Ambon or Lembeh in Jan

Looking for advice on the two destinations above. I have not been to either of these places. I have done muck/critter dives before (Bali, Komodo, Lombok, Mabul, Malapascua etc) most were a few years ago without a camera, so i'm treating it as if i have never done this type of dive before. so, I am looking for the place that's going to offer me the greatest variety of critters, Flamboyant cuttlefish is top of my list.

I have narrowed it down to either Amon or Lembeh but which is going to offer me the greatest variety of critters, i understand they can be seasonal? Going to be there last week of December first week of Jan, then over to Sipadan after

I can travel to Manado from Singapore to get to Lembeh, so not much of an issue there.

What about Ambon, do i have to spend a night in Jakarta or Bali? Can i get to Ambon in a day?

I had the same question for my Dec trip -Lembeh or Ambon
I have been to Ambon once & Lembeh 3 times.
I have just booked Lembeh. 9 nights late Dec

Ambon is easy to get to from jakarta, several direct & indirect flight per day. However several flights seem to leave around midnight and arrive very early in Ambon . I try to avoid flying in Indo during the evening (remember Adam Air!!!!)
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I choose Lembeh as it was a lot cheaper compared to Ambon(There is a cheap Ambon option but its too rustic for me). My Lembeh trip is approx 1/2 price compared to Ambon(if you include single supplements).

Ambon is better for reef, wrecks & fishlife. But i think Lembeh is a bit better for macro.
You can check out the Lembeh resort blog as they keep a tally of the critters they see each month. You can check out if they are getting regular sightings on flam cuttlefish at this time of year(Although i use the Lembeh resort website for info i am not staying there. I am heading back to NAD, best value in Lembeh IMHO).

Lion,Garuda,Batavia all fly to Ambon.
Its likely the weather will be better In Ambon & less divers around. Expect rain in Lembeh.

Either location will make an excellent dive trip

Thanks for that really good post. Pretty much covered everything.

How long would you recommend at each resort? is 5-7 days enough including travel time? I'm pretty sure i could spend months at either though...

Would like to hear anymore opinions??

If flamboyant is on top of your critter list, then go for Lembeh. Last year in feb. I combined both Lembeh and Ambon in one trip : had many things in Ambon but zilch flamby, while I had at least one on every dive in Lembeh, it was almost getting boring.
I stayed 5 days in Lembeh Resort and that was fine enough.

Another thing with Ambon is that I hardly see how you'd combine it with Sipadan in a one day transfer, you should be probably going back to Jakarta then Kuala Lumpur to catch a plane to Tawau. Does look like an overnight in either KL or S'pore.

Hi Luko,

So which was your favourite destination?

I didn't make that as clear as i could have, I have a week in Thailand before i head over to Sipadan..

My fav is Ambon, but probably for wrong personal reasons that can't apply otherwise... because I also like to travel and I really like Maluku islands like the Bandas or the small Lease islands east of Ambon. Diving wise the two areas have their own specialties, roughly Ambon is great for rhinopias, coleman or bumblebee shrimps while Lembeh is great for all sorts of cephalopods (Mimic octo, wunderpus, flamboyant cuttlefish, hairy octopus), ghost pipefish or pygmy seahorses, bobbit worms. Both are on a par for frogfish. Ambon is better for gorgonian or pure coral sites (but if you go to nearby Bangka from Lembeh, I don't think there are a lot of sites that can rival Sahaung 2 for coral color).

I would say Lembeh is probably "denser" in terms of critters, while Ambon has less divers.
If you're looking for convenience, Lembeh has definitely a wider assortment of accomodations. Other than Maluku Divers you could be somehow required to speak/understand a little bahasa.

We have been to Lembeh 3x and Ambon 2x. We got off of our international flight in Jakarta and headed over to the domestic airport and were on our way to Ambon at 1 am. We arrived in Ambon at around 6 am from our Lion Air flight( on time both trips) and we were in the water by 8:30 am with Maluku Divers Resort. We have seen a lot of flam. cuttle fish in Lembeh. In Ambon we saw so many mimic octopus I sort of quit going over to see them after awhile. We saw the pscy. frog fish in Ambon but I think he is gone now. Check out the Maluku Divers Resort web site to see photos of what they have been seeing or follow them on facebook. We stay at KBR in Lembeh which we love. On our 2nd trip we saw everything on our wish list and more. Check out Kaj Maney's weekly blog on KBR's website. He keeps a running total of all of the critters they have seen and also includes very cool videos. This week they saw a cigar jelly fish. We will most likely repeat both locations. You will not get bored at either location for a 7 day trip! Enjoy!

Hi, I've been to Lembeh and after 2 weeks was still loving it. I will be in Ambon over Xmas New Years - the countdown is on! Perhaps check availability at Maluku as I think it is a busy time, you're decision may be made for you. Unless it next year you are referring to.

I concur with luko, flambouyants galore in lembeh. I went in December and they were on almost every dive! But i think mid year they r much less. Its seasonal. I am still deciding where to go to shoot macro in may time, it could be lembeh again as its just so awesome. If only the bumblebee and colemans were more common!! But still wonderpus, mototi, halameda ghost pipe, red setter ghost pipes, etc etc to tick off my list!!!

Also going to Lembeh (staying at KBR) for 10 days in late December/early Jan.

Presumably the rain won't be a huge issue though given that it's muck diving?