I only joined their day tour at Apo Island but the boat crew are very accommodating and patient. One of their crew members, swam with me for an hour just to find some sea turtles and he also took good photos and videos for my trip! The boat is big and comfortable. Their day tour package is also worth every penny. It already includes everything you need for your excursion. Even though I didn't stay on their resort, I find it clean, posh and peaceful; a perfect place to relax.
We stayed with Acqua Dive from December 28- Jan 1. My husband and I completed our advanced open water certificate with diving instructor: Iris. She was a fabulous teacher and we really enjoyed our class. We also appreciated how efficient Acqua Dive was with contacting PADI regarding our certificate. We had issues with our other certificate (open water dive that we got in Palau) because the other company we used in Palau didn’t follow through with submitting it on time, so AcquaDive contacted the company and PADI for us to make sure we were in the system! That was very kind and I liked that they “took care of us.” Sean, the owner (manager?), was super nice and friendly. He was always walking around and asking how we were doing. He was also extremely helpful with answering our emails/questions. He even assisted with helping us arrange for our car transport. We did several dives at Apo Island. The boat that Acqua Dive owns is really nice. Spacious, freshly painted, and lots of seating. The other staff members on the boat worked so hard for us. You should see them load and unload the boat! There is no dock, so prepare to get wet before you do your excursion because you have to walk/swim to the boat depending on low/hide tide. All those cylinders and each person’s crate is carried out and back each day. In addition, the staff assisted with helping us put on/takeoff our equipment, anchoring the boat to buoys, provided us with towels, offered tea/coffee and bananas after the first dive. They also served us our bento boxes (or you can order sandwiches instead) The Acqua Dive House reef was also a nice surprise. Apo Island was beautiful, but the house reef was good for muck diving. We did our night dive at the house reef. The food at Acqua Dive was yummy. Kitchen staff works like a well-oiled machine. Be sure to pre-order and give them a time that you want to eat! They were always punctual with the meals and the ingredients were all local/fresh. The rooms at Acqua Dive were spacious and clean. The air conditioning worked and I liked how they had a drying rack on our deck. The bathrooms were slightly dated, but again the entire place is very clean so it wasnt a big deal for us. Free water, tea, and coffee was available throughout the day. The grounds are well groomed and maintained. I saw security around frequently and the gate is closed at nighttime to ensure our safety. Oh and the sunrises were epic each morning. (No filters needed) Thank you Acqua Dive! We will recommend you to all our friends! …
Acqua Dive is operated by Australian Sean Stone and his Korean wife Chae . They are a lovely couple and they run a wonderful 7 bedroom , Dive Resort , with great swimming pool , a very well managed diving operation with their own dive boat running daily trips from their beach side location out to Apo Island only 30 -40 minutes away .They also have a very good restaurant , and a well stocked bar , and after a day of diving our party of 6 would enjoy a few drinks relaxing around the swimming pool , before dinner , and then a good night's sleep in the very well furnished , en - suite rooms .
I did a day trip to dive in Apo Island and didn't stay in the property. The experience was extremely positive and Iris, the dive master, was great and super patient. I was alone and hadn't dove for a while, but she took the time ro review everything with me and to help me when I had a panic attack during one of the dives. It was overall a lovely day, the diving group was small and the lunch provided was super good.
My family of four joined two day trips to Apo island with Acqua Dive and found the services to be good value and flexible. Other resorts may charge a day rate for diving to Apo, Acqua dive had the per dive option which suited me who wanted just two dives. The location of the resort is most direct to Apo and the trips took around 25 mins each way on their nice boat. The dive team were so sweet and helpful to make our trips seamless. Lunch boxes were yummy too. Thanks for the great time Acqua Dive!
Beautiful and well run property - clean, comfortable and well serviced. Fantastic food and staff. Beautiful gardens. Staff are committed, helpful, attentive and pleasant, especially over the Christmas period. Dive operation is efficient and well-managed - overall an easy and rewarding experience. Apo Island itself seemed only worth about 2 days of diving. Coastal sites are good for a warm-up dive and have some interesting life.
Well what can I say, as amazing as ever !! Been here several times now due to it’s fantastic appeal of both excellent accommodation and a fantastic diving experience. See my other reviews for more details but food is amazing and resort accommodates for snorkelers as well as divers. Can’t wait to be back again :)
Their service was excellent. The instructors taught me many new things. All the equipment was new. The boat was comfortable and lunch was tasty. Average response time was fast and the prices are reasonable.
We traveled by road from Cebu with friends, taking a ferry across from Cebu Island to Negros Oriental. The drive was not speedy but we were in no rush. The rooms at Acqua Dive are clean and well kept, staff very courteous, food very well made and there is a bonus drink if you pre-order your dinner in advance. We traveled with our own dive gear so I can't comment on the rental equipment. Tanks are supplied by a third party and Nitrox is available as are DIN valves for those who have DIN first stages. Eshmail the DM / Dive Guide that was assigned to us is a great spotter for all things macro and there are loads of subjects on the house reef, and even on Apo Island, although the latter destination is better for wide angle photography. Looking forward to returning soon.
We have spent 6 days and 5 nights in Acqua Dive Resort with 3 great diving days at Nov 2019. I really enjoy our stay and definitely will back again and refer anyone who plan to stay in Dumaguete. The room is spacious and clean, bed is comfortable, lots of TV channels, a place for you to dry your wet clothes. All the staffs are friendly and helpful. The catering is great too, unlike large resort and restaurant. It does not have big menu; however, it is more than enough to feed you well. The food is tasty and with good presentation. I feel that is cooked with heart. The garden is nice and with lovely music, you can have free tea and coffee all day long. It is very relaxing for me to have a drink and rest in the garden. Acqua Dive offers reasonable price for pick up and drop off service as well. For the diving, the diving crew are excellent, the diving boat is the best I ever had; clean, spacious, with toilet, dry section for keeping things you don’t want to get wet and non-slippery at all. The DM Ismael/Ishmeal is experienced, he can find 1 to 2 mm size creatures. He knows where they live. The house reef is great for muck dive and Apo Island is about 20mins boat ride with beautiful corals. Acqua Dive loves the earth too. It uses reusable lunch box, stainless steel straw, glass bottle for in room drinking water, etc. Being environmental friend is good for our ocean. I really appreciate the effort of Acqua Dive staff which making me an enjoyable stay. Excellent diving, restful stay and tasty meals which is a perfect diving holiday.…
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