N. Sulawesi or Komodo/Alor?

Hello,

I will visit Indonesia in July for more than 4 weeks. I fly to Denpasar and will stay in Bali for 1 week or 10 days. Then there are 2 options:
Option 1: Sulawesi (Bunaken, Lembeh, Bangka, Togian)
Option 2: Komodo + Alor
I read a lot of reports on this forum but it is difficult to decide.
Are there people who did the two and can compare?
As a reference: I dived already in Thailand, Sipadan, Maldives, Red Sea, Palau, Zanzibar, St. Vincent and the Grenadines etc..

Tnx!

I have been to Bunaken(2 Fish) & Lembeh(NAD) 3 or 4 times and visited Flores(reef seekers) for the 1st time this year.
(I have also dived 4 off the spots on your list for your reference)

I would rate the diving at Komodo to be very very good. I had a great time. Diving was superb but not much fun in the evenings. The upmarket hotel i stayed in in L.Bajo was out of town & was empty so not much to do. If you are shore based it is a pain as the days are long. I went in Aug & viss was great. Coral & marine life was also some of the best i have seen.

bunaken is nice for a few days. Lembeh is amazing. Not been to Bangka yet.

If i was in your position i would go with N.Sulawasi as there are some very nice resort and the dive sites are close by.
Whichever way you go you cannot really go wrong.

Just to give you more to think about you could fly to L.Bajo from Bali in 1hr and spend 3 or 4 days diving Komodo then fly back to Bali and then head to bunaken(3 or 4 days for the walls),Bangka(3 days),Lembeh(7 days). Flight to Komodo are about $140. Flying from Bali to Manado is easy with lots of airlines, fares can start as low as $60. It is also easy to travel between Bun,ban,Lem as the resorts all arrange pick up at the airport on incomming flights.
Travel between Flores(Komodo) & Alor will prob mean a return flight back to Bali or a 24 hr car journey acrosss Flores. Getting to Alor & Togian will be more difficult compare to teh other places.

Also tourist visa on arrival in Indo is limited to 28 days if i remember correctly so just be aware if you are planning to spend 4+ weeks in Indo.

I have been to both areas several times, and they are both very very good - Some of my favorite diving, so you can't go wrong with either option.

The main difference is that Komodo is likely to be live aboard based, if you want to make most of it. North Sulawesi has plenty of good dive resorts.

There are a couple of simple resorts around Alor, so that's an other option - The area is very remote and pristine.

Hope this helps.

Thank you for the advice.
I travel with my wife (non diver) and my daughter (junior AOW). I guess North Sulawesi will be better in that case? Snorkeling for my wife and more relaxed dives compared with Komodo and Alor?
I have another question: is it possible in Komodo to dive Makassar reef (mantas) without a liveaboard?

there is also the Tangkoko Nature Reserve near Manado known for its birds and the Tarsier (tiny primate) There are inexpensive Homestays located just outside the park entrance. Many people go there during their non-diving day before flying. Your dive operator can help you make arrangements.

In general the dive boat will drop off the divers and then relocate at a spot more suitable for snorkelers and they come back to pick up the divers.

Hello danz, I haven't been to N. Sulawesi as it seems that there's not as many bigger animals as in Komodo and Alor. In general, I have found that there is a correlation between population density and the density of animal life. So, I tend to go to places that have the fewest people and are most remote. I have been to Komodo on liveaboard twice, in both seasons and Alor land based once, most recently. I would rate both to be of a similar quality in terms of the density of animal life and having intact food chains top to bottom, very close to the quality of dive trips I did in PNG, which is even less populated than East Nusa Tenggara.

Alor had exceptional diving and fantastic scenery, like tropical fjords full of deep, clear water and TONS of fish. I did a lot of research before going to Alor and I would recommend Thomas Schreiber's operation Alor Dive above most everybody else. He appears to be the only full time oprerator in Alor and also happens to have the most reasonable rates, though the accomodations are a bit Spartan. Thomas has only been in Alor for a few years, but he has taken the initiative and developed some new sites in addition to gaining the requisite knowlwedge of currents/tides to dive the known sites. Don't listen to anybody who has dived Kal's Dream and called it "a barren rock", that means they dived it at the wrong time and with an operator that's winging it. I dived Kal's twice in May and it was one of the best dives I've ever done, really tip top.

Komodo can be done as a land based trip, but it's not the best way to see it. Alor, on the the other hand, is best done as a land based trip as lots of local knowledge is required to make the most of the dives. Thomas's boat is also the biggest in Alor and has the biggest, easiest dive ladder I've ever used, which is welcome after coming back from exerting one's self on a dive with heavy currents... -Andy

Thank you for the tips. In Alor I heard also nice things about p'*** kepa. I will check both.

danz:

Thank you for the tips. In Alor I heard also nice things about p'*** kepa. I will check both.

Click to expand...

You're welcome danz. From what I could see, Petite Kepa was not in operation when I was there. It seems they don't have a steady stream of customers and are the place of choice for the few back packers that come in high season and are not as interesded in the diving. That being said, the guy who I corresponed with was very friendly and knowledgeable and has been in Alor for a long time. The location on an island is very nice, but the island is quite small and unless you are diving every day or only want to sit in a hamock, it would be quite boring. Also, from what I could see the PK's boats were not the best.

The eco resort is probably the nicest accomodation and the most expensive, but also far away and because of the longer travel times to the sites, doesn't generally offer a 3rd dive, except at the house reef.

I would be interested to know if PK do any dives at the 2 caves down south, you should ask if they know about them as they are spectacular and should not be missed. -Andy

SR...I have not dove Alor but looked at it closely....from what I have read it can be cool waters. What are the water temps? When you say the accomodations are a bit Spartan could you elaborate?

Hi there,

I spent 2 month diving in Indonesia last summer and have been to both North Sulawesi, Komodo and Alor (palua kepa).

About Palau Kepa: A very laid back island. The owner of the accommendation is a cool french guy who lives there with his wife and little girl. Yes the accommendation is basic huts and there's not much to do besides diving and snorkling. On the other hand it's a great place to go if you are into hard core diving. That's what people mostly are there for. Or just to relax.

The diving here is beautiful, but is mainly macro. You don't see much big stuff. And at times the current can be pretty stong.


If you're looking for big stuff and strong current - Komodo is the place. This is the best diving I've ever done. Huge bump heads, tunas, travallies, sharks, turtles, mantas and even dolphins etc. all over the place. And an amasing makrolife, if you are into that as well. But when it comes to the town: Labunanbajo - there's not much to do.

Bunaken and Lembeh is also makro diving - with lots of frog fish in spectacular colours ) Pretty good - but from my opinion Alor was a bettter experience. But the positive thing is that of all the 3 places this is the most family friendly place.


Whereever you go: I'm sure you are going to have a great trip )