Subic Bay

Definitely the best all-around diving along the coast, Subic Bay in Olongapo also has the best infrastructure and facilities, with the major pull being the wrecks.

The star attraction is the USS New York, a battleship scuttled during World War II, to keep her 17in main guns from falling into the hands of the Japanese.

A rare, fine example of an 1899 dreadnought, she lies on her port side in 27m of water, cannons intact.

Another great dive, the El Capitan is a 130m-long, 3000-ton freighter that went down in the mouth of Ilanin Bay.

As the top of the wreck is just 12m below the surface, it is an easy dive.

Marvel at the incredible array of marine life, and a swim-through amid shafts of light beaming down through gaping holes in the side.

The San Quentin is the oldest known wreck in Subic.

This wooden gunboat was scuttled in the Spanish-American War in 1898 in a futile attempt to prevent the US Navy from entering the channel between the Grande and Chiquita islands.

It is one of the more popular dives because of the wreck's historical past.

Among the many others worth seeing is the Oryoku Maru, the "Hell Ship" that sunk in an air attack, with more than 1600 American POWs on board.

Subic also has some good coral dives. Grande Island, formerly an exclusive US military R&R resort, has some worthwhile wall diving, and Triboa Bay has a good coral garden at Nabasan Point.

The best time to dive is between February and June. Accommodations are plentiful between Olongapo City and Barrio Barretto, a popular laid-back tourist retreat.

Subic has the country’s oldest established recompression chamber, one of only three available to sport divers.