Everything You Need to Know

We are happy to assist you with booking your Whale Shark Watching Tour. Here are the rates and fees:

WHALE SHARK WATCHING RATES: Swimming/Snorkeling or Boat Viewing
P1000/per person for International Tourists
P500/per person for Local Tourists
- Whale Shark Watching Government Fee (includes life vest, mask & snorkel, and boat to interaction area and 30 minutes interaction)
- The Whale Shark Watching Briefing Center is a short 3-minute walk from AJ's Place.

AJ'S PLACE ONLINE BOOKING FEE (FEE IS NON-REFUNDABLE)
P100/per person
- AJ's Place can complete the online booking for the convenience of our guests. (GUEST INFORMATION IS REQUIRED. Booking confirmation is not guaranteed.)

AJ’S PLACE GUIDE FEE (GUIDE IS OPTIONAL)
P100/per person
- The AJ's Place Guide will assist guests with going to the briefing area, registration, and purchasing tickets. The guide will also wait until guests return from their tour.

If you would like to avoid the additional fees, you can book the tour yourself via the FB booking page and go to the briefing center on your own. To book your tour online....

Using your mobile phone, on FACEBOOK, search RESERVATION OSLOB WHALESHARK. Once you find the FB page, click on 'Message.' This will begin the process of submitting your reservation request. Just follow the prompts. You will be required to provide the following information for each guest.

Number of Guests:
Tour Date:
Preferred time:

Name
Age
Gender
Nationality

This is not a messaging platform. It is for reservation requests only.

Please be advised that you can only reserve your tickets ONE DAY BEFORE your tour date. We recommend sending your request at 9:00 a.m. to have the best possible chance of getting your requested time slot. (Time slots are one-hour increments starting from 6-7:00 A.M.)  Your booking request in confirmed once you receive a booking confirmation number.  If you do not receive a booking confirmation number by the end of the day, you will have to line up as a walk-in.

WALK-IN: If you do not get your requested time or do not receive a booking confirmation, you can also line up as early as you can to get an early time slot. Please keep in mind that lining up early will not guarantee an earlier start time as it will depend on how many guests are already lined up ahead of you.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to ask.

ONLINE BOOKING IS AVAILABLE FOR THE WHALE SHARK WATCHING TOURS:

Whale Shark Watching Hours are 6am - 12pm. Tickets may sell out as early as 7am - 10am depending on the number of guests that day. Guests who wish to have an early start time of 6am-7am can line up as early as MIDNIGHT, but an early start is not guaranteed.

Due to the large number of guests and long wait lines, the Oslob Municipality has created online booking for the Whale Shark Watching Tour. Guests MUST arrive no later than 30 minutes before the booked start time. Your online booking can be made between 9am - 6pm, ONE DAY BEFORE your preferred tour date.

***PLEASE NOTE***

AJ's Place is not the tour operator of the Whale Shark Watching Tour. We cannot guarantee that your online booking will be confirmed or your preferred time will be available. Please be prepared to line up early if you do not receive your booking confirmation number before the end of day.

To complete your online reservation, on FACEBOOK, search RESERVATION OSLOB WHALESHARK. Once you find the FB page, click on 'Message'. This will begin the process to submit your reservation request. Just follow the prompts. This is not a messaging platform. It is for reservation requests only.

Please be reminded that you can only reserve your tickets ONE DAY BEFORE your tour date.  Earlier requests will not be answered.  We recommend sending your request as early as 9:00 a.m. to have the best possible chance of getting your requested time slot. (Time slots are one hour increments starting from 6-7:00 a.m.)

WHALE SHARK WATCHING RATES: Swimming/Snorkeling or Boat Viewing
- Whale Shark Watching Government Fee (includes life vest, mask & snorkel, and boat to interaction area and 30 minutes interaction)

P1000/per person for International Tourists
P500/per person for Local Tourists

AJ's Place Online Booking Service Fee (FEE IS NON-REFUNDABLE):
- AJ's Place can complete the online booking for the convenience of our guests. (GUEST INFORMATION IS REQUIRED. Booking confirmation is not guaranteed.)

P100/per person 

AJ’s Place Guide Fee (GUIDE IS OPTIONAL):
– An AJ's Place Guide will assist guests with going to the briefing area, registration, and purchasing tickets. The guide will also wait at the Briefing Center until guests return from their tour.

P100/per person 

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.

These are the directions from Mactan International Airport to A.J.'s Place Beach Resort via Ceres Bus:

• Take a taxi to the South Bus Terminal. Taxi fare will be about P300-P350. (It may be more if there is a lot of traffic.) The taxi driver will ask you for P10 for the terminal entrance.
• Once at the South Bus Terminal, you will want to be in the line for Bay/Gate #8 or #9. You will see signs at the gate for OSLOB. (If it is busy, you may be directed to the back of the terminal, where the line begins for Gate #8 and #9.) The bus fare is about P250/per person (non-A/C) and P300/per person (A/C)
• When the bus departs, the conductor will ask each passenger for their destination. Tell the conductor you are going to Oslob for whale shark watching. He will know where you are going. Tell him that you have reservations at A.J.'s Place Resort in Tan-awan. He will give you a ticket and come around later to collect the fare.
• Once you get closer, the conductor will ask you where you want to be dropped off. They may try to drop you off at another resort (they get a commission from other resorts when they drop off guests at their gate). Just tell them A.J.'s Place Resort. We are the only resort with two gates and a chain link fence with ivy growing on the fence. You will see our sign in front of our resort.

Whale shark watching hours are 6:00 AM – 12 (noon) daily.

Closed on Good Friday each year. Click here for Good Friday dates.

***Please be advised that ticket issuance may close as early as 10:30 a.m. if the briefing area is very busy. We advise our guests to arrive no later than 10 a.m. to ensure the issuance of a ticket.***

For the best whale shark watching experience, we recommend avoiding the crowds by:

• Scheduling your tour Monday – Thursday
• 6:00 AM – 8:00 AM arrival at A.J.'s Place
• Contact Us to customize a tour package that best fits your schedule and budget.

ADVISORY: Due to the large number of guests arriving daily for the whale shark tour, the Dept. of Tourism has implemented a "NO GUEST, NO REGISTRATION" policy to discontinue the pre-registration of guests who have not yet arrived and to enforce the "First Come, First Served" policy already in place.

Registration opens at 6:00 AM. Your guide can meet you at the front desk as early as 4:30 AM to guide you to the Whale Shark Watching Briefing Center. It is only a short 3-minute walk. Once you arrive at the briefing center, guests and guide will line up to pay/register for your Whale Shark Watching tour and receive your priority number. If your priority number is far off, you may return to the resort to wait. You may have your light breakfast while you wait. Your guide will bring you back to the briefing center when your priority number is close to being called.

When you return to the briefing center, you will attend the orientation on Whale Shark Watching etiquette. Guests will then be guided to the waiting area for the next available boat. When your boat is ready, you will be fitted with your life jacket, and a mask/snorkel will be provided.

The whale-shark interaction is 30 minutes. Time begins once the boat has reached the interaction area.

Whale Shark Watching Tour includes a life jacket, mask, and snorkel and boat ride to the interaction area. Tour length will vary between 1 hour to 2 hours, sometimes longer, depending on the time of day/season and how many guests are waiting. We recommend a tour start time between 6:00 AM and 8:00 AM, Mon – Thur, for the best interaction times.

When you return to A.J.'s Place, you can shower and change, have lunch, and we can help you plan the rest of your day!

Bookings can be reserved and paid for online through our secure payment site.

If you prefer a customer tour package, contact us for a quote. To book your tour, the deposit can be paid by one of the following methods of payment:

PAYMENT OPTIONS FOR DEPOSIT

• • Credit/Debit Card via the PayPal link

Paypal to PayPal Account

• • ajsplaceoslob@yahoo.com (U.S.A Guests)
  • ajsplacepaypal@yahoo.com (International Guests)

GCash

• • Adrianne Silver
    0922 360 8100

Balance due in cash upon arrival. For the convenience of our guests, we can accept credit card payments; however, a 5% convenience fee will be added. (Please note: convenience fee is payable in cash only.)

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

RESERVATION AND PAYMENT INFORMATION:

• We require a minimum of 30% deposit to book your reservation.
• Deposit must be received within 3 days prior to Day Tour date. For reservations with accommodations, advanced deposit is required to guarantee reservation.
• Rates are subject to change without prior notice due to conditions beyond the control of AJ's Place Beach Resort.
• Balance is due upon arrival at AJ's Place Beach Resort.   
• We accept the following methods of payment:
  • DEPOSIT - Credit Card via PayPal, GCash, Bank Transfer                     
  • BALANCE - CASH ONLY                                   
    *A 5% convenience fee will be added to non-cash payments

REFUND AND CANCELLATION POLICY               

• 100% Refund - Cancellations received 72 hours BEFORE tour/check-in date
• 75% Refund - Cancellations received 48 hours BEFORE tour/check-in date
• 25% Refund - Cancellations received WITHIN 24 hours of tour date/check-in date
• NO REFUND - No Show
  *Refunds less any incurred processing and/or cancellation fees and any non-refundable room deposits required to book accommodations at other resorts.