Hello PH! is a Filipino-run travel company that specializes in well-run, sustainable dive trips across the islands. Our goal is to give you everything you need to enjoy fantastic dives you’ll remember for a long time to come.
How We got Started
We love the Philippines, but it’s not the easiest country to get around in as a scuba diver. We’ve explored our country’s top dive sites for two decades now, and have an extensive network of family and friends who live in the areas giving us advice and tips. Even so, we found that we lose a lot of time and energy hauling our equipment, organizing transport and lodging, and finding quality dive shops. If we encountered these difficulties, then other divers are probably experiencing these too — especially first-time travelers or those who don’t have the time to research.
We noticed that dive sites are busier than before, but safety and caring for the environment don’t seem to be priority. Until now, some local and foreign divers forget practices for protecting the reef and marine life – from poking at critters for a better look, equipment snagging on reefs, to poor buoyancy that leads to hitting coral. These are easy mistakes to make especially when you’re a newbie or just so thrilled experiencing life underwater. Our diving experience reveals there’s still a lot of work to be done to create awareness of SCUBA diving best practices.
The Big Idea
We realized there’s a need in the Philippines for a dive service that takes the stress out of diving experiences around the Philippines. We knew we wanted to help other divers “Worry less. Dive more.” We wanted safety and environment conservation at the forefront of every dive. That was how the idea for Hello PH! bubbled up to the surface. After two of years of research and preparation, we launched the company in 2016.
The Expansion (2017-2019)
After setting up the Dive Tours, we started to get requests for non-diving customized tours, which we gladly accepted. We did have personal contracts with 400+ accommodation partners, 50+ transportation partners, and 70+ activity partners by 2019. With the hard work of the Hello PH! team, we were able to launch our Recreational Adventure Tours, Rest & Relaxation Tours, and Day Experiences for non-divers in 2019 by participating in the Dive Equipment and Marketing Association (DEMA) Show, the Tourism Expo Japan (TEJ) in Osaka, and the World Travel Market (WTM) in London as one of the official delegates with a table at the Philippine Department of Tourism Booth.
We also opened our Travel Agency arm at the same time by acquiring our partnerships and accreditations with Sabre, the domestic airlines, and ferries that service Cebu City.
Given the momentum, we also moved forward with official partnerships with Travel Insurance partners Pacific Cross (formerly Blue Cross), Divers Alert Network, and DiveAssure.
Surviving and Staying Open
We are fortunate and grateful to say that Hello PH! did not close during the pandemic and continued to be an official delegate of the PH Department of Tourism to the virtual travel expos during the pandemic (2020-2022). We also survived a category 5 Typhoon (Odette/Rai) in 2021 that damaged Cebu City and left us without running water and electricity for a month.
We kept ourselves busy with community projects in Mental Health and developing pivot products in response to the pandemic. We even garnered an agreement to be a national reseller of PH International Driver’s Permits and memberships of a national autoclub — the Automobile Association of the Philippines (AAP) as we foresaw the need to service motorists as part of a resilience plan for our tourism goals.
Our Approach
The Philippines is known for its hospitality. We take it to a new level at Hello PH! as well. Not only will we pick you up from the airport and arrange all your transfers; we’ll give you insider recommendations and take care of you like family. That means looking after your safety, above and below the water. And because our travel sites are treasures, we’ll share with you the starting points and insights you need to help us protect the environment and the wellbeing of local communities.
By the end of your travel experience with us, you’ll consider the Hello PH! team your new friends, and look us up when you return – because yes, once you “get in the water” with us, you’ll always want a “next time.”
Curious? Check out our list of 7 Reasons To Love Diving In The Philippines.
