Pamilacan · Philippines · Drift · Sand slope · Reef
Dakit-Dakit
A drifted slope of soft and black coral off Pamilacan's tip
Area photo: Pierre Pericard · CC BY 4.0
Dakit-Dakit is the site on Pamilacan's south-eastern tip, a sandy slope covered in soft and black corals that runs from about 10 m to 25 and then drops into a wall. It is worked as a leisurely drift along the reef, with fusiliers, snappers and jacks swirling over it and macro tucked into the coral, and it is the Pamilacan dive that suits everyone in the group.
Also known as Dakit Dakit.
Where it is and how deep
9.4890° N, 123.9300° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The ground is a sandy slope rather than a reef wall for most of the dive, but a slope that has been colonised: soft corals across it and black coral bushes standing up out of the sand, with the whole thing running down from about 10 m to 25 before the edge falls away into a proper wall. The dive is a drift along that slope, unhurried, and the depth is easy to hold anywhere in the range.
Two things go on at once. Above you and out over the edge there are schools — fusiliers in ribbons, snappers stacked up, jacks and barracuda swirling around the reef — and it pays to look up and out rather than only down. On the slope itself it is a macro dive: nudibranchs on the soft coral, frogfish wedged into the crevices, and the small stuff that lives in the black coral bushes.
Because the profile is gentle and the current usually cooperative, this is the site operators lead with when the group is mixed — the one everybody can do while the stronger divers are saving air for Spanish Tower or the wall. Turtles are on most dives, working the reef in the shallower half where the dive finishes.
Marine life and season
- Sea turtles
- Barracuda
- Trevally & jacks
- Reef fish swarms
- Nudibranchs
- Frogfish
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Fair | Fair | Fair | Good | Prime | Prime |
Season follows Pamilacan: Nov–Jun is the workable season; the crossing is exposed and trips are called off on the wind, so Jul–Oct is unreliable.
Dive videos
Pamilacan's TURTLE PARADISE: A Dynamic 30min Drift Dive (w/ Fish ID) | Dakit Dakit, Philippines · Talk to the Fish on YouTube
1st dive in dakidaki dive site in pamilacan island with bohol divers. · rolly baron on YouTube
Diving Philippines - Bohol (Dive 3) | Dakit-Dakit, Pamilacan Island Beautiful Corals · Dive Explorer on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep is Dakit-Dakit?+
Operators publish it at 10 to 25 m along the slope, with a wall dropping away below that. The dive itself stays on the slope, so it works comfortably inside Open Water limits.
Is Dakit-Dakit a drift dive?+
Yes, but a gentle one. The current normally carries you along the reef at a walking pace rather than pushing, which is why it is the Pamilacan site most operators use for mixed-ability groups.
Sources
- Pamilacan Island Dive Sites In The Philippines — Sierra Madre Divers
- Dive Sites & Map Of Bohol — Sierra Madre Divers
- Pamilacan Island — Panglao's Top Dive Site — Diving Panglao
- Your Guide to Diving in Bohol — Dive The World
More dive sites in Pamilacan
Reef
Banded sea kraits crawling openly over a sunken plateau
Wall
Black coral and sea fans on a wall past 40 m
Drift
A hard drift off the point, with tuna and barracuda in the flow
Drift
A drifted wall under a 200-year-old Spanish watchtower
Coral garden
A calm coral garden at 5–20 m, the island's easiest dive
Similar dives elsewhere
A current-washed plateau at 25–30 m, pelagics one day, pygmies the next
A gentle drift over coral and sand to 18 m
Juvenile whitetips tucked into small caves along a drifting slope
Gentle eastward drift with plenty of green turtles