Day 1: Anilao
Embarkation & Welcome Briefing
Day 2 & 3: Romblon
Featuring Blackwater/Bonfire Dives
Day 4: North & East Ticao
San Miguel Island, Lapus Lapus & Manta Bowl
Day 5: East Ticao
Manta Bowl
Day 6: South Ticao
Snake Island & Mangroves
Day 7: Verde Island (San Agapito)
Thank You & Farewell Briefing
Day 8: Anilao
Disembarkation
** Route Itinerary subject to change due to inclement weather, sea conditions, and/or restrictions posed by local authorities.
Day 1 – (Embarkation in Batangas) The voyage will begin in Anilao, where we will embark Solitude One by 5 pm at the latest (depending on flight arrival times). Once everyone is on board, we will carry out our welcome briefing and induction to the vessel. We will serve dinner later, before beginning our overnight cruise to Romblon.
Days 2 & 3 – We will spend our first two diving days in the macro haven of Romblon diving around an array of sites there, such as ‘Ghost Valley’ and ‘Broken House’ where we look for the famous Melibe sp. And Cyerce sp. nudibranchs. While here we will also conduct either Blackwater or Bonfire dives depending on conditions.
Days 4 to 6 – After Romblon, we will head over to the islands North of Ticao and dive a couple of the stunning reef walls, which are packed with a variety of nudibranchs and crustaceans.
Following, we will move to the East of Ticao and dive ‘Manta Bowl’ where we hope to see Manta Rays and potentially Whale Sharks. According to LAMAVE, 250 of the 400 individual Mantas spotted in the Philippines have been recorded at this dive site.
Our last destination in Ticao will be in the South, where we will dive around the lush mangroves and ‘Snake Island’ which is teeming with a variety of life due to the nutrient-rich waters.
Day 7 – We will spend our last diving day at Verde Island, in particular, ‘San Agapito’, the centre of biodiversity in the Philippines. This site offers a sheer abundance of life with pristine corals shrouded by dense shoals of fish, a remarkable dive spot. In between the giant trevallies hunting, the strong currents this sight is known for on occasion bring in passing pelagics.
Once our diving is done, we will return to Anilao and carry out our thank you and farewell briefing.
Day 8 – Lastly, disembarkation will begin the morning of the 8th day between 8 am, and 11 am.
From the very beginning, safety has always been the most important aspect of Solitude and at the forefront of all decision making. Given the remote areas we operate in, it is vital to us that our crew are well trained and we are equipped to handle any scenario should it occur.
During your stay onboard we provide our guests with a complimentary Nautilus Marine Rescue GPS to provide that peace of mind when out diving in the remote parts of Indonesia
Our Features & Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) equipped with:
We know that time and investment in holidays are valuable and you want to dive as much as you can. We fully understand that, as we take diving holidays too! Be assured that we are committed to providing you with as many dives as we safely can. Besides the obvious reasons why we would not let you go for a dive (stated in your registration form declaration), being well-rested and rehydrated for your first dive is a good first step.
This is why we need to ensure that you have at least 6 hours of proper rest after your arrival before making your first dive. We know you learned about safety during your scuba course(s) but sometimes the excitement and anticipation of a diving holiday can get the better of us and we tend to overlook our own condition for a dive.
Our commitment to safety also includes our crew which is why we limit a maximum of 4 dives (including a night dive) in a day so that they too get ample rest to minimise fatigue, ergo minimise the risk of working on a vessel.
As always, itineraries are subject to weather, logistics, and also, importantly, where sites are better during the week of your cruise. Your cruise directors will constantly be updating you on the schedule/plans on board during your cruise.
For more information or clarification, please do not hesitate to write to emailus@solitude-liveaboards.com
Enriched Air Nitrox
Although the standard mix for EAN is 32%, on most dives we have made an educated decision to provide in the proximity of EAN30 instead to allow a safer M.O.D. EAN 30% would provide some degree of depth buffer if you are caught especially in a down current but will still allow ample extended length of bottom time (compared to normal air). EANitrox prices are as follows: US $8 per dive OR US $135 for 8 days/7 nights itinerary, with subsequent additional use US$20 per day.
DIN or International?
We have both.
15L/100cuft Scuba Cylinders?
Yes, we have. It is an additional US $8 per cylinder per diving day.
Side-mount Diving?
Rebreather Diving? Twins?
Yes, we do support Rebreather Diving but we do not have Twin-Tanks. Our support is only on oxygen filling (US $0.06 per litre) with a booster pump on board. Your dive profile must also follow with the other recreational divers in consideration for other guests’ comfort and safety. Complete support (including Twin Tank configurations) can be accommodated for full charters. For full charters, profiles are of course not limited to our standard recreational limits. Do note that the price of helium, if required, can be costly.
