Fun Diving Malapascua

Thresher sharks at sunrise. Mandarinfish at dusk.
Reefs, wrecks, walls and macro inbetween.

Malapascua is the only place in the world where you can dive with thresher sharks every morning, and the shark dive is only the start of your day. We run fun dives all day, every day, year-round: small groups, experienced guides, and a flexible schedule. Whether you want one gentle reef dive or five tanks before dinner, we can make it happen.

A Day of Diving with Us

Morning. The Thresher Shark Dive

The first boat leaves between 5 am and 8 am for Kimud Shoal, about an hour away, and it’s always a two- or three-dive trip. There is plenty of coffee and tea on board. For those dawn dives, the sunrise as you head out to the dive is definitely worth the early start. If you’re not so great with early mornings, the 8 am departure is for you, with time for breakfast if you prefer. The sharks are there all morning, and often, for your last dive, we are the only boat there. There has never been a better time to see our thresher sharks: since they moved to Kimud Shoal in 2022 they have been showing up in large numbers, shallower, later in the morning and closer than ever. We also get regular tiger shark sightings at Monad Shoal.

We back the shark dive with two guarantees:

  • The Thresher Shark Guarantee: if you do not see thresher sharks on your double-dive Kimud trip, your third dive is free.
  • The Kimud Dive Guarantee: only one night on the island? We guarantee we will go to Kimud, weather permitting, even if you are the only diver on the boat. We will not cancel on you.
Sunrise on the boat ride out to the thresher shark dive, Malapascua
Pelagic thresher shark at Kimud Shoal, Malapascua
Diving at Gato Island, Malapascua
Nudibranch on a day trip dive at Gato Island, Malapascua

Day Dives

Throughout the day, we run single- or double-boat dives on the local reefs, plus two- and three-tank day trips to further-flung sites like Gato Island. Malapascua has big stuff and small stuff, coral gardens and sandy muck, walls and wrecks, so tell us what you love, and we will do our best to make it happen. See all our dive sites.
Find out more about our schedule.

5:00pm. The “Randy Mandy” Mandarinfish Dive

In the late afternoon, we dive Lighthouse, where the rare and psychedelic mandarinfish are almost guaranteed. They come out at dusk to perform their mating dance, and it is one of the best photo opportunities in the Visayas.

6:00pm. Night Dives

We run night dives regularly to the dive sites around Malapascua.
Same site, completely different cast of characters.

Lighthouse dive site, Malapascua, home of the mandarinfish dive

Why Dive with Us

  • We have been guiding thresher shark encounters at Kimud Shoal since 2004 and have sent out tens of thousands of happy divers. No other dive centre on Malapascua has more experience with these sharks.
  • Small groups and experienced guides, every dive.
  • The top PADI Dive Center on Malapascua and one of the top 5 in the Philippines.
  • Top quality, name-brand rental equipment, consistently highly rated in consumer tests.
  • A flexible daily schedule: dive as much or as little as you like.
Thresher Shark Divers dive shop and tank station, Malapascua Island

Fun Dive Prices

Our current dive prices.

Secure booking on thresher-shark-divers.com

Diving for several days? We can build you a dive-and-resort package with transfers and meals included.

Group of scuba divers on a Thresher Shark Divers banca boat, Malapascua

Before You Jump In

You need to be a certified diver (minimum Open Water) to join the shark dive. Also, you are required by local law to do a check dive/buoyancy dive the day before the shark dive, unless you are AOW with proof of 50 logged dives. Find out more.

Not dived in a while? A quick refresher will have you back in shape before the threshers see you. Not certified yet? Start with a Discover Scuba Dive or go straight for your PADI Open Water Course, then celebrate with a shark.

Small Groups, Personal Service

We dive in small groups led by experienced PADI Divemasters who have done thousands, some tens of thousands, of dives around Malapascua. They have laser eyes and they know the sites inside out. If you want to see something in particular, just ask. It is more than likely you can see it here.

We can usually arrange the dive sites of your choice during your stay, and we will take you out even if you are the only one diving.

A small group of divers with a Thresher Shark Divers guide, Malapascua
Thresher Shark Divers dive boat, Malapascua

Safety and Equipment on Board

All our dive boats carry first aid kits, phones and oxygen- large 50L tanks, sufficient for day trips if needed. The emphasis is on your safety and your fun, in that order.

We offer Nitrox, which suits several of our dive sites well, and we use top quality, name-brand rental equipment. Every tank of air is checked to make sure the air is clean.

Please remember to bring your certification card.

What Can You See in Malapascua?

The creatures we are best known for are thresher sharks, large rays, whitetip sharks, pygmy seahorses, cuttlefish, nudibranchs, smashing mantis shrimp, pipefish and mandarinfish.

For the fuller picture, see our Malapascua marine life guide.

Pygmy seahorse on a Malapascua dive site
Dive boat on a flat sea at sunrise off Malapascua

Exploring Malapascua’s Waters

You can be Captain Kirk. Go where no man has gone before.

Malapascua is still a relatively undiscovered area, and there are sites out there waiting to be found. We love going out to look for new places, so if you fancy an adventure, say so and we will see if we can go searching. You may even end up with a dive site named after you.

Still deciding? Have a look at our diving FAQs, or read up on Malapascua’s dive sites.

Please remember that, like all the marine life here, nothing is ever guaranteed.