Polaris Beach and Dive Resort Inc.

Overview

Polaris Beach and Dive Resort is a German-Filipino property on the western shore of Cabilao Island, Loon, Bohol, near the island’s famous Lighthouse Point. Managed by Franz and Maria Baumann, the resort is positioned on Cabilao’s most productive dive side — the channel between Cabilao and Cebu Island generates the currents that feed one of the Visayas’ most biodiversity-rich reef systems, with hammerhead sharks seasonally present and thresher sharks accessible from neighboring Moalboal (41km).

Cabilao is a quiet, authentic island 27km from Tagbilaran City with limited accommodation options and no mass tourism development. Everything required for the island — fresh water, building materials, and most supplies — is brought in by banca from the mainland, which keeps prices reasonable and the island uncommercialized. The resort is reached by catamaran from the mainland, a crossing of approximately 1–2 hours depending on departure point and conditions.

The dive sites around Cabilao are suited to macro specialists and critter divers — frogfish, nudibranchs, seahorses, and rare invertebrates on the lush seagrass beds and healthy coral walls. The walls themselves are steep and current-exposed, making advanced diver visits to the deeper sections a completely different experience from the macro diving that beginners access in shallower water.

Accommodation & Facilities

Multiple room categories in a garden setting with a swimming pool. Treehouse rooms are the signature accommodation, positioned in the garden with elevated views.

• Rooms: Treehouse rooms (elevated garden position, private terrace, slightly dated but spacious and clean), Deluxe rooms (standard resort layout), and Family rooms. All with AC, WiFi, private bathroom. Sea views available in selected rooms.
• Facilities: Outdoor swimming pool, private beach access, garden, billiards, darts, children’s playground, massage service, gift shop, car hire, babysitting. Restaurant and reception Monday–Sunday 7AM–9PM. Dive center Monday–Sunday 8AM onwards.
• Dining: Full restaurant with Asian, American, continental, and vegetarian dishes. The wood-fired pizza is the signature item — the Tartufo pizza specifically has received the most mentions in guest reviews. Fresh fish is sourced from local fishermen when available. Sandwiches, pasta, soups, and pizza are all individually ordered and made fresh. Room service available.

Dive Center & Operations

Franz Baumann manages and guides the dive program directly alongside a trained local team. Knowledgeable divemasters with extensive Cabilao site experience lead group dives from the resort’s speedboat.

• Agency: VERIFY current certification agency. Franz operates as dive master and site guide; the agency affiliation should be confirmed directly with the resort before booking courses.
• Cabilao sites: Lighthouse Point — the island’s signature site, dense soft corals, large schools of fish, hammerhead sharks seasonally. Current-driven wall dives suitable for intermediate and advanced divers. Shallow macro sites — frogfish (multiple species), nudibranchs, seahorses, ghost pipefish on the seagrass. Night dives from the beach — the resort beach offers accessible night diving with productive marine life activity after dark.
• Nearby: Moalboal thresher shark dives accessible by speedboat (41km) — a day trip from Cabilao for advanced divers wanting the thresher shark experience.
• Equipment: Full rental gear available. Speedboat for dive transfers. Tanks and compressor on-site.

Get covered before you dive: DAN Travel Insurance or DiveAssure.

Daily Experience

Island life at Cabilao is slow by design — there are no roads connecting the island to the mainland, no bars apart from the resort’s own, and the beach walks are the main topside activity between dives. Franz is present at most dives, and his direct participation makes each dive a guided experience rather than a managed group. The restaurant becomes the social centre by default — the pizza evening is a regular ritual for guests, and the wood-fired oven means a genuine 45-minute wait rather than an industrial kitchen turnaround.

Maria manages the resort operations and has a reputation for remembering every guest’s name and preferences — an operational detail that comes up consistently in reviews from guests who have stayed multiple times.

Best For

Macro and critter divers who want Cabilao’s frogfish, nudibranch, and seahorse-rich seagrass and reef systems away from the crowds of Panglao. Divers who want the hammerhead shark season at Lighthouse Point from a resort positioned at the site. Bohol visitors who want to combine the standard Panglao/Alona Beach circuit with a quiet island resort experience on a different part of the province. Guests seeking a genuine family-run retreat where Franz and Maria are visible and present throughout the stay.