Anda, Bohol: Dive Site Paradise Garden - The main dive sites on the Anda Peninsula are located along the southern coast, stretching from Anda town around to Basdio. This area is known for its healthy coral walls, excellent visibility, and relaxed diving conditions.
Video taken: May 2025
Anda, Bohol: A peninsula located on the eastern tip of Bohol Island, approximately 100 km from Tagbilaran City. The town center (Poblacion) of Anda is a peaceful and scenic spot to spend time, featuring the historic Santo Niño Church and a long stretch of white-sand beach.
Images taken: 2024 | 2025
Dive Guide to Anda, Bohol – Sites, Reefs & What Divers Can Expect
Diving in Anda, Bohol revolves around a long stretch of continuous reef that runs from Lamanok Island in the north down to Basdio in the south. The main concentration of dive sites lies between Anda and Basdio, with around 25 named locations. In reality, this 10-kilometre coastline is one connected system, offering a mix of coral shelves, outcrops, sandy slopes, and wall dives. Conditions vary along the reef, and most dives naturally drift or cross from one site into the next — a pattern you’ll see across most Anda dive sites.
Beyond the diving itself, Anda is simply a great place to spend time — whether you're exploring the quiet town centre, relaxing on the beach, or heading out to discover the surrounding coastline. As soon as you turn off the Bohol Circumferential Road and onto the peninsula, everything starts to slow down. With its small streets, quiet barangays, and laid-back pace, Anda has a strong local feel. It’s unspoiled, welcoming, and genuinely pleasant to be in.
A relaxed look at diving in Anda and why it’s worth making the trip.
The peninsula is home to around 18,000 people, spread across 16 barangays ranging from coastal villages to inland farming communities. Daily life is still closely tied to traditional livelihoods, and it’s this connection that gives Anda much of its authentic character.
As part of a wider Bohol dive itinerary, Anda works particularly well as a two- to three-day stop. It’s suitable for divers of all levels, and the sites are generally quiet — I’ve never seen boats crowding the same spots during my visits. Marine life is healthy, especially around the coral gardens, where I regularly see green turtles, octopus, frogfish, colourful nudibranchs, and the occasional great barracuda cruising out in the blue.
I visit Anda regularly — it’s a short trip from my home in Dauis, Panglao. Conditions naturally vary from visit to visit, but I always enjoy the experience. From the scenic coastal drive and walks along Anda’s beach to the quality of the diving, what stands out most is how peaceful the place feels. It’s a genuinely good location to slow down and spend some time.
Table of Contents
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1.Dive Map
Highlighted Guides & Articles
A selection of dive guides and articles covering dive travel, Central Visayas dive sites, and underwater photography and videography. Each one offers clear, practical insight built from real diving across the Central Philippines.
Dive Map - Anda
The map highlights the main transport hubs — Cebu, Tagbilaran, and Panglao Airport — as well as the southern dive sites in Anda and Lamanok Point to the north.
Anda: Dive Site Map - Click the map pins for location snippets
Map Source: John Hawkins | Leaflet | 2025
Anda: Dive Site Shark Point - The current around the point can sometimes be challenging, but you’re rewarded with a great mix of marine life, dramatic walls, and a beautiful coral shelf. Green turtles are commonly spotted here, and most nearby sites offer similar sightings along with excellent reef life.
Video taken: February 2025
Diving Highlights & Final Thoughts – Anda, Bohol
Like much of the region, Anda has implemented marine protected areas since the early 2000s, driven by a severe decline in both fish populations and coral health. Local communities responded by setting up no-take zones and enforcement patrols to restore reef ecosystems and protect their fishing livelihoods. Over time, these efforts have helped revive marine life and stabilize the health of the coastal environment.
A local guide to diving Cabilao Island — how to get there, what to expect, and why it’s worth the trip.
Despite these efforts, fishing still takes place in and around Anda’s coastal waters, including some activity near protected areas. While core no-take zones are enforced, buffer zones allow for limited, regulated fishing, and occasional intrusions or illegal practices still occur. Enforcement is handled locally through community patrols, but limited resources and outside pressure make full protection challenging.
Even with these outside pressures, the reefs here have continued to improve, resulting in the healthy corals and marine life we see today. Of course, there’s still some impact, and if you’ve come expecting big schools of jackfish or barracuda, you may be disappointed. But spend a bit of time diving these waters, and you’ll quickly discover there’s a lot more to diving in Anda than meets the eye.
I talk to a lot of people diving out of Panglao who have come to the region for the main draws like Balicasag Island or Pamilacan Island — but very few have Anda on their radar. In most cases, it’s simply because they’re short on time and trying to cover a lot of ground. Personally, I could quite happily spend two weeks diving the Bohol Marine Triangle, Cabilao, and Anda alone. Sure, I’d miss out on the thresher sharks at Malapascua or the muck diving in Dauin, but if you're after healthy reefs and a great mix of marine life, this part of Bohol is hard to beat — and a stop-off in Anda would be right near the top of my list.
Best Time to Dive: When to Go and Why
Anda can be dived year-round, with seasonal conditions influencing both weather and visitor numbers. The low season runs from May to early December, bringing fewer visitors but a higher chance of weather disruption due to the southwest Habagat monsoon. The high season, from mid-December through Easter, generally offers calmer seas and more settled conditions, making it the preferred period for most divers.
In the Visayas, monsoon transitions typically occur around June and again in October. Typhoons are part of the broader June to mid-December season and, from October through mid-December, can directly affect the Central Philippines, including the Visayas. While not continuous, these systems can bring periods of wind, rain, and rougher seas, despite the region’s generally sheltered, central location.
Dive Weather - Understand the Seasons, the Science and the Impact
Weather in the Philippines is highly regional and often misunderstood as a single “rainy season.” It’s not unusual for Manila to experience flooding from a typhoon while conditions in the Visayas remain dry and diveable. Some weather impact is possible year-round, but it’s rarely poor all day or across the entire region. Dive trips operate throughout the year, and with a bit of flexibility, good diving is usually available nearby.
Reaching Anda: Routes & Options
For most travelling divers, Panglao is the main starting point for reaching Anda. It serves as the region’s primary dive hub and is home to Bohol–Panglao International Airport, which handles regular flights from Manila as well as limited international routes from Northeast Asia. Many travellers also arrive via Cebu, flying into Mactan–Cebu International Airport and then taking the OceanJet ferry from Pier 1 in Cebu to Tagbilaran, Bohol — a common and reliable alternative.
Providing fast efficient connection for divers exploring the Central Visayas
Overland - Panglao to Anda
For the 100Km overland trip from Panglao to Anda, the main options are public van, private car hire, or arranged pick-up:
Public vans depart from Tagbilaran’s central bus terminal beside Island City Mall, operating mainly on the Tagbilaran–Ubay route. While they don’t run directly to Anda, they pass nearby, with Guindulman being the usual drop-off point. From there, you can continue to Anda by local bus or tuk-tuk and onward to your resort. This option can work if you’re travelling light or heading north toward Ubay, but it is time-consuming. Vans operate on a per-seat basis with limited baggage space, so dive travellers typically purchase two seats — one for themselves and one for their gear. I use this option when travelling to the Southern Leyte dive sites.
Private car hire is my preferred option for short dive trips to Anda. It’s flexible, hassle-free, and allows you to explore beyond the dive sites — whether around Anda itself or farther into Bohol, including popular side trips like the Chocolate Hills or the Tarsier Sanctuary in Corella near Tagbilaran City. Car hire in the Philippines is generally affordable; as of 2025, rates typically range from ₱1,600 to ₱2,000 per day for a small car. I usually hire a car for three days, which works out at roughly ₱4,800 to ₱6,000 in total.
Pamilacan Island, part of the Bohol Marine Triangle, offers some of the region’s best diving with healthy reefs and rich marine life.
Arranged pick-up with a car and driver is a good option for visitors who prefer not to drive or use public vans. This service can usually be arranged through car hire companies in Panglao or via your resort. While convenient, it is typically more expensive and can be limiting if you plan to make additional local trips once you’re in Anda.
Getting to Anda from Panglao is generally straightforward. If your dive plans are focused on Bohol, I recommend hiring your own car, as it offers the most flexibility and control over timing. While public vans are an option, the combined cost of transfers to the bus terminal, extra seats for luggage, indirect drop-off points, and longer travel times often outweighs the savings. I usually have a rental car delivered to my home in Dauis at around 6 a.m., and with some coordination with the dive resort, I’m typically in the water by 10 a.m.
Anda, Bohol: Most resorts are spread out along the coastline between Anda town and Basdio. This stretch of shoreline is mostly rocky cliff, with footpath access down to the ocean edge. The images shown here were taken from Blue Star Dive Resort.
Images taken: 2024 | 2025
Where to Stay: Anda
Anda offers a broad range of accommodation to suit most budgets, from resorts and hotels to guesthouses, homestays, and small inns. That said, dive-focused, ocean-facing properties are relatively limited, and only a handful offer dedicated dive shops, experienced teams, training facilities, and direct access to their own bangkas.
These dive resorts are spread along roughly a 10 km stretch of coastline between Anda town and Basdio, so location matters. If you’re visiting primarily to dive, I recommend staying at a dedicated dive resort. It simplifies logistics, avoids unnecessary travel between sites, and there’s something to be said for waking up, having breakfast, and walking straight down to the bangka.
The gateway to the Bohol Marine Triangle and some of the most accessible and varied diving in the Visayas.
I often stay at Blue Star Dive Resort, which is well located, has an excellent house reef, and offers good value for money. Another strong option, if your budget allows, is Magic Oceans Dive Resort. It receives consistently high reviews but tends to book out quickly, particularly during high season.
During the low season, a little forward planning is usually sufficient, and availability can often be found after arrival. In high season — especially around Christmas and Easter — booking well in advance is advisable. While accommodation is still available, late bookings may mean less convenient locations and more daily travel to reach dive sites or shops.
Keep Exploring the Site
These hub pages form the core structure of the site, bringing together our main guides on living in the Philippines, diving across the country, and understanding Filipino society. Alongside them, the highlighted guides below point you to key articles that go deeper into specific topics, helping you explore the Philippines with clearer context and practical insight.
Frequently Asked Questions – Diving in Anda
What is diving like in Anda?
Anda diving follows a continuous reef system with coral shelves, sandy slopes, outcrops, and wall sections. Many dives drift naturally between neighbouring sites, so you often cover varied terrain in a single dive.
What marine life can I expect to see?
Anda is known for healthy reefs and smaller reef life rather than big schools. Common sightings include green turtles, octopus, frogfish, nudibranchs, and occasional barracuda out in the blue.
Are the dive sites crowded?
Usually not. Anda sites are generally quiet, and it’s common to dive without boats crowding the same spot, even during busier periods.
When is the best time to dive in Anda?
High season runs from mid-December through Easter, when seas are often calmer. Low season is May to early December, with a higher chance of weather disruption. Typhoons can directly affect the Visayas from October to mid-December.
How do I get to Anda from Panglao or Tagbilaran?
Most divers travel via Panglao, then continue overland to Anda. Many also arrive through Cebu, taking the OceanJet ferry from Pier 1 in Cebu to Tagbilaran before travelling by road to Anda.
What’s the easiest transport option if I’m carrying dive gear?
Private car hire is the simplest option and is typically ₱1,600 to ₱2,000 per day for a small car. Public vans are cheaper but have limited luggage space, so divers often purchase a second seat for gear.
Where should divers stay in Anda?
For convenience, stay at a dedicated dive resort along the coast between Anda town and Basdio. These resorts handle logistics, keep travel simple, and often have direct access to bangkas for daily diving.
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