Diving in East Timor

[Jpalcg]

As I haven't found many resources on this destination I've decided to share my last trip there. Full trip log can be found at my Diving East Timor post

I spent a whole week trying to describe to myself what it is like diving in East Timor. Being somewhat dive travelled in South East Asia I sometimes get the feeling that I am spoilt and find myself searching for new experiences. This need to find something new, not having dived for 4 months (which had me climbing up walls), and being challenged by a friend that lived there made me decide to explore this remote country.
[...]
At the time of this writing you had two ways to get into Dili, through Singapore or Bali (the cheapest solution). Getting there is the first deterrent I found: prices and schedules need to dramatically improve if this country is to open up to tourism.
[...]
Diving in East Timor is as good as your expectations. If you like diving but don't want any hassles you'll probably best stay in Indonesia. Diving in Timor is not superior to diving in Indonesia, and the latter is better prepared for tourism.


However, if like me, you like diving out of the mainstream, this is the place to come. I did not have the time or opportunity to dive all the spots, but the sample I had was very positive. Is it better than diving in Bunaken? I would not say so. But in some spots it is as good as Bunaken, with one difference - you get the dive spots all for yourself! In 13 dives, I only found divers from other groups in one.

I guess this is the main attraction to diving in Timor: it is still very unexplored. You really get the feeling that you're one of the first diving there (which is obviously not true). With such strong competition from beautiful dive sites close by and easier to get to, this was the only point I could come up to justify a travel to dive in East Timor. I have other motivations to return, as I now have a group of friends there, but other divers should really think hard before coming to this destination. It is well worth it, but your expectations need to be set up right.

The original post Diving East Timor describes some of the dive sites.

 

[ocdiver1]

I've been to East Timor three times and loved it. Glad you enjoyed it as well.

 

[jamesdiving]

Interesting. No disrespect to Bunaken, which is certainly nice diving, but from the limited amount I had read I had slightly higher expectations for Timor Leste diving. Am still keen to go - sounds like a fascinating place to visit, especially while it's still off the beaten track - but perhaps less of a totally dive-focused trip.

 

[ocdiver1]

I'd still argue it's a very worthwhile dive destination beyond it's newness and lack of other divers. Here it's being compared to Bunaken...it's a far more varied destination than Bunaken is. If you love macro (like I do), Tasi Tolo and some other sites right in Dili are fantastic muck dives...I've seen rhinopias for example several times there. If you can make it out to Atauro Island I saw hammerheads there and it remains the one place outside of Malapascua that I've ever seen a thresher shark, and sites up and down the coast rival some of the wall diving at Bunaken. I'm not sure which sites the OP got to in his 13 dives, but ET has a lot to offer. While it's correctly stated that there isn't a great tourist infrastructure compared to other places, one nice thing about ET diving is that you'd be staying in Dili to do any diving...so 10 minutes from the airport compared to hours by car/boat to many other dive destinations. Accommodation is not luxurious, but is comfortable enough, and the one big dive operator Dive Timor Lorosae is fantastic. Dive prices are more expensive that Indonesia but aren't unreasonable.

I would agree that ET does not compare to some of the best diving neighboring Indonesia has to offer..Komodo, Lembeh, Raja Ampat, etc., but it's definitely worth a look. It's also only a @90 minute, $100 flight from Bali, so it can combine well with a trip to Indo and/or for a needed visa run.

 

[jamesdiving]

Thanks OCdiver1. How far east did you get? I read good things about Com and Jaco Island.

 

[ocdiver1]

I made it to Jaco on the LOB I did (Siren) and we dove there for two days..my experience was kind of a letdown from what I'd heard and, other than a lot of nurse sharks, i don't recall really seeing that much. We dove the Com Pier both on the way out and back from Jaco--I loved it...nice muck dive with really the pier being really scenic covered with soft coral. I'm not 100% certain, but I think Dive Timor Lorosae does occasionally do trips out to Jaco but you could check with them.

 

[jamesdiving]

Ok, thanks. Will bear that in mind.

 

[Jpalcg]

Hi, I'm afraid I did not get the notifications on new replies... sorry for the late reply.

I agree with you in that ET is a more varied place to dive than Bunaken. Unfortunately I did not have the opportunity to go to Atauro so I was limited to what I've observed in Dili. I'm eager to go back and dive more of ET - actually, and despite I believe Bunaken sites are generally superior, ET is still a destination for me, whereas I'm not planning to return to Bunaken. And hopefully with the new air liner flights are more accessible (schedule wise)

Cheers

 

[canuckfish]

In Sept, we travelled to Bunaken and East Timor in the same trip - it all depends on what you're looking for (as always). Both were incredible.. but something very special and remote about ET. We dived around Atauro Island, and did some exploration dives as well - it was fantastic! On our boat ride over there, sperm whales surfaced and played right beside us! Not far from them, schools of dolphins (apparently a regular occurrence on the short trip to the island). In the 20km or so between Dili & Atauro, the depths drop to about 3500m below sea level, so there are some large pelagics along with the incredible macro life ocdiver1 mentioned! Would HIGHLY rec diving with Aquatica Dive - superior boat, excellent skip. AQUATICADIVERESORT.COM:: Welcome to the AQUATICADIVERESORT.COM website.
We did not dive at Com or Jaco (major regret, although interesting it was a let down for you ocdiver1) - we saw schools of young squid (what!!!!) from the pier at Com..

Like Jpalcg said, f you want off the beaten-path and unexplored, fantastic diving - ET is the place. At the time of posting, flights are still limited through Singpore, Darwin AUS, and Bali (sriwijaya air - cheapest option for flights). It's not cheap - they are still coming down off a false economy from the UN being there. That being said, with the UN having recently pulled out, it's a very interesting time to go - before it gets (unfortunately) exploited.

 

[goblinina]

Hi all - Making a trip to Dili in July to dive! It looks like the choice for dive shops is between Dive Timor and Aquatica. I was actually leaning toward Dive Timor because it's been around longer than Aquatica and it's a PADI 5 star IDC while Aquatica is a Dive Resort. However, I see that Aquatica has been recommended a couple times. Perhaps I'm putting too much weight on the PADI rating? Anyone have further insights into which to choose and whether I need to do it now or can get to Dili and decide there? Thanks!