The Sardine Run
1,000 PHP - Snorkel trip (2 snorkel locations)
Moalboal offers you a once in a lifetime experience: millions of sardines just off the shore. Swimming with this giant school of fish is a very special experience that you don’t want to miss out on.
The Moalboal Sardine Run does not move and can always be found in the Panagsama beach area, providing visitors with the opportunity to see this spectacle year-round. An enjoyable experience for scuba divers, freedivers and snorkelers alike. Many tourists travel to Moalboal specifically to see this natural phenomenon.
How to do it ?
From the Wild Orchid Resort, you can hop on our boat for our daily scuba & snorkelling trips. The sardine run is just a 25-minute boat ride from the resort and is a very popular activity amongst our guests, many of whom who have visited Cebu to see this spectacle.
An alternative option is to make your own way to snorkel with the sardines. We can arrange snorkelling gear and a tricycle to take you to Panagsama Beach (15-20 minutes). Once there, it is an easy walk off the shore from the famous Chili Bar, and a short swim to reach the sardines which reside at the reef drop-off – keep an eye out for turtles lazing in the shallows during your swim out!
Snorkel, Free Dive or Scuba Dive?
Swimming/ Snorkeling with the Sardines:
Since the sardines of Moalboal stay close to the shore and in relatively shallow water until the dropoff, snorkeling with them is a great experience. You can see them below you from the surface and can reach them by simply freediving down to them
Scuba diving with the Sardines:
Scuba diving with the sardines is another very popular choice, it gives the diver a real sense of how big the school of sardines actually is! Breathing underwater allows each scuba diver to become mesmerized by the wonderful shapes and patterns made by the sardines, plus that chance to see larger game fish such as trevally and tuna hunting. If you can peel your eyes away from the sardines for a minute or two, keep an eye out for cruising turtles and fun macro life such as pipefish and nudibranchs.
The dive is easy and suitable for all levels.