Type: dive-siteBest time: Habagat season (June-October) when southwest monsoon swell affects the Alona side; this site stays sheltered
Overview
Momo Beach Dive Site is a macro dive site in Barangay Tangnan, Panglao Island, rated for PADI Open Water Divers and above. It doubles as the practical fallback when the Habagat (southwest monsoon) builds swell on the Alona side of Panglao — the north side, where Momo sits, stays sheltered in those conditions.
The site rewards macro photography at shallow depths. Species regularly sighted include nudibranchs, leaf fish, pajama cardinalfish, red-eyed goby, several juvenile wrasse species, harlequin filefish, and the red spot cardinalfish — an infrequently documented species in the area.
Its position near the Danajon Bank (Double Barrier Reef) — one of only two double barrier reefs in the Indo-Pacific — puts it inside a zone of unusually high marine biodiversity for a site this shallow.
Location
Adjacent to Momo Beach, Barangay Tangnan, Panglao Island, Panglao municipality, Bohol. The site is approximately 20 km from Alona Beach.
Getting There
From Alona Beach, the site is around 40 minutes by motorized banca. By road across Panglao Island, Tangnan is approximately 20 minutes from Alona. Dive shops at Momo Beach House or operators in Alona can arrange access.
Practical Info
- Minimum certification: PADI Open Water Diver
- Dive type: macro
- Depth: shallow to moderate (source data for this site indicates the wall reaches ~40 m per associated beach record)
- Best for: macro photography, beginners, Habagat-season diving
- Currency: PHP
- Language: Cebuano, Filipino, English
- [TO ENRICH: entry point, boat or shore dive, current conditions, visibility range]
What to Expect
A relaxed, shallow-to-moderate dive suited to macro photographers. The site rewards slow, low-impact diving — working rubble patches and coral heads for small, cryptic species. The red spot cardinalfish recorded here is the kind of find that draws underwater photographers specifically. Conditions stay calm even when the Habagat blows from the southwest.
Notes
- Danajon Bank (Double Barrier Reef) context: the Panglao area sits within one of the world’s two double barrier reef systems, a factor in the region’s macro biodiversity
- Habagat season (southwest monsoon): typically June–October — this site offers a sheltered option during those months
- Associated beach: Momo Beach; island: Panglao Island
Explore Panglao: Bohol's Busiest Beach and Dive Municipality
More to see in this area
municipalityPanglao: Bohol's Busiest Beach and Dive Municipality
Panglao is the island municipality behind Alona Beach and Bohol's reef diving, joined to the mainland by two bridges and drawing the largest share of the province's foreign tourist arrivals.
Best: Dec–Apr
More attractions in Panglao: Bohol's Busiest Beach and Dive Municipality
Other things to see nearby
Arco Point Dive Site
Arco Point is an easy wall-and-slope dive off Panglao for PADI Open Water divers and up, with 10–25 m visibility and depths of 4–27 m. It is most interesting at 10–15 m and is unaffected by dynamite fishing.
- Balicasag Island Diving — Balicasag Island, a marine sanctuary off Panglao, offers vertical walls over deep water with strong currents, healthy corals and pelagic visitors; December–January can bring hammerhead and occasional whale sharks.
- BBC Dive Site — BBC is a boat-access reef-and-wall dive off Panglao; the top reef averages 110 m wide and the wall ends around 18 m, with sponges, brown daisy corals, gorgonians, pygmy seahorses and schools of sergeant majors. Good for check-up dives and skills training.