Diving Chapel at Apo Island, Philippines

I dove Chapel in October 2026 with Critter Republic, by boat out of Dauin to Apo Island, Philippines.

Chapel is a wall dive off Apo Island.

The Dive

Chapel is on a different part of Apo Island from Cogon.

We started off deep on the wall, at around 80 ft (24 m).

It was pretty dark down there, and hard to see.

Inside one of the caves, there were a couple of nudibranchs and flatworms.

For the rest of the dive, we shallowed up along the reef wall and looked at everything else the reef had to offer.

Chapel's main reef is pretty shallow, at around 30 ft (9 m).

The shallow reef is covered in hard coral, with lots of small fish above it.

I logged 88 ft (26.8 m) at the deepest, with an average of 43 ft (13.1 m) across 58 minutes.

What Marine Life I Saw

The caves on the deep part of the wall were where I found the small stuff.

The Dive & Conditions

The water was 86°F (30°C).

I dove in just a rash guard because the water was warm, but many people on the boat wore wetsuits.

The dry season, roughly November to May, is generally the best time to dive Apo Island.

From June to October, rougher seas can cancel boat crossings, especially from July to September.