Malapascua · Philippines · Reef
Exotic Dive Resort house reef
A 5 to 13 m coral and seagrass slope off the resort beach
Area photo: Petter Lindgren · CC BY-SA 3.0
The house reef in front of Exotic Dive Resort starts at 5 metres and slopes gently to 13, over scattered coral heads and patches of sea grass rather than continuous reef. The resort keeps the ground in front of it as a protected area where the fish are plentiful, and it is dived as a check dive or as a slow hunt for the small life between the coral and the grass.
Where it is and how deep
11.3286° N, 124.1220° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
This is the dive people use to work out the kinks after time out of the water. The reef starts at 5 metres and slopes gently to 13, so the profile stays shallow the whole way and there is nothing to plan around: the ground lies directly in front of the resort and is entered from the beach rather than run as a boat trip. Most divers use it as a check dive, or as an easy extra dive when the day's boat diving is done.
The ground is scattered coral and patches of sea grass, and the dive is a slow search along the slope rather than a swim to a feature. A wide variety of fish and macro life lives between the coral heads and in the grass, in what the resort keeps as a protected area, so the pace is set by how carefully you look. Work down the slope, turn on time or gas, and spend the last stretch shallow where the light is best.
Marine life and season
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Fair | Fair |
Season follows Malapascua: November–February northeast monsoon can delay or cancel the early crossing to Kimud Shoal, which is further out than the old Monad run.
Questions divers ask
How deep is the Exotic house reef?+
It starts at about 5 metres and slopes gently to 13 metres, so the whole dive sits well inside Open Water limits.
Can you dive it from shore?+
Yes. It is the house reef directly in front of Exotic Dive Resort and is entered from the beach, so it needs no boat and no crossing.
Sources
- Exotic Dive Resort house reef - Scubago — Scubago/SSI
More dive sites in Malapascua
Reef
Reef, mini wall and coral garden from 12 m down to 30 m
Coral garden
A gentle coral slope from 5 to 20 m inside a protected area
Pinnacle
A 20 m-wide coral pinnacle topping out at 5 m
Pinnacle
A rocky pinnacle from 14 m to 34 m, dived on tide changes
Wreck
A 1988 ferry wreck lying on her starboard side at 33 m
A 30 m swim-through tunnel at 10 m with sharks resting inside
Wreck
A wreck shallow enough to be someone's first ever dive
Seamount
Where Malapascua's thresher sharks moved in 2022, at 12–22 m
Similar dives elsewhere
Bommie-topped plateau above a fan-covered wall
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
Reef hook dive at 10-12 m in very strong current