Recommendations for Bali dive sites

[sumfingwong]

Hi all,

My wife and I will be visiting Bali later this year around August to September (for 3 weeks). She said she will plan the trip based on where I want to dive (lucky me!).

I do not know much about Bali, can I get some recommendations on the MUST SEE dives? As well as dive ops that you recommend!

Thanks all!

 

[Mike Veitch]

There are a lot of must see sites in Bali. The main diving areas are Tulamben, Amed, Padang Bai/Candidasa, Menjangen area, and Nusa Penida/Lembongan. If you will be here for 3 weeks then a Safari is definitely the way to go, stay a few days in each of these locations in order to get the best combination of diving that you can. Is your wife also a diver? There are certain places that will be better than others if she is not a diver but wants to do some activities such as snorkeling or land based sight seeing.

 

[gekodivebali]

Hi,

Why don't you tell us more about your holiday. Are you coming to Bali for diving only or for land-based visits as well? How long are you staying? What is your experience (certification and number of dives)? Are you more interested by large fish or macro?

When we know this we can help you make a more informed decision...

 

[sumfingwong]

There are a lot of must see sites in Bali. The main diving areas are Tulamben, Amed, Padang Bai/Candidasa, Menjangen area, and Nusa Penida/Lembongan. If you will be here for 3 weeks then a Safari is definitely the way to go, stay a few days in each of these locations in order to get the best combination of diving that you can. Is your wife also a diver? There are certain places that will be better than others if she is not a diver but wants to do some activities such as snorkeling or land based sight seeing.

Thanks for the suggestion, there will be 2 couples, 3 of us are certified and my wife does not like diving (equalization problems) but she likes to snorkel. Our plan is to stay in areas where there is good diving and sightseeing.

Hi,

Why don't you tell us more about your holiday. Are you coming to Bali for diving only or for land-based visits as well? How long are you staying? What is your experience (certification and number of dives)? Are you more interested by large fish or macro?

When we know this we can help you make a more informed decision...

I have my advanced open water certification, i would consider finding a dive op to get some specialty training. The other 2 divers are open water divers. I'm more interested in shallow reef dives (30-50ft) to look at reefs, fish, etc. I'm not sure what my dive count is at, my last dive was October 2011, so it's been awhile

Thanks again for all the help guys!

Our plan was to stay at 3 different places on the island and tour around as much as possible. If you can suggest what areas are good and what to avoid, that would be awesome!!!



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[Mike Veitch]

I would suggest the best three areas for you would be Menjangan, then Tulamben/Amed, then down to Padang Bai. Once you are down with diving you could then base yourself somewhere in the south or in Ubud area and enjoy a bit more time for shopping, eating, and temples etc for the last few days before you fly out. You can also see a lot of cool things from the first 3 places when you aren't diving.

 

[sumfingwong]

I would suggest the best three areas for you would be Menjangan, then Tulamben/Amed, then down to Padang Bai. Once you are down with diving you could then base yourself somewhere in the south or in Ubud area and enjoy a bit more time for shopping, eating, and temples etc for the last few days before you fly out. You can also see a lot of cool things from the first 3 places when you aren't diving.

Awesome, thanks Mike!

 

[jongles]

If your basing yourself just on Bali then The Liberty is a definite must dive. As I've mentioned in other posts this site can get extremely busy especially late morning/early afternoon with day trip divers so for that reason I'd recommend staying overnight in the area so that you can dive it early early and maybe as a night dive. I stayed in Liberty Dive Resort who I would recommend for accomadation and diving.

 

[sumfingwong]

If your basing yourself just on Bali then The Liberty is a definite must dive. As I've mentioned in other posts this site can get extremely busy especially late morning/early afternoon with day trip divers so for that reason I'd recommend staying overnight in the area so that you can dive it early early and maybe as a night dive. I stayed in Liberty Dive Resort who I would recommend for accomadation and diving.

Thanks jongles, I will definitely take that into consideration when planning this trip!

Keep the awesome suggestions rolling in guys!

 

[Madacub]

I agree with Mike Veitch (post # 5), maybe 3-5 days in the north Menjangen to Lovina, 3-4 days around Tulamben-Amed, and around 3-5 days diving from Padang Bai (you could stay in the Candidasa area, maybe better restaurants than in Padang Bai proper, not sure). You should plan on staying at all three places, and moving on once you are done with each area.

I would contact a few operations in Bali to see what they offer you - they all generally can easily put together a package for you, starting from airport pickup, accommodation to suit you, diving and all transfers. I've used Aquamarine Diving 3-4 times myself and can heartily recommend them, they are not the cheapest, but they provide an excellent experience, and will work with you to plan something suitable.

For land activities, Bali is a small enough island that I would do that after the diving is over, with the exception perhaps of the Menjangen area (north west), you may prefer to spend an extra "land" day there while you are there for diving. Watch out you don't get an overdose of temples - plenty of temples to see in Bali, that's for sure! Apart from the usual more famous attractions - the Botanical Garden was a pleasant surprise to me -very big and peaceful. The Butterfly Park was also neat.

How much diving do you want to do? Why not consider Lombok as well? (I haven't been there myself, just a suggestion since you have 3 weeks)

Have fun!

 

[charlier]

Something to think about. The roads in Bali are typically narrow and winding, so driving takes time. For example, the drive from north Menjangen to the other dive area take some time. You might consider staying a a lovely Yoga retreat for a night on the way or stop at Batur volcano before heading south? Look at a map of Bali, but remember that it takes longer than you think to drive 30km.