Philippines Aggressor

The Philippines Aggressor is a magnificent and modern 41m/135 ft purpose-built steel hull liveaboard, constructed in 2020 in Egypt. The yacht operates 7 and 10 night diving cruises to Tubbataha and to a variety of Visayas destinations, including Malapascua, Southern Leyte, Bohol and Moalboal. These represent much of the best in diving that the Philippines have to offer - large pelagics such as whale sharks, mantas, hammerheads and thresher sharks, plus an unbeatable amount of macro creatures including innumerable varieties of shrimps and octopus. Many claim the Philippines to be The Nudibranch Capital of the World.

24 guests are hosted onboard in 12 cabins with ensuite bathrooms. There are Deluxe Staterooms on both the lower and main decks, as well as Balcony Suites on the upper deck (with private balconies, of course), from where you can drink in the picturesque island seascape of the archipelago. Guests are attended to by the 18 onboard staff, so you can expect the attentive service, characteristic of Aggressor liveaboards.

The Philippines Aggressor has a dedicated restaurant on the main deck, where meals are taken – breakfast is cooked to order, lunch is a buffet, and dinner is served tableside. One great feature is this yacht is that the sun deck can also be used for al fresco dining when preferred. The menu onboard is varied and the food plentiful. Some examples of dishes include Asparagus Cream Soup, Chicken and Mushroom Pie, Roasted Turkey with Brown Sauce, Bell Pepper Stew and Saffron Rice with Vegetables, Pear Strudel, Crème Brûlée. There are always plenty of snacks available throughout the day too, such as Mexican-style nachos, pizza slices and carrot cake. Local beer and wine is provided free of charge throughout the cruises.

Besides having set tables for al fresco dining, the sun deck also has a hot tub - ideal for late afternoon or early evening relaxation. The awning covers the entire deck, but is retractable so sun worshippers can catch some rays during the day. The upper deck is also a popular relaxation area. It has an open-air cocktail lounge for unwinding after the day’s diving, and an indoor lounge, complete with television sets and various other entertainments, such as movies, games and books.

The dive deck is wide and spacious; each diver has their own tank rack, locker, and seating area. You board the dive tenders from the huge dive platform. All dives are made from the 20 ft / 6m outboard zodiacs capable of carrying 12 divers. The boarding ladders were designed for convenience to make exits and entries a breeze and are accompanied by a warm face towel and a refreshing drink/fruit. Many sites in the Philippines are drift dives so you should be comfortable with a diving in a current. A full line of MARES rental equipment is available aboard. If any of your own dive gear fails while onboard, the crew will loan you equipment free of charge, compliments of MARES. Nice! There is also a photo/video editing center, where you can check out your underwater shots.

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Dive experience: All divers must affirm that they are fit to dive in the Philippines, including physical fitness, dive skills and experience. The individual diver is the best person to judge their own fitness.

Cruise price per person includes: Cabin accommodation with air-conditioning, breakfast, lunch, dinner (except final night), snacks, water, soft drinks and hot drinks, local wine and beer, local airport transfers, dives (as detailed in the cruises above), 4 experienced English-speaking divemasters per full boat, tanks, weights and weightbelts, all taxes.

Cruise price per person excludes (mandatory, unless customer provides own): Scuba equipment (complete set incl dive computer US$ 225 per week), dive computer, port/park fees - Tubbataha 7 and 10 nights trip US$ 150, Tubbataha transition trip US$ 210, Visayas 7 nights US$ 105 per week, Visayas 10 nights US$ 120, Oslob (when visited) US$ 30. Unless otherwise stated, all the listed items need to be paid on arrival (cash or credit card).

Optional extras: Nitrox fills for enriched air certified divers (7 nights US$ 100, 10 nights US$ 150), torch ( US$ 8 per night), 15 liter tanks (7 nights US$ 75, 10 nights US$ 120 ), dive insurance, dinner on the final evening of the cruise. Unless otherwise stated, all the listed items need to be paid on arrival. Note: prices of items purchased onboard are subject to change.

How to get there: The Philippines Aggressor uses 3 ports:
Puerto Princesa: This port is used for cruises to Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park and some transit trips to Cebu. The local airport is Puerto Princesa Airport (PPS). There are direct flights from Cebu City and Manila, as well as from Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea.
Dumaguete: This port is used for cruises between Cebu City and Dumaguete. The local airport is Dumaguete City Sibulan Airport (DGT). There are direct flights from Manila and Cebu City.
Cebu City: This port is used for all other cruises. The local airport is Mactan Cebu International Airport (CEB). There are direct flights from Manila and some other Filipino cities, as well as from Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Dubai, Taiwan and China.
For more details, including airlines, see our Philippines travel information section.
In all cases, you will be collected at the local airport or recommended hotel around 4-5 pm and transferred to the yacht. You must be onboard by 6 pm for cruise briefing, dinner and departure. The last dive of the trip will be at lunch time on the penultimate day. Disembarkation and local airport/hotel transfers will be at 8 am. Please wait at least 18 hours before flying after diving.

Non-diver rate: US$ 200 off the full published price (does not apply to specials).

Single supplement (if you do not want to share accommodation): This is optional - single travellers may choose to share a cabin or pay a supplement of 65% of the normal published price.

Dive clubs and group discounts: Pay for 11 guests, and 2 extra persons can join the cruise in a stateroom free of charge (total 13+ guests).

Whole boat charter rate (per night): Pay for 21 guests and 3 additional persons can join the cruise in staterooms free of charge (total 24 guests).

Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park (8 Days / 7 Nights - 22 Dives)

Trip highlights: shark action, great macro life/ marine diversity, schooling fish & big pelagics

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Tubbataha North Atoll: Ranger Station, Shark Airport, Washing Machine, Malayan Wreck, Seafan Alley, Terraces; Tubbataha South Atoll: Black Rock, T Wreck, Ko-Ok, Delsan Wreck, Triggerfish City, Southwest Wall, Staghorn Point; Jessie Beazley Reef

Day 1
You will be greeted at Puerto Princesa Airport and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. Boarding closes at 6 pm, when the cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming week. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port for the 10 hour crossing. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-7
The Tubbataha Reefs National Park is an UNESCO World Heritage site and lies in the Sulu Sea in the middle of the Coral Triangle. There are 370 types of coral, 600 species of fish, 12 species of cetacean. Due to their isolation, the atolls are a great area for shark action with species such as guitar, blacktips, white tips, grey reef sharks, silkies, hammerheads and whale sharks. The walls are adorned with beautiful soft corals, barrel sponges and lots of cleaning stations. The shallows are made up of hard coral gardens. Although the macro life is fantastic here, it take a back stage to the big marine life action, such as dogtooth tuna, giant trevally, barracuda, turtles and manta rays.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 8
After breakfast, you will disembark and be transferred back to the local airport or local hotel.

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Malapascua, Cebu, Bohol & Dumaguete (11 Days / 10 Nights - 27 Dives)

Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, dolphins, manta rays, turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Malapascua, Gato, Capitancillo, Cebu: Moalboal, Pascador, Oslob, Sumilon, Dumaguete: Apo Island, Siquijor, Dauin, Bohol: Pamilacan, Anda, Olango

Day 1
You will be greeted at Mactan Cebu International Airport (CEB) and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. Boarding closes early evening, when the cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming days. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-10
On this cruise you will explore the best of the central Visayas region in a circular loop around Cebu Island, with a detour to Dumaguete. You will have the opportunity to encounter thresher sharks and mantas at Malapascua, hammerhead sharks at Cabilao, turtles at Balicasag, huge schools of sardines at Moalboal, whale sharks at Sumilon, huge schools of trevally at Apo Island, and muck diving at Dauin. And at all locations, there will be an overwhelming amount macro life - ghostpipefish, seahorses, frogfish, ribbon eels, innumerable species of shrimp, nudibranch, cuttlefish and octopus. It’s an incredible tour in the heart of the wonderland that is the Coral Triangle.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 11
After breakfast, you will disembark and be transferred back to the local airport or local hotel.

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Tubbataha, Cebu, Bohol, Dumaguete & Cagayan (11 Days / 10 Nights - 27 Dives)

Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, dolphins, manta rays, turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity, schooling fish & big pelagics

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Tubbataha North Atoll: Ranger Station, Shark Airport, Washing Machine, Malayan Wreck, Seafan Alley, Terraces; Tubbataha South Atoll: Black Rock, T Wreck, Ko-Ok, Delsan Wreck, Triggerfish City, Southwest Wall, Staghorn Point; Jessie Beazley Reef, Bohol: Cabilao, Balicasag; Cebu: Mactan, Olango; Dumaguete: Siquijor, Apo Island, Dauin

Day 1
You will be greeted at Puerto Princesa Airport and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. The cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming week. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port for the 10 hour crossing. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-10
On this cruise you will explore the best of the Sulu Sea and the Visayas region. The Tubbataha Reefs National Park is an UNESCO World Heritage site in the Sulu Sea in the middle of the Coral Triangle. There are 370 types of coral, 600 species of fish, 12 species of cetacean. The atolls are a great area for shark action with species such as guitar, blacktips, white tips, grey reef sharks, silkies, hammerheads and whale sharks. Other large marine life includes dogtooth tuna, giant trevally, barracuda, turtles and manta rays. The walls are adorned with beautiful soft corals and lots of cleaning stations. The shallows are made up of hard coral gardens.
In the Visayas you will have the opportunity to encounter thresher sharks and mantas at Malapascua, hammerhead sharks at Cabilao, turtles at Balicasag, huge schools of trevally at Apo Island, and muck diving at Dauin. And at all locations, there will be an overwhelming amount macro life - ghostpipefish, seahorses, frogfish, ribbon eels, innumerable species of shrimp, nudibranch, cuttlefish and octopus. It’s an incredible tour in the heart of the Coral Triangle.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port in Cebu City. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 11
After breakfast, you will disembark and be transferred back to the local airport. Please note that this itinerary can run in reverse so please check the exact port of departure and return.

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Cebu, Bohol & Dumaguete (8 Days / 7 Nights - 22 Dives)

Trip highlights: whale sharks, turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Bohol: Cabilao; Cebu: Sumilon, Moalboal, Pescador, Mactan, Olango; Dumaguete: Apo Island, Dauin

Day 1
You will be greeted at Mactan Cebu International Airport (CEB) during the afternoon and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. Then the cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming week. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-7
On this cruise you will explore the best of the central Visayas region around Cebu Island and Dumaguete. You will have the opportunity to encounter hammerhead sharks at Cabilao, turtles at Balicasag, huge schools of sardines at Moalboal, whale sharks and mantas at Sumilon, huge schools of trevally at Apo Island, and muck diving at Dauin. And at all locations, there will be an overwhelming amount macro life - ghostpipefish, seahorses, frogfish, ribbon eels, innumerable species of shrimp, nudibranch, cuttlefish and octopus. It’s an incredible tour in the heart of the wonderland that is the Coral Triangle.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port in Dumaguete. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 8
After breakfast, you will disembark and be transferred back to the local airport. Please note that this itinerary can run in reverse so please check the exact port of departure and return.

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Tubbataha, Cebu, Bohol, Dumaguete & Cagayan (12 Days / 11 Nights - 31 Dives)

Trip highlights: whale sharks, shark action, dolphins, manta rays, turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity, schooling fish & big pelagics

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Tubbataha North Atoll: Ranger Station, Shark Airport, Washing Machine, Malayan Wreck, Seafan Alley, Terraces; Tubbataha South Atoll: Black Rock, T Wreck, Ko-Ok, Delsan Wreck, Triggerfish City, Southwest Wall, Staghorn Point; Jessie Beazley Reef, Bohol: Cabilao, Balicasag; Cebu: Mactan, Olango; Dumaguete: Siquijor, Apo Island, Dauin

Day 1
You will be greeted at Puerto Princesa Airport (PPS) at 4 pm and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. Boarding closes at 6 pm, when the cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming week. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port for the 10 hour crossing. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-11
On this cruise you will explore the best of the Sulu Sea and the Visayas region. The Tubbataha Reefs National Park is an UNESCO World Heritage site in the Sulu Sea in the middle of the Coral Triangle. There are 370 types of coral, 600 species of fish, 12 species of cetacean. The atolls are a great area for shark action with species such as guitar, blacktips, white tips, grey reef sharks, silkies, hammerheads and whale sharks. Other large marine life includes dogtooth tuna, giant trevally, barracuda, turtles and manta rays. The walls are adorned with beautiful soft corals and lots of cleaning stations. The shallows are made up of hard coral gardens.
In the Visayas you will have the opportunity to encounter thresher sharks and mantas at Malapascua, hammerhead sharks at Cabilao, turtles at Balicasag, huge schools of trevally at Apo Island, and muck diving at Dauin. And at all locations, there will be an overwhelming amount macro life - ghostpipefish, seahorses, frogfish, ribbon eels, innumerable species of shrimp, nudibranch, cuttlefish and octopus. It’s an incredible tour in the heart of the Coral Triangle.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port in Cebu City. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 12
After breakfast, you will disembark at 8 am and be transferred back to the local airport or local hotel. Please note that this itinerary can run in reverse so please check the exact port of departure and return.

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Southern Leyte, Malapascua, Cebu & Bohol (8 Days / 7 Nights - 22 Dives)

Trip highlights: whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, shark action, manta rays, turtles, great macro life/ marine diversity

Diving environment: advanced divers, beginner divers, cage diving, caverns, drift diving, healthy reefs, off the beaten track, very popular, wall diving, wreck diving

Dive sites and activities: Southern Leyte: Sogod Bay - Napantao Fish Sanctuary, Santa Paz, Limasawa, Panaon Island; Camotes, Bohol: Anda, Cabilao, Olango, Malapascua: Monad Shoal, Gato, Capitancillo

Day 1
You will be greeted at Mactan Cebu International Airport (CEB) and transferred to the Philippines Aggressor yacht, where will be snacks and drinks will be served. Then the cruise director will welcome you onboard, assign your cabin to you, give a boat safety briefing, crew introductions, and explain the plans for the coming week. You will have time to complete the necessary dive paperwork, familiarize yourself with the vessel and make yourself comfortable. Then dinner will be served as you depart from the port. After a good night's sleep, the diving will commence the next day.

Days 2-7
On this cruise you will explore the best of Malapascua, Bohol and Leyte. The little visited region of Southern Leyte offers some of the best diving in the Philippines. Whale sharks visit the area to feed on blooms of zooplankton, and there are some spectacular muck and macro sites where you can explore to find such wonders as hairy frogfish, xeno crabs, stargazers, and mimic and blue-ringed octopus. Elsewhere in you will have the opportunity to encounter thresher sharks, hammerheads and mantas at Malapascua, and huge schools of trevally and turtles at Bohol. And at all locations, there will be an overwhelming amount macro life - ghostpipefish, seahorses, frogfish, ribbon eels, innumerable species of shrimp, nudibranch, cuttlefish and octopus. It’s an incredible tour in the heart of the wonderland that is the Coral Triangle.
The menu onboard is varied and plentiful, with a variety of international cuisine. You will wake up to cereals, an assortment of breads, fresh seasonal fruit, yogurt, eggs cooked to order, sausage, and pancakes. Lunches are buffet-style, featuring hot soups, salads and sandwiches, and/or entrees. Dinners are chef prepared and table served each evening. Examples include: Yellow Lentil Soup, Grilled Fish in a Lime Butter Sauce, Surf and Turf - Beef Tenderloin and King Prawns served with a Creamy Brown Sauce, Tomato Zucchini Ragout and Potato Crisps, Lemon Meringue, Fresh Baked Brownies. There will also be plenty of snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Beverages include fruit juices, soft drinks, iced water, iced tea, coffee, and a limited selection of local beer and wine.
After 2 morning dives on the final full day of the trip, the Philippines Aggressor returns to port. Dinner will be taken at a restaurant on shore.

Day 8
After breakfast, you will disembark and be transferred back to the local airport or local hotel.

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[Information is best estimate in ideal circumstances and subject to changes beyond our control. The itinerary is a guide only and may be adapted to best suit the weather, tides, currents, availability and other prevailing events. Price is for the cruise, not for an exact number of dives].

There are 12 staterooms, 5 on the lower deck, 4 on the main deck, and 3 Balcony Suites (with private balcony) on the upper deck. All room categories are 2-share and can be used as twin bed or king bed occupancy, Each cabin has its own ensuite bathroom replete with separate shower cubicle. All have individual climate control, media players, ample storage space, and a safety box for personal belongings. Lower deck staterooms have portholes, upper and main deck have seaview windows. Linen is changed upon request and fresh towels are placed in each stateroom as needed.

All the cabins have: No. of bathrooms / showers - 14 / 14 - hot water

Customer reviews:

"The facilities and service were very good. The food was of a good quality, varied, and plentiful. The staff were experienced, friendly and welcoming. I think the tour could be better organised, and a few tweaks here and there would lead to a better customer experience.
Dive The World were very responsive. Free dive insurance was a nice perk." - Mathew Orr, United Kingdom, 19 April 2023 ...