Quo Vadis Dive Resort is a 3 star resort and a PADI 5 star resort. It’s located in a quiet spot on Panagsama Beach, yet very close to the action. The resort offers an excellent recreational dive center, where you can get certificated or just dive for fun. It’s important to mention before you continue to read the full review, that Quo Vadis only takes divers in.
It doesn’t mean that you have to dive with them 4 times a day during your stay. You can enjoy the other attractions Moalboal has to offer, but diving needs to be a substantial part of your vacation there. If you want a diving vacation, then we believe Quo Vadis is one of the best places to stay at.
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Quo Vadis has a variety of rooms – from budget fan rooms at the back of the resort to the premier suite – a big room that is located on a 10 meter cliff directly above the ocean. We think that the best value for money rooms are actually the mid-range ones that offer you privacy, with either an ocean or pool view. They offer all the necessities such as air-conditioning, free WiFi, hot and cold shower, and a mini-bar.
You can also choose a room with satellite TV for a small additional charge if that’s important to you. It is important to mention that the room price doesn’t come with breakfast. If you want you breakfast included let us know and we’ll book it for you in advance for additional 5 USD. However, the breakfast is nothing special, and the food in general is one of the resort’s weakest points.
Quo Vadis also has a very nice pool with sea view. It is a nice additional feature, because Panangsama Beach isn’t the nicest. It’s rocky and not very pleasant for swimming. So having a pool where you can relax in the afternoon is a big plus. A really cool feature of the pool is the swim-in bar, letting you enjoy drinks while relaxing in the water.
The resort has been opened in 2012 by Swedish owners and management. During the relatively short time that Quo Vadis has been around it trained and facilitated many divers of any nationality possible, and they teach and guide in English, Swedish, Danish, German, and Chinese. The staff is all Scandinavian, and funnily, the most senior instructor there has been diving for only 8 years.
However, you can feel the enthusiasm that Quo Vadis’s staff members share for diving. This is probably the reason why they managed to keep up and even surpass some dive centers that has been on the market for years. Even their junior scuba instructors are very knowledgeable of the dive sites of Moalboal as they spend so much time underwater.
Being a PADI 5 star resort, you know you’re in good hands, and you can also take specialty courses on top of the basic ones. The specialty courses offered by Quo Vadis are: Deep Diver, Nitrox, Search and Recovery, underwater digital photography, drift and night dives, and even more esoteric ones. If there is some sort of training you want to do and it’s not on this list, contact us and we’ll tell you where you can find and book it.
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It’s not the cheapest dive center you can find in Moalboal, but the equipment is new as it is periodically examined and replaced, and the level of training and diving is good and consistent. They also have a house reef, making it easy for beginners to start the dive from the shore, and actually making the price of the PADI courses a little lower.
Another benefit to Quo Vadis is, that unlike most of the cheap dive centers in Panangsama, is that’s a dive center and resort together, which makes diving a lot easier for the guests. Divers are close to their lodgings if they want to take a shower, or use their private toilets, or just take a short rest between dives. Quo Vadis also arranges half board staying, which means they will provide you with lunch between your dives, saving time and effort looking for a place to eat. These conditions are important, because they can make all the difference between an okay experience and a great one.
Arista, the house restaurant, has 40 seats and a very nice view. They serve local and European food in the restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Although they offer full board options too, we don’t think that it’s highly advised as there are plenty of restaurants a short walk away, so you can try different places as you like. Also, unfortunately Arista is known to be inconsistent with its food, and expensive for what you get. However if you’re a large group they can arrange a special buffet for you, seafood or whole roasted Lechon, which will make a lovely experience.
In general, Quo Vadis Dive Resort is an excellent place to stay in Panangsama Beach if you’re diving. It is nice, situated in a good location, has a PADI 5 star dive center, and nice amenities. Moreover, it’s cheaper than most similar places on White Beach that is a little north from Panangsama.
These are the cheapest rooms in Quo Vadis and the choice of most of the budget divers. They are fan rooms, meaning, there is no air-condition. They’re also located at the back of the resort and facing the garden. All rooms are 18m2 and have two twin beds that can be made into one queen size bed. There are coffee and tea making facilities, safe box, hot and cold shower, minibar and Wifi (slow).
There are 8 bungalows to choose from, that cost around the same, and vary slightly from one another. They have a Filipino nipa hut style exterior but the interior is modern. Those are the best value for money rooms in our opinion, as the difference in quality between the bungalows and the more expensive rooms is not very felt. All bungalows are equipped with air-conditioning, hot and cold shower, minibar, queen size bed and free Wifi.
The most expensive bungalow #1 has a veranda facing the sea. It’s the most spacious between all bungalows and also has a TV. Bungalow #2 is just like the first one but with no sea view, so it’s a little cheaper. Bungalows #3-4 are a little smaller with the same facilities as the first two. Bungalows #5-8 are the lesser category. They’re smaller and have no TV, and also no refrigerator, and facing the pool. Bungalows are 28-40m2.
Located 20m from the ocean and facing the sea. These are nicer than the garden view rooms, and have both a ceiling fan and air-conditioning, fridge, hot and cold shower, and 2 single beds that can be turned into a single bed.
This is one of the bigger rooms in Quo Vadis (50m2) and is a mere 50m from the ocean. It has a private veranda, king size bed, an A/C, minibar, coffee and tea making facilities, a 43″ TV, a safe-box, and Wifi.
A 65m2 room, with a living room with a sofa and TV, a single and queen size bed. It’s like a studio apartment in front of the ocean. It has a fridge, coffee and tea making facilities, and Wifi.
This is the most expensive room in Quo Vadis, built on a 10m tall cliff above with an undisturbed ocean view. It is very spacious and vary private. It has a king size bed, TV, minibar, complementary coffee and tea, and free Wifi.
