Anilao · Philippines · Reef · Muck & macro
Casa Escondida House Reef
Walk-in slope of coral patches, rubble and sand, dived for macro
Area photo: andre oortgijs · CC BY-SA 3.0
The house reef in front of Casa Escondida Resort, entered straight from shore on the Anilao coast. A shallow rocky and sandy entry gives way to a gentle slope of coral patches, rubble and open sand running from about 5 to 25 metres. Divers come for the macro life on that mixed bottom rather than for reef structure, and the walk-in access makes it easy to dive several times a day.
Where it is and how deep
13.7279° N, 120.8841° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
You walk in from the beach in front of the resort. The entry is shallow, rocky and sandy, so most of the work is getting past it with a camera rig in hand; once you are down, the bottom tips away in a gentle slope that carries on to around 25 metres. The bottom is coral patches, rubble and open sand rather than any single landmark, which is why the site is dived as a slow sweep along one depth band rather than as a route between features.
The terrain alternates between coral patches, rubble areas and open sand, and that mix is the reason to be here: the site is known for its macro life and is worked mainly by photographers hunting subjects on the rubble and sand between the coral. Pick a depth, run along it, and turn shallow as gas allows, finishing on the sandy entry where you started. Because it is a house reef, another dive costs no more than the walk back down.
Marine life and season
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime |
Season follows Anilao: Diveable year-round; July–October typhoon season can bring rough surface conditions and trip cancellations.
Questions divers ask
How deep is Casa Escondida House Reef?+
The slope runs from a shallow rocky and sandy entry down to around 25 metres. Most of the diving is done shallower than that, working along one depth band on the coral and rubble.
Can you dive it from shore?+
Yes. It is a shore-entry site directly in front of Casa Escondida Resort, which is what makes it easy to dive repeatedly in a day.
Sources
- Casa Escondida House Reef - Scubago — Scubago
More dive sites in Anilao
A 35 m hull, then an SUV and a helicopter on the way back
Muck & macro
Debris slope from 3 to 18 m, dived for frogfish and nudibranchs
Pinnacle
Drop-offs and channels with a pinnacle rising from 14 m to 8 m
Golden pygmy seahorses on the gorgonians of a short wall
Wall
Protected wall to 35 m with fan corals and giant trevally
Reef
Current-swept corner with a pinnacle at 21 m for watching pelagics
One-way wall run that surfaces at the next resort along
Muck & macro
Mimic and blue-ringed octopus over Anilao's best-known muck slope
Similar dives elsewhere
Mandarinfish leave the fire coral here at dusk
Mandarinfish dancing at dusk among black sea urchin spines
A shallow coral area at 2-10 m over a slope that drops past 32 m
.jpg){kind=link}
Squid and cuttlefish eggs wedged between the rocks