2017 Philippines SINGLE'S WEEK #2 Oct 14-21 Anilao OPEN FOR BOOKING & DISCUSSION

• Click HERE TO BOOK NOW!! 
• Click HERE for current AVAILABILITY on this trip!
• Click HERE for Why our Trips are Unique & What Others Have Said About our Trips!
• Click HERE for How to Sign up for our Trips AND Important SD Trip Booking Related Info.
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ANILAO PHILIPPINES, Oct 14-21, 2017 (Single's Week #2 in Anilao of two possible weeks with Week #1 in Puerta Galera ...see here for PG info)

The Dry season (October-May/June) is regarded as the best dive season
October-December beginning of a cooling trend
*  Water temps cooling 83-80f/28-26c
* Topside temps-85-75f/ 30-21c
* Tropical depressions-yes
* Threat of storms- med 
* Loss of diving-med to low
* Viz-fair to exceptional
* Critters-yes still very active
* 3 mm wetsuits plus hooded vest, wind breaker, sunblock
* Crowds-med-high pressure on the dive sites

PRICING:

• Deluxe ALL INCLUSIVE D/O = 24 spaces: REGULAR $1765 SD PRICE $1665 full price OR $1616 cash discounted price
• Superior ALL INCLUSIVE S/O =  4 spaces: REGULAR $2724 SD PRICE $2360 full price OR $2291 cash discounted price 

PACKAGE INCLUDES:

• All of the above rates are inclusive of tax i.e. included in the pkg price (currently at 12% VAT).
• 7 nights at the beautiful, fun and conveniently located Crystal Blue Dive Resort in Anilao PI
• up to 3-4 guided day boat dives per day + 3 FREE NITE DIVES for 20 total for the week (w/ tank, w-belt, boat, and 1 guide per 4 divers)
• Special BBQ dinner & Sendoff Cocktail Party
• FAB Costume Contest during the week with AMAZING PRIZES including free diving and gear!
• FREE Photo Workshop (Macro) by resident photographer pro including photo help!
• Reduced rate on add'l photo classes
• Natural History talks about the local area
• Slideshow
• Chance(s) to win a FREE Upgrade to one of the SPACIOUS FAMILY ROOMS for early booking!    = SINGLE ROOM FOR PRICE OF DOUBLE
• THREE FREE Boat Night Dives (must have previous night dive experience and be comfortable doing them - although included we will have everyone sign up for this beforehand to plan properly)
• Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
• Unlimited tea, coffee, water
• Snacks on the boat
• Includes Taxes & Service charges per person
• Includes all marine park fees
• SD T-Shirt commemorating the trip
• Air fills, tanks, lead and weight belt
• Gear Lockers for your gear and LOTS of hanging space for your wetsuits/skins
• Welcome Beverage upon arrival & group orientation meeting after last group of divers arrive 

NOT INCLUDED:

• Airfare to Philippines(MNL).
• R/T Airport-Hotel transfers:(* See details below for how we will arrange group transfers)
• Nitrox: Week package = $83 or $80 cash discounted price
• Additional Day dives with Nitrox /each: $38 or $36 cash discounted price
• Additional "Air" diving days  $226 or $219 cash discounted price
• Additional "Nitrox" diving days  $245 or $237 cash discounted price
• Additional non-diving days  $109 or $105 cash discounted price
• Alcohol and soft drinks
• Optional land excursions and spa services (massages)
• Rental gear, instruction and retail charges
• Resort and Dive Crew gratuities
• Dive Insurance - MANDATORY (ask us for suggestions)
• Trip cancellation insurance - MANDATORY (ask us for suggestions)    

Transfers are based upon how many people are in a van. Each van can take up to 4 people people. Therefore arriving a day early or departing a day later will be more expensive if you wish to proceed to the resort immediately unless you have several people sharing the same arrival and/or departure times. SD.com will help consolidate people based up when they sign up into shared vans for the transfers. We can ALSO help you arrange a private transfer if desired. (Please consider arriving in Manila a day or so early to ensure your bags arrive and/or you do not experience flight delays.)

Transfers:
Package does not include transfers to and from the resort because of the distance from the airport to the resort. HOWEVER most int'l flights arrive at similar times so we will help you see which flights others are on to book the transfers accordingly. The first people to sign up will be the ones to set the first transfer times. Transfer from Manila airport to the island of Anilao and then to  the hotel or back will take approx 2.5-3 hrs. YOU MUST ALLOW 2-3 hrs AT THE AIRPORT FOR INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT CHECK IN + TRANSIT TIME WHEN PLANNING YOUR RETURN FLIGHTS. We encourage you to STILL consider arriving early and stay a day or so in Manila to ensure your bags arrive and/or to avoid missing a scheduled transfer of your shuttle if your flight is delayed.

Transfer Pricing:

1 persons $125 one way

2-3 persons $115 per person one way
4+ persons $85 per person

Click here to book any package

*all prices per person, cash option requires selecting e-check at final checkout 
**cash price is the same as the cash price in the forums, new accounting regulations change the way the 3% non-cash convenience fee is applied.

VERY IMPORTANT LINKS:

• Click HERE for Full Trip Details in our New Booking System & Integrated Payment & Document Portal
• To see who is on this trip click HERE or check the 3rd post of this topic/thread.
• To see how to sign up and get regular trip updates click HERE or check the 2nd post of this topic/thread.
• To Register as a basic member and/or upgrade to PREMIER member or above please click HERE

REMEMBER...ALL TRIP GOERS NEED TO BE PREMIER MEMBERS OR ABOVE TO JOIN OUR AMAZING DIVE CLUB TRIPS!!!   Email admin@singledivers.com for help in registering or upgrading if needed! Email trips@singledivers.com for help regarding the trip itself!

Edited by Sqbagal, 05 February 2017 - 08:52 PM.

Welcome to the Philippines Week #2 Anilao Trip (week 2 of two diving extravaganzas and Single's Weeks). Details and Booking/Sign Up thread/topic. Below you'll find the 5 easy steps for signing up for one of our trips and the link to our new booking system which will capture your booking requirements correctly. Since others can not see what you've signed up for in the new system we summarize who's going and what they are doing in the 3rd post of this topic. Just look below this post and you'll see it. Let us know if you need any help signing up via trips@singledivers.com or charlies@singledivers.com or kamala@singledivers.com. Otherwise come and join us diving in the Philippines!...Hope to see you there!!!

How to Sign Up for A SingleDivers.com Trip in 5 Easy Steps:

Step 1. Register as a Premier Member:
A. Are you new and have not registered on the site yet? Then think of a fun screen name click HERE for ideas and then register HERE. Follow the prompts and choose the 'premier member' option or above in this process and you'll be done.

B. Currently a basic member? Then simply upgrade to premier by clicking on the MEMBERSHIP TAB along the top of the forums HERE and following the prompts for payment.

Step 2: Sign Up and Pay for the trip
We use a cutting edge e-commerce site developed especially for dive trips to book spots on our award winning dive vacations. You can sign up for either a double or single occupancy room (and sometimes other choices) and choose to pay the deposit or the full amount. If you choose to pay with your checking account you will receive a CASH DISCOUNT for paying with cash. Otherwise the price listed includes the credit card fees. (This is a change from our old system which priced trips at the next cash discount and you paid the cc fee if you used a credit card.). To find the lowest price look for all pricing marked in RED with the words CASH.  NOTE: The cash discount is applied at check out AFTER you choose the e-check option.

a. To sign up from the forums:  Click on the purple BOOK NOW button across the top of the forums or click HERE.  Be sure you are logged in and then choose the trip you want by clicking on the name or the picture for full details. Then click on BOOK NOW when you are ready to add items to your shopping cart. To return to THIS THREAD/TOPIC in the forums simply click on the blue FORUM THREAD box. 

b. To sign up from the new website:  Click on www.singledivers.com then under TRIPS click on UPCOMING TRIPS. Be sure you are logged in and then choose the trip you want by clicking on the name or the picture for full details. Then click on BOOK NOW when you are ready to add items to your shopping cart. To return to THIS THREAD/TOPIC in the forums simply click on the blue FORUM THREAD box.

c. Choose either the trip dep or full amount and add to your shopping cart by clicking the radial dial next to the option you want, verifying the inventory is there below the item and then clicking ADD TO CART . You can also add any add-on's that you would like but they must be paid in full when added to your cart. ONLY the trip can be financed for free via our booking system.

d. Once you have added the trip pkg you want, chosen Deposit or Full trip amount, applied any discounts that apply to you, then clicked on ADD TO CART in the blue box, it will show you your cart and if something is not right click on the x to remove it. Once you are ready to pay click on CHECK OUT box under the summary of what your charges are so far. Review your cart and if its correct click on FINISH unless you wish to keep shopping.

e. Now proceed to the payment options. We accept MC or Visa as well as payments via a one time ACH payment from your checking account. NOTE: Cash discounts will be applied when you click on e-check and proceed to check out. 

HOW TO USE THE PAYMENT SYSTEM:

Please click HERE for step by step directions on how to pay for extras, make progress payments, or other trip related payments.

NOTE: You will be able to see your payments online 24/7 by clicking on MY TRIPS under Trips in the main menu and then clicking on MY PAYMENTS in the upper right.

Step 3: Post in the trip thread/topic that you are joining us:

Want to express intent in joining one of our trips? Ideally this is done in the trip details topic which is called a "thread" in the forums we use. In other words THIS TOPIC YOU ARE CURRENTLY READING. Let our volunteers help you learn the booking process if you have any questions as its critical to all of our 'back and forth' communications. (It can also be done via email and we'll "post" your intent for you in the trip topic/thread if you absolutely can't post it yourself.)

Want to let us know you just signed up to join us? Please post that you have signed up and are joining us. This helps to keep the thread/topic alive as well as encourage new members to ask questions that they may have. This also shows that the trip is alive and well and people are going on it. If you don't make a post we'll post for you to welcome you to the trip and to summarize what you have signed up for. We will THEN summarize all of this in the 3rd post of the trip topic/thread so everyone can see who is doing what!

Step 4: Trip Documents...Where to find them and what to fill out and why:
The trip documents are needed for rooming, diving, understanding your preferences, as well as helping us help you in the case of an emergency etc. They are required to be COMPLETED ONLINE as soon as you complete your order or within 21 days of signing up for a trip (the only exception is your airline info unless you already know what your flights are) or if you need more time we'll add a $75 document fee to your invoice. They must be returned within 3 days if you are signing up within 45 days of departure.  

To find the trip docs online (we no longer accept our old paper docs except for refunds, rebates, cc auth forms etc.) go to www.singledivers.com, click on MY TRIPS under Trips in the main menu and then click on the trip you want if you are signed up for more than one trip and it will tell you which docs need to be completed and which are finished. Click on the document name and it will open and fill it out. NOTE: Once you do your docs in our system once they will be resident you for the next time your travel with us to update and resubmit. You will need to upload some of the information we need but our *upload* tool is very easy to use. If all else fails you can email the docs that need to be uploaded to trips@singledivers.com or fax to 888-480-0906.

Step 5: ONGOING COMMUNICATIONS...
Its a two way street...here's how we tell each other what we need:
We use several tools to keep EVERYONE on a trip updated. They are vitally important for you to monitor and stay apprised of. They are as follows:

A. The "Welcome to the Trip" PM (private message) which is sent to as soon as you sign up for the trip. You can not receive these unless you are a Premier member or above. As soon as you either pay or show interest in the trip thread/topic we'll send you this PM. It has helpful info about signing up for the trip and will be used THROUGHOUT the pre-trip process to keep you updated on critical things regarding your trip with us.

B. The 1st & 3rd & 4th 'posts' in this trip thread (the first has the trip details in it) will contain summarized updates so you don't have to follow every post in the original trip thread. PLEASE monitor these for IMPORTANT UPDATES that affect your trip.

C. The Special Discussion Forums -(THIS MAY BE PHASED OUT in lieu of using the TRIP PM  & open forum topics....monitor the TRIP PM for all main updates. PLEASE DO NOT REPLY BACK TO THE TRIP PM AS EVERYONE GETS YOUR REPLY.) They are private forums that open up approx 30-60 days before a trip and they are FILLED WITH HELPFUL INFORMATION you need for your trip like how the transfer work, money/tipping issues, who's doing what extra tours or diving, etc. We also use these forums to discuss PRIVATE matters such as exchanging celfone numbers so you can meet up at the airport together etc. ONLY members on the trip have access to these private trip discussion forums. Since they are password protected you will receive the special password for the private forum via the TRIP PM.

WHO'S GOING & AVAILABILITY UPDATE:
 

Booking Summary - (NOTE if you sign up within 45 days of the trip we GUARANTEE a same gender roommate or your single supplement is free and as soon as 1 person signs up we GUARANTEE the trip will run):

• Deluxe All Inclusive D/O = 12 spaces AVAILABLE - 1 spaces SOLD = 11 SPACES LEFT ON THIS TRIP
• Superior All Inclusive S/O = 4 spaces AVAILABLE - 0 spaces SOLD = 4 SPACES LEFT ON THIS TRIP

SUMMARY OF WHO IS GOING (Signed up via booking system):

  1. Kamala aka WreckWench - Deluxe D/O
  2. 

  3.

  4.

  5.

  6.

  7.

  8.

  9.

10.

THOSE IN THE PROCESS OF SIGNING UP:

1.

Edited by WreckWench, 04 February 2017 - 02:12 PM.

THOSE TO BE NOTIFIED NOW THIS TRIP IS OPENING UP:  (PLEASE upgrade your membership so we can send you a PM)
 
1. Kamala aka WreckWench
2. Traci aka Sqbagal
3. Jose aka jesterdiver

4. Ellen aka SeaLassie

5. Charles aka Charlie J (both weeks)

Our trip is during "the Dry Season"... the best dive season!

The Dry season (October-May/June) is regarded as the best dive season
October-December beginning of a cooling trend
*  Water temps cooling 83-80f/28-26c
* Topside temps-85-75f/ 30-21c
* Tropical depressions-yes
* Threat of storms- med 
* Loss of diving-med to low
* Viz-fair to exceptional
* Critters-yes still very active
* 3 mm wetsuits plus hooded vest, wind breaker, sunblock
* Crowds-med-high pressure on the dive sites

​I've published some of my pictures, in the gallery, from March 2016 taken in Anilao. I truly loved diving there, as you can see the diversity of macro life there, concentrated in one area rivals that of both Lembeh and Raja Ampat combined, and at a fraction of the $$$ of a RA liveaboard.

While I didn't stay at Crystal Blue Resort, I spent some of my 'no dive day' walking through the resort, after meeting Mike Bartick [CBR on-site photo advisor]. Mike advised me, during the prior Slug Fest they had captured photographs of over 400 different species of nudibranchs & slugs. I was extremely impressed with the 'common areas' areas of the resort, all immaculate, the dining area overlooking the ocean, the camera room with individual work stations for those camera junkies.

Today, I met a man named Woody Mayhew a photographer in Dallas. He developed a slip-on wet lens for macro photography called the 'Woody's Diopter'. We sat and talked about diving, more than Iraan Jaya aka Raja Ampat, his favorite destination was Anilao. He had been going there since the early 90's before most of the resorts had been built. Unfortunately, he has been sidelined from diving for the past 2 years, due to medical issues, and longs for the day he can return to diving.

Edited by ScubaTex, 20 February 2017 - 09:03 PM.

Hey Bill thanks for the pics! And please send me info on Woody's Diopters...

Hi, 

I'm very interested in the 10/14-21 Anilao trip. Before I book, I wanted to get some questions answered. I first wanted to confirm availability. From what I could find only 2 are booked, that just doesn't seem right. If there is availability, I want to verify the extra non-dive days for $109 are at the resort and available a day each before and after (13th and 22nd). Flights I've found arrive at 8:55pm 10/13 which is before 10 so I assume ok to catch transfer. Is anyone one else coming in a day ahead to double up on for transfer. Same with leaving day later? 

thank you, 

Rosemarie

Hi, 

 

I'm very interested in the 10/14-21 Anilao trip. Before I book, I wanted to get some questions answered. I first wanted to confirm availability. From what I could find only 2 are booked, that just doesn't seem right. If there is availability, I want to verify the extra non-dive days for $109 are at the resort and available a day each before and after (13th and 22nd). Flights I've found arrive at 8:55pm 10/13 which is before 10 so I assume ok to catch transfer. Is anyone one else coming in a day ahead to double up on for transfer. Same with leaving day later? 

 

thank you, 

Rosemarie

Calling you!