresher / Fox shark. The daily shark action at Monad Shoal is unique in the world. There is no other dive site on the planet that offers this kind of an experience on the planet. On a good day you might also see an Eagle or Manta Ray.
Location: Bounty Beach, Malapascua Island, The Philippines
Green accreditations: Green Fins.
Activities: Scuba diving courses and fun diving.
Instagram: @devoceandiversmalapascua
URL: https://devoceandivers.com
More info on sustainable practices carried out by Devocean Divers:
What do you do to reduce waste in your facility? We segregate and compost ourselves. We try to buy products in larger containers to reduce waste.
What other sustainable measures are applied at your facility (e.g. energy and water saving, use of less disposables, use of organic cleaning materials etc.)? We use eco-friendly cleaning materials and aid in the cleaning of the waste water by adding eco-friendly agents to break down the waste water before it goes back into the natural cycle.
Do you encourage and facilitate recycling? Yes, and we organize cleanups.
Do you offer other sustainable services to your guests/clients? We supply sustainable water bottles and encourage guests to fill up their own bottles from our big container (reducing plastic).
What else do you do to minimize your environmental impact? Part of our profit goes to an organization on the island that educates young people on how to keep the environment clean and provides after school activities for kids to learn about the environment and animals by for example doing creative projects with recycled plastic.
