First Time Diving in Indonesia

Hello!

I am looking for any advice on an upcoming trip through Indonesia. I am new to this site and wish i had a more constant internet connection to really look through all of the posts, but i dont so am just going to ask my questions, sorry if it has been asked before!

First off, my husband and i are fairly new to diving-we each have only 15-30 dives.( I am PADI OW(18m), my husband is NAUI (22m). We have been travelling for 7 months and Indonesia is our last stop before going home. This doesnt leave us with a huge budget so any suggestions on specific dive operators will also be welcome!We are currently in Borneo and think we have to skip the expensive packages of Sipidan, but are pretty sure Indonesia has just as good dive sites or possible even better.Of course our aim is to see some of the bigger marine life and any island that may have nesting turtles would be a huge bonus. We dont mind more out of the way destinations and prefer chilled out islands/spots as opposed to party destinations. we also enjoy snorkelling, so any place that has accessible snorkelling from the accommodation areas is cool too.

I am also looking for advice on weather conditions and coral condition- a lot of advice i have found so far is a bit outdated and i know these 2 aspects can change a dive spot tremendously.


Itinerary is as follows: start around July 1st and end in Jakarta August 11th.

Pulau Derawan???
Sulawesi (more north,central and sw)
Flores
Komodo
Lombok
Bali

To Recap:
-fairly new to diving but feel comfortable with more (PADI OW/NAUI OW)
-Budget is a big deciding factor (dont think we can afford a liveaboard in Komodo)
-nearby snorkelling and nesting turtles is a bonus
-looking for advice on dive spots AND accompanying operators
-what/where would be best for our time frame?


Thanks to anyone who takes the time to help. I know this is information heavy, but since my connection isnt so great it may take time for me to reply.

Thanks again-Megan

Hi Megan if you like Turtles, Sipadan is the place to go to. And you dont need to stay lux like Kapalai or SWV. You can dive with Scuba Junkies or Borneo Divers at rates comparable with Indo. I havent been to a place where after the trip you are Turtle and Shark Blind! Sipadan has a turtle sanctuary and you can even snorkel and see them in the shallow waters off the resort house reef paradise 1 and 2 in Mabul.

If you choose Indo, then Tulamben in Bali is a good place for your level and some great sites around there - Seraya, Amed, as is Lembeh in Nth Sulawesi. Both destinations offer world class diving. You will get to see a lot of exciting things there, however they are not known for Turtles.

Komodo is your best bet in Indo and has quite a few Turtles at the dive locations, but I dont think its a snorkel/turtle nesting destination. And the currents can be very very strong at the sites - so Im not sure if your level of experience may suit. Perhaps a little later when you have a few more under your belt.

Hi Megan,

I would look to get into contact with Two Fish Divers they now have places in Lembeh, Bunaken and Nusa Lembongan. I would recommend Tulmaben Wreck Divers in Tulamben and from there you would be able to dive Amed and Seraya as well like @Gee13 suggested.

I would spend some time in Bali and then come up to North Sulawesi (Bunaken and Lembeh) from there you could travel down to the Toigan Islands as well.

All of these places would suit your level of dive experience

Thanks for your helpful advice everyone!

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Thanks for your helpful advice everyone!

Diving aroand the Gilis is easy. U can see sharks, bumpheads, turtles, trevallies, and all the other stuff. Also there is a nice night life, so the comination nightlife and diving is excellent...

Hi Megip, you say "Of course our aim is to see some of the bigger marine life".

I agree with Gee13 about Sipadan. I was there in Feb and there were plenty of turtles and sharks. Plus ernomous groupers. Schools of barracuda and bumphead parrotfish. (I stayed at the Kapalai resort which is a little expensive but a very nice place and good value for the money.) I suggest a week in Sipadan/Mabul. You'll stay at Mabul and dive in Sipadan and Mabul. Sipadan diving is limited to 120 divers a day, so you will be lucky to get 2 days diving there (there is a quota system - check with the resorts before booking - but none of the land resorts can really guarantee you anything, although on a week's trip you should get one day in Sipadan, two if you're lucky, depending on the season and crowds). But don't worry, diving in Mabul is also fantastic. I saw bigger turtles there than at Sipadan (no sharks in Mabul though), plus also ernomous groupers. Also night diving at Mabul was fantastic. Also plenty of tiny marine life at Mabul.

If you are already in Borneo, Sipadan should be on your itinerary, if you can make it. Keep in mind that the currents in Sipadan can sometimes be very, very strong.

I was in north Sulawesi in Jan. Bunaken has a lot of turtles. Also a fair share of macro (tiny marine life). I stayed at Santika (actually on the mainland, outside Manado, but across from Bunaken, so accessible to Bunaken and Manado sites ) and dived with Thalassa. I can recommend them both, not cheap but reasonable. At Lembeh I stayed at NAD. Again, not cheap but reasonable. Lembeh is amazing for macro life - but you won't find any "bigger marine life". At a place like Lembeh, good guides to spot the tiny critters are very important and NAD will not disappoint.

I was at Maratua in March. Maratua is close to Derawan, Sangalaki and Kakaban. I was not able to find any operation in Derawan, and the operation in Maratua did not take us there. We dived in Maratua, Sangalaki and Kakaban. Kakaban has a freshwater lake where snorkelling with the stingless jellyfish was a unique experience. We went twice to Sangalaki but did not see any mantas. Plenty of turtles around Maratua. All in all, the fish life was similar to Sipadan/Mabul but it seems that area's best days are behind them. I stayed at the Maratua Paradise Resort which is expensive and definitely not worth it. Also, some very strong currents in Maratua)

I've not been to Flores but I went to Komodo on a LOB a couple of years ago. Very exciting trip, plenty of sites with strong currents. I did not have very good luck with mantas, but plenty of other fish. Good mix of macro and larger life. July/Aug is the season for Komodo, but most people don't recommend day trips - it seems LOB is the way to go. I went on the Mermaid (Bali-Komodo-Bali), which I would recommend, but as you say, LOBs to Komodo are not cheap.

I haven't been to Lombok or the Gilis, but I've been to Bali over the last few years. Bali is a fantastic place and a great intro to Indo, if you need one. I would suggest a couple of weeks in Bali, maybe 3 if you are keen on land based activities as well. (Think: will you be going back to that area later?) Bali has a lot of great diving, including mantas (smaller in size compared to a lot of other places) bumphead parrot fish, and macro life. In addition to what Gee13 said, Tulamben, Amed, Seraya, I would add sites in the south (Nusa Penida etc) and north (Secret Bay and Menjangan). In Bali, I use Aquamarine Diving, they are very good at making up an itinerary, tell them what you are looking for and your budget, they can take care of transport and finding hotels also. (They can help with all the other places Indo and Borneo as well, if you are short of time and internet connections). I suggest moving around in Bali and staying for 4-5 days at different locations to minimize commuting times. Bali is also an interesting palce to visit, quite apart from the diving, it has a unique Hindu culture, quite different from the rest of Indonesia. Almost forgot, in Bali, July and Aug are good months to see the Mola Mola (very big marine life, the largest bony fish) - not something you see in too many places.

Hope this helps - have fun! (And for next time, remember the season for Rajah Ampat is Dec - April or so)

Wow Madacub!!! Lots of info to think about. I know everyone is screaming Sipidan but we have already made the decision not to go. For our last weeks of travelling (after 7 months) we would rather space out day dives with our money than spend most of it on Sipidan. I think that we will still get to see all that Sipidan has to offer-but spread out in Indonesia!

The only regret i have is the Komodo LOB, but i looked at alot of prices and we cant do it. Luckily we already did a LOB in Thailand and had a great experience with it so will always have those memories.

I like macro life as well-fell in love with Nudibranches!- but for my original post i was looking for the big marine life so I didnt feel as though i was missing out on what Sipidan offers. So as we make our way through Indo we will be giving all the recommended dive sites a chance. The mola-molas in Bali sound great-havent seen those before!

Thanks for all the detailed info!

We dove with Gangga divers out of Candiasa and saw the mola molas and also lots of mantas! I agree with all of the Sipadan posts but Bali is a good alternative if you can't make it to Komodo.

If you're on Lombok, the Gili islands are near by. I can highly recommend Oceans 5 on Gili Air. A great islands, relaxed and laid back and no real party scene to speak of but you can get a drink. No cars are allowed on the Gili's. Nesting for turtles will be difficult to find but Oceans 5 has a turtle sanctuary.
Mainly macro to be found but also sharks and rays can be spotted at the deeper sites.

Well...

I know you said you wouldnt have the budget for Sipadan, but if youre REALLY- I mean, really REALLY looking to see the big stuff, Sip is a must. I would be pretty hard pressed to recommend another place that virtually guarantees you sharks, at least a dozen turtles (sometimes on each dive!), and schools of bigger fish like barracuda, Jacks, and bumphead parrotfish. Anyone else on here gone to Sipadan and not seen sharks?? I dont think so...

There ARE low cost alternatives fir diving at Sipadan, and anyway- if you are going to be jumping around and diving in different locations here and there trying to see all the cool stuff you can see at Sipadan, well I would think that you could possibly be paying just about as much as a few days diving in Borneo, maybe more.

Moving on from all that. CN Dive in komodo apparently has a liveaboard for really cheap (I think $170 a night??), which- after you take out the cost of the diving, then figure how much it would cost for the two of you to do some sightseeing, pay for food and accoms, I reckon it would be close to the same amount of money you would pay for staying somewhere like Gili Air, T, or in Bali and diving.

If it were my trip (or... if I was as lucky as you ), I would be thinking where could I get "the biggest bang for my buck," as the man says. You will probably be able to do some decent diving here or there if you try to spread out your dives around Indo and save money. It would pass the time and make for ok memories, but if you could do just a few dives and have amazing, best ever dives, by going to either Komodo or Sipadan.... well, I know what I'd do.