December in general will have winds from the North/West. So, you can do very nice, excellent viz/coral dives at the South/East coast of the South side of Lembeh Island. E.g. Pulau Dua. This time of year is also good for visiting the East coast of Central Halmahera. There the water is totally flat that time of year. And you are never bothered by the strong currents such as you can come across in the Raja Ampat islands.
Lembeh Questions
- Thread starter matt215
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Thanks, Quero, good to know, but we're staying at Lembeh Resort, so on the island. I know they do an all-day/3 tank trip to Bangka, but that trip is weather-dependent, so who knows if they'll be able to get out in late December? I've had so many dive trips adversely affected by weather (though not in a catastrophic way) that I now just assume that weather/currents will foul us up in some way. I know late December is already a bit of a risk--not the perfect time to travel to N Sulawesi--but you've got to go when you can, right?
instructorinasia
Contributor
Diving down the south of the straits and even further round would be possible at this time of the year and therefore offers so lovely coral diving on top of the diving that can be completed in the Strait - where there is a good mix (Nudi Falls, Nudi Retreat, Makawide plus the wrecks). The normal weather patterns have not really happened this year.....so we don't want to say no for definiate!
Those of you coming to Lembeh in December and wanting to experience a mix of diving, it will be possible! Do not worry ( as some of you know I work in the area)!
@Indah - It is possible to dive in Buyat Bay at this time of year but it is not possible to do this as day trip as it over 3 hours by boat. Contact Critters@Buyat if you want more information on the accommodations for this area.
Those of you coming to Lembeh in December and wanting to experience a mix of diving, it will be possible! Do not worry ( as some of you know I work in the area)!
@Indah - It is possible to dive in Buyat Bay at this time of year but it is not possible to do this as day trip as it over 3 hours by boat. Contact Critters@Buyat if you want more information on the accommodations for this area.
OP
matt215
Contributor
@sorrows, I just booked a week at lembeh resort at the end of December, so I guess I'll see you there!
I looked at adding a few days at Buyat Bay--I'm not exactly a princess, but the accomodations appear very rustic. There are several dive reports available here and at Undercurrent, I believe.
Indah, I don't know anything about Halmahera, but just did a quick search. Intriguing, but possibly for the next time. I think we are doing all the traveling we can handle this December--adding on another flight would probably test my guys' patience too much. There are so many great dive destinations in Indonesia and they all require such long (and expensive) flights!
Instructorinasia, it seems like we won't make it to California Dreaming in December, much less this supposed 3-tank, all-day trip from LR to points north. The Southern sites look amazing, though, so it's all good, right? As long as we get a few dives of coral and good viz, we should all be happy, and we will be there for two weeks. Btw, any other advice for first-timers? You know, "things I'd wished I'd known before we went to Lembeh?"
---------- Post Merged at 10:17 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 10:09 AM ----------
Outstanding! We arrive on December 19th and I honestly don't know how we are going to make it until then. We are spending far too much time thinking/talking about a trip that is 6 months away!
Indah, I don't know anything about Halmahera, but just did a quick search. Intriguing, but possibly for the next time. I think we are doing all the traveling we can handle this December--adding on another flight would probably test my guys' patience too much. There are so many great dive destinations in Indonesia and they all require such long (and expensive) flights!
Instructorinasia, it seems like we won't make it to California Dreaming in December, much less this supposed 3-tank, all-day trip from LR to points north. The Southern sites look amazing, though, so it's all good, right? As long as we get a few dives of coral and good viz, we should all be happy, and we will be there for two weeks. Btw, any other advice for first-timers? You know, "things I'd wished I'd known before we went to Lembeh?"
---------- Post Merged at 10:17 AM ---------- Previous Post was at 10:09 AM ----------
Outstanding! We arrive on December 19th and I honestly don't know how we are going to make it until then. We are spending far too much time thinking/talking about a trip that is 6 months away!
Steffo
New
Great thread, I was happy to read it all, thanks. We are considering our first trip to Indonesia and we are a family of 3 with an 11 year old son who is certified but limited to 40 feet due to his age. He is very big, bigger than several of our adult friends and a very strong swimmer who has done long snorkel safaris since he was 6. He may turn 12 before we get to Indo in which case his depth limit goes up to 60 feet. My question is whether we can join in with regular groups in Lembeh and be able to accommodate his depth limits on all or most of the dives without him sitting out or whether we need to book a private boat where it's agreed in advance we'll all dive together within his limits.
We really prefer to go with other divers and would chose that option over a private boat even if the private boat did not cost any more. But of course we don't expect that other guests should have to suffer limits on site selection or depths because of us bringing a youngster along. So to a significant degree our choices of where to go and who to dive with will be made on the basis of providing great shallow diving without any inconvenience to others. I'm thinking perhaps Lembeh could fit the bill, but if I am way off base I hope someone will tell me so! And of course I am open to other suggestions. My hope is that we have many years ahead of great diving with our son and that we should organize our travels to go to the best shallow diving spots now and then as he gets older we can hope to visit deeper spots.
We really prefer to go with other divers and would chose that option over a private boat even if the private boat did not cost any more. But of course we don't expect that other guests should have to suffer limits on site selection or depths because of us bringing a youngster along. So to a significant degree our choices of where to go and who to dive with will be made on the basis of providing great shallow diving without any inconvenience to others. I'm thinking perhaps Lembeh could fit the bill, but if I am way off base I hope someone will tell me so! And of course I am open to other suggestions. My hope is that we have many years ahead of great diving with our son and that we should organize our travels to go to the best shallow diving spots now and then as he gets older we can hope to visit deeper spots.
Darnold9999
Contributor
Steffo - the two operations I have been with were fairly small boats so a family of three would likely be on their own boat. A couple of the operators I saw were larger boats, but I believe that most of the resort operators try to use one boat, one guide no more than four to a boat - six if you want to dive together. Others with more experience may have more information. The two operators I have been with are Black Sands and Divers Lodge Lembeh.
Steffo, when we three started out, our son had similar restrictions, and I did notice that there were DMs who really didn't take them very seriously. We were in Roatan and had a devil of a time trying to keep him shallow.
I would think you could talk to the dive op about your concerns. As for Lembeh, we haven't been there--yet--but from what I've been told, we will most likely have our own DM; very small groups (3-4) seem to be the norm. So that would make it easier for you, I guess, and the dive sites do not seem all that deep.
The only other Pacific dive destination I know is Palau, and that for sure would be problematic for you guys.
Your family has years of wonderful diving in front of you--it's been an amazing bonding experience for our family, I know; our son is now 21 and will be a college senior next year, our own personal DM and UW photographer! The years go so quickly--enjoy! Best of luck!
I would think you could talk to the dive op about your concerns. As for Lembeh, we haven't been there--yet--but from what I've been told, we will most likely have our own DM; very small groups (3-4) seem to be the norm. So that would make it easier for you, I guess, and the dive sites do not seem all that deep.
The only other Pacific dive destination I know is Palau, and that for sure would be problematic for you guys.
Your family has years of wonderful diving in front of you--it's been an amazing bonding experience for our family, I know; our son is now 21 and will be a college senior next year, our own personal DM and UW photographer! The years go so quickly--enjoy! Best of luck!
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