Bali or Wakatobi or Komodo?

[Melittin]

Hi, looking to make my first trip to Indonesia in summer 2017. Sadly, we are limited to 9-10 days in country (not counting travel time to/from Indonesia). My spouse and I both have about 150 dives, including drift dives but not crazy up-current, down-current, reef-hooking, etc. Easy and relaxing travel preferred, and willing to pay more for luxury. Very happy with both pelagics and macro. No muck diving yet but I would like to do some.

I would love any advice on planning! The options I have been looking at are:

1. Stay on Bali, perhaps split between 2 sites. The number of resorts and dive sites are overwhelming but it would avoid internal flights.

2. Wakatobi. It looks amazing, but more expensive than other options, plus not excited about 2 extra flights. Worth it?

3. A Komodo liveaboard, probably with one of the shorter 7-night itinerary. This looks the most appealing, but is it a good idea with current level of dive experience?

Which of these 3 would you recommend? Thanks in advance for any help!

 

[Lorenzoid]

1. I just returned from a first dive trip to Bali, where I dived in three different regions over 2-1/2 weeks: Menjangan Island and Pemuteran Bay in the far northwest; Tulamben, where the famed Liberty wreck is; and Lembongan/Nusa Penida off the southeast part of Bali. Bali has the advantage of being easy to get to from most parts of the world. There are also some amazing muck diving sites, if that is your interest. In Mola Mola season, you might luck into one of these rare creatures off Nusa Penida, which is also known for mantas. However, my perception from reading many reports over many years is that Bali diving is not considered quite as world-class as other places in Indonesia in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem health. Any reason Raja Ampat is not on your list? How about Alor?

2. Read @Hintermann's excellent Wakatobi trip report: (Overdue) Wakatobi Trip Report. I have not been there.

3. I enjoyed my Komodo liveaboard and would gladly do one again. Generally speaking, I would almost always choose a liveaboard over a land-based resort, because it's just so effortless. The drawback is that a liveaboard costs more. What have you heard that makes you doubt someone with over 100 dives lacks sufficient experience? There are a couple of sites with substantial current, but nothing a competent diver cannot handle.

 

[Cali_diver]

My choice would be to spend a couple days in Bali (Ubud) to take in the culture and sightsee then do a Komodo liveaboard. If you choose the right boat they will have guides that know what they and doing and you will be fine in Komodo. Komodo has the perfect mix of pelagics, reefs and muck/critter dives.

Second choice would be stay in Bali and dive Tulamben and possibly Padang Bai area. We love Bali.

FYI I have dove all three locations... I would skip Wakatobi

Indonesia is known for its currents, they are everywhere (not just Komodo) and can change at just about anytime.

 

[dirtfarmer]

Bali is a good choice with good reef diving and great muck diving, and beautiful topside scenery. But I like Komodo better.
Quite simply Komodo offers epic diving, with everything from Manta's to macro.
A liveaboard is a great way to dive Komodo, just make sure it includes the southern part of the park as it's a do not miss. LBJ is just a short cheap flight from Bali so no problem there. There also are LOBs that leave from Bali also, and I've done them twice and they include some really good muck dives off Sangegang and Sumbawa, and there are some fantastic muck dives in Komodo park itself which are frequently done as night dives on a LOB, so you would get a good exposure to some really good muck diving.
I Wouldn't worry about the high current dives in Komodo, there are loads of more divers doing it with less experiance than you. On my last trip I couldn't believe how many divers there were with only a few dives in their log. ( I kept telling them they were ruined for life as they had now done some of the best diving on this planet and now other places would pale in comparison )
Komodo simply is fantastic diving, the reefs are very healthy, the fish life profuse, and you have a really good chance at diving with loads of Mantas. I would choose Komodo but then again I'm Krazy for Komodo.

 

[anenomefishman]

i have only been to wakatobi and bali diving/land tours. wakatobi is fabulous. but it is pricey. here is a teaser photo i took in wakatobi. we have been there twice. fantastic. ironically we will be in raja ampat in less than a week.

 

[anenomefishman]

1. I just returned from a first dive trip to Bali, where I dived in three different regions over 2-1/2 weeks: Menjangan Island and Pemuteran Bay in the far northwest; Tulamben, where the famed Liberty wreck is; and Lembongan/Nusa Penida off the southeast part of Bali. Bali has the advantage of being easy to get to from most parts of the world. There are also some amazing muck diving sites, if that is your interest. In Mola Mola season, you might luck into one of these rare creatures off Nusa Penida, which is also known for mantas. However, my perception from reading many reports over many years is that Bali diving is not considered quite as world-class as other places in Indonesia in terms of biodiversity and ecosystem health. Any reason Raja Ampat is not on your list? How about Alor?

2. Read @Hintermann's excellent Wakatobi trip report: (Overdue) Wakatobi Trip Report. I have not been there.

3. I enjoyed my Komodo liveaboard and would gladly do one again. Generally speaking, I would almost always choose a liveaboard over a land-based resort, because it's just so effortless. The drawback is that a liveaboard costs more. What have you heard that makes you doubt someone with over 100 dives lacks sufficient experience? There are a couple of sites with substantial current, but nothing a competent diver cannot handle.

we dove menjangen from menjangen resort. we also did a mandarin fish night dive there. we have been to wakatobi before and it is the coolest place we have dove so far in indonesia. we will be diving bunaken and raja ampat in about a week so maybe that will change? but still, wakatobi is a no-lose situation except making the wallet lighter.

 

[Adelaar Cruises]

Wow, that's a hard choice, all 3 are amazing!

Of course I'm biased, but I believe liveaboards are the best way to travel. Once you (or the crew if you prefer) get your gear set up you don't have to repack and take any car trips to your to your next destination, you just arrive at a new one every dive. Excursion are usually offered between dives throughout the trip (i.e. Komodo dragon, sunset treks, waterfalls, snorkeling, village tours) and you usually don't have to miss a dive since the boat has brought you there. Liveaboards can be a bit more expensive, but they usually included all meals, all dives and excursions (many land based resorts in Bali offer breakfast only and a packaged number of dives & sometimes certain sites are additional). Land based resorts are still great, don't get me wrong, but because liveaboards are constantly moving they generally are able to give you a wider range of sites and an opportunity to see me of the area, without disruption to your holiday.

Komodo has the perfect mix of pelagics, reefs and muck/critter dives.

As Cali_diver and dirtfarmer said, Komodo has the perfect mix. With the right operator currents can be managed and in some instances avoided. And with the right dive guides/instructors, learning how to dive in current and improve dive skills can be an added bonus, by watching them and asking what to look for and how to react you can learn a lot and that could open a whole new world of diving for you.

In your post you mentioned internal flights, there are liveaboards that depart and return from Bali. With these options you wouldn't have to take any internal departures, and they allow you to see more of the Indonesian archipelago and dive sites. Plus you don't have to waste a no-fly day on the return.

Wherever you choose to spend your Indonesian dive holiday get ready to be amazed with the diving, the country and the people!

 

[Tippytoes12]

Definitely do a Komodo LOB , we had about the same level of experience as you did when we did ours and we were absolutely fine.

 

[scorpiofish]

I've done all three. First choice would be Komodo by far. If you don't do Komodo for some reason, the second choice would be Bali if you haven't been to Indonesia before. The reason is that you should spend some non-diving time in Bali. Even though you could do it combined with Wakatobi, the time in Bali would be very short. Komodo is simple, find one of many good liveaboards that will be there in the summer. Almost all the Raja boats migrate to Komodo during our summer months. If you end up doing Bali, then make your diving arrangements through one of may outfits that can get you to all the spots that cover the breadth of diving available. For example, Tulamben is a wonderful location, but it's limited for a 10 day stay. You want someone who knows all the logistics. Plenty of good people to do it, but the only one off the top of my head early in the morning is Mike Vietch. Scuba Diving Safari Photo Tours Bali Indonesia

I'm pretty sure you can ignore all the responses and randomly pick one of the three and end having the trip of a lifetime. You could end up like us and go back many times to experience the options you didn't choose on your once in a lifetime trip. We are going on another once-in-a-lifetime to Indonesia in Feb.

 

[Melittin]

Wow, thanks everyone! Great advice. I am going to try to book one of the Komodo liveaboards with a few days in Bali on one end. I really appreciate all the feedback.

@Lorenzoid I haven't heard anything terrible about Komodo currents, just everything I read seemed to recommend it only for "advanced" divers. We're comfortable in the water with good buoyancy, but I wouldn't really claim to be "advanced". Just wasn't sure what was meant. And the only reason Raja Ampat isn't on the list is the time of year. I'm tied to mid-June to mid-August for this trip. Hopefully RA will be next after that!

@anenomefishman what a picture! Wow!