Discovery Palawan, Philippines
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8.9 Fabulous
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- Nitrox available
- from $ 295 / day
- Book Now
“I saw an incredible, oceanic manta ray that stole my heart! I saw giant clams for the first time in my 200+ diving career! And th…”
Highlights
The MV Discovery Palawan, Philippines, is an excellent liveaboard choice for exploring the rich dive sites of Tubbahata National Park, the spectacular diving of Apo Reef, or the numerous wrecks of Coron. Divers can hope to see whale sharks, manta rays, and hammerhead sharks as well as spectacular coral reefs on the Tubbahata dive cruise, and snorkelers are more than welcome to join in with the Apo Reef cruise to experience the underwater beauty of the Philippines. With a spacious dive platform and experienced guides, diving aboard the MV Discovery Palawan will surely deliver a memorable vacation.
Having recently undergone a huge renovation, the M/V Discovery Palawan has a fresh, modern look, spacious relaxation areas, and tastefully decorated cabins. At almost 50m in length, there is plenty of room for relaxation on board, with an air-conditioned salon and dining area, camera room, sun deck, 2 shaded decks, and a further outdoor dining area and bar to enjoy the sea air. There are 20 cabins aboard the MV Discovery Palawan, 16 lower deck standard rooms, and 4 upper deck rooms. Each cabin has air-conditioning and en-suite bathrooms.
Book online today to reserve your space on this Philippines liveaboard adventure.
Choose your departure date
Included: VAT, Drinking Water, Tea & Coffee, Full-Board Meal Plan (All meals), Snacks, Diving Package.
Required Extras: Fuel Surcharge (150 USD per trip), National Park Fees (80-135 USD per trip).
Optional Extras: Gratuities, Airport Transfer, Hotel Transfer, Alcoholic Beverages, Soft drinks, Nitrox (12 USD per tank), Nitrox Course (260 USD), Rental Gear, Scuba Diving Courses (120-576 USD).
Book now, pay later: You can easily place your booking online. We will then hold the spaces for you and you can confirm with a payment later.
* Extra fees are shown per person.
Pay by bank transfer or online with
Drawings & Vessel Layouts
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Cabin Types
Discovery Palawan Reviews
- 8.9 Fabulous
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Vessel
8.1
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Crew
9.3
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Food
9.9
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Diving
9.0
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Value
8.1
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- 6.8 Review score
- Sharifa E
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United States
Great Crew, Unique Diving, But Mildewy Bathrooms
I saw an incredible, oceanic manta ray that stole my heart! I saw giant clams for the first time in my 200+ diving career! And the crew on the boat were highly knowledgeable and fun!
- Recommended for
- The crew was fantastic! The best coral and wall dives, I saw fish that I’ve never seen!
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Joshua S
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United States
Great Experience in Tubbataha
The boat is huge, accommodates a large number of divers. The group I dove with was super fun and the process, from start-to-finish, was enjoyable. The divemaster was very competent and trustworthy, and though he didn't point out a lot I really enjoyed his calm and professional manner. The crew was very kind and attentive, and the food was delicious. I didn't love that we often dove the same place twice in a row (two dives at one site in the morning, two at a different site in the afternoon), but these dives sometimes covered a different area and the diving was always good (even when we were covering the same terrain twice). I really appreciated that the leader of the trip took care of my valuables in his safe (including a not insignificant amount of cash). I would do this trip again!
- Recommended for
- Diving in Pristine Reefs, The Fully Stocked Bar, and the Crew!
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- 9.2 Superb
- Joseph M
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United States
Good Times in Tubbataha
The staff on Discovery Palawan made this trip comfortable and easy. There was plenty of food between dives. You will not go hungry. The diving was varied and well organized.
- Recommended for
- Manta Ray, Sharks, & Coral Gardens
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Jere L
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United States
Hi end ship at a reasonable price
Seeing Marble Rays up close and a great group of divers
- Recommended for
- Big boat, great food, attentive staff
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- 8.8 Fabulous
- Casey D
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United States
It's a shame they use 2-stroke motors
The use of 2-stroke boat motors on its 3 inflatable dive tenders makes Palawan Discovery customers party to the exhausting of (lubrication) oil directly into the ocean and onto the reef. Great crew, great diving, but please DP - ditch the 2-strokes, as a favor to everyone and everything.
- Recommended for
- Lots & lots of passenger space, top-notch tank fills, and ... there's a bar!
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- 9.2 Superb
- Robert B
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United States
Great friendly people
The crew friendliness and attention was spot on. The food was great with 3 main course options every night. Their dive site maps where excellent and DM very specific with inflatable captains on drop points.
- Recommended for
- Happy Hour, Great knowledge of dive site, Served buffet style alfresco dinning
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- 10 Exceptional
- Andrew W
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United States
Superb Experience!
The staff were incredibly attentive, personable, and helpful, including everyone from the stewards to the divemasters. For example, within hours of stepping onto the boat, every staff member greeted me by my first name and asked if I needed anything! The Discovery Palawan is a big boat, 150 feet long, and my first LiveAboard Experience, so I had a lot of questions. I was always treated respectfully and never dismissively, even though I was one of more than 30 guests. The food was endless; early breakfast, full breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner as well as a bar area. At every meal there were at least 3 main dishes and all the food was thoughtfully presented and tasted great (I am not a "foodie" and was impressed!). The ship itself is not brand new and shows some wear and tear but my quarters were great (small private room in middle of ship on lower level with its own air conditioning and bathroom). Of course, the diving in Tubbataha is wonderful but maybe a little disappointing as the water was not crystal clear as it appears in many videos and the schools of fish less prominent than I imagined. We had one Manta Ray encounter and no whaleshark encounters. We did see sharks on most dives, including white tip, black tip, and grey reef sharks, but no Tiger or Hammerheads. At times, there were too many divers at each divesite, which I mentioned to the organizers. A dozen or more divers at a dive site almost guarantees that some creatures will be scared off and diminishes the dive experience. I was told that there were limited dive sites and because of currents it was difficult to space out the divers but I think this could be improved. I shoot underwater video and it was challenging to obtain great "National Geographic Quality" videos as part of a dive group of 5 or 6 divers. The divemasters were very attentive and helpful with gear, setting it up before each dive. Nitrox percentages were a bit variable (32% could be 31% or 33% and had to be confirmed before each dive, but this is routine practice anywhere). I always dove on Nitrox and found it preferable to air (less fatigue and longer bottom times). There were always tanks ready to go and equipment was never broken (if it was, it never interfered with my diving experience). This trip is not for a newly certified diver as there may be strong currents and there's a lot of putting on and taking off equipment, sometimes in very deep water where dropping a weight belt or camera would be a problem. While most diving is at 50-70 feet, I went to 100 feet on a few dives to film some sharks. I also found my shipmates to be very courteous and interesting and fully enjoyed their company at mealtimes and breaks. It was fun to meet new people who all love diving! As it turned out, I was the only US citizen on board, the rest were Filipinos with the exception of 3 Israelis, so it was a great international experience. I would highly recommend Discovery Palawan and would return again, although next time with my own divemaster to have time to shoot more unique footage. N.B. There is no cell phone signal and no internet at the reef, which means 5 days or so of digital isolation! You may want to download some movies before you go! (I returned to Palawan and 1,700 emails waiting...so you might want to budget some recovery time after your trip.)
- Recommended for
- Personalized service, Fantastic Food, Well-organized diving
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- 8.4 Very good
- Ramon J
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Philippines
Excellent service - the crew were very friendly and punctiluous
Tubbattaha! The place itself was the highlight of the trip
- Recommended for
- the diving experience, food and service
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- 9.2 Superb
- Ron S
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Netherlands
Diving at world class pristine reef
Seeing loads of marine life incl manta/marbled rays, dolphins playing around the boat, instant diving with tender boats, living on a boat not having to worry about accommodation or food, well organised diving with team members that stuck together as a group.
- Recommended for
- Extremely accomodating crew, good food incl snacks, compensation for two lost days with free nitrox.
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- 9.2 Superb
- Andrzej B
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Poland
excellent trip
very good quality service, plenty of good food, spacious cabins with decent shower. Boat has unusual set of decks which makes a little hustle during the launch, however organization and clear information makes it even. Plenty of space on each deck including dry deck.
- Recommended for
- food, space on the boat
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