Indonesia liveaboard....

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clavell

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Location
Denver, Colorado
Our LDS spent 11 days cruising aboard the "Tambora" near Halmahera Island in Indonesia in May of this year. Our experience diving and being cared for by Uwe (the owner) and his crew exceeded everyone's expectations, even those who are veterans of liveaboard diving.

This was my first experience spending time on a liveaboard, so I have no reference point by which to compare this trip. Uwe is a lifelong diver, transplanted from Germany, who had this boat custom built in Indonesia for diving; it is approx 40 meters, long, wooden sailing vessel. Lots of deck space, very comfortable, and can accommodate 16 divers, I believe. There are onboard compressors for air and Nitrox. The cabins are comfortable, all with ensuite bathrooms and showers, and plenty of electrical outlets.

Uwe lives on the boat with his family, and is present to see that everyone's needs are met; he also dives most of the time with guests at dive sites that only he knows the location of. His diving itineraries cover large parts of Indonesia, and have been designed to maximize the chances of diving during good weather conditions and calm ocean conditions that he has tracked over the past 10 years or so.

Consequently, everyone aboard, regardless of prior experience, more or less agreed that this was among the best diving anyone had ever experienced. There were a wide variety of sites, from walls, to sea mounts, to slopes, to piers, to shallow black sand, with untouched coral reefs, and everything from pelagics to lots of critters to keep those interested in muck diving grinning from ear to ear.

There is a dedicated photography room on board for cleaning, assembling, and storing cameras and attachments and recharging batteries.

The diving schedule was leisurely, with enough spacing between the 3 daily dives (4 with night dive) to eat, relax, nap and lounge around. No need to set an alarm to wake up before sunrise to catch the first dive of the day!

Aside from the occasional isolated villages on remote islands, we had the entire ocean to ourselves, until reaching the end of the trip, where we ended up in Lembeh strait for the last day of diving, before resting, cleaning, and departing from Sulawesi 24 hours later. Uwe was even up at 2:30 AM with his crew to offer coffee and snacks, and then accompany us and supervise the transfers to the airport to make sure there were no glitches.

The food was nothing short of spectacular, with a menu consisting of both Indonesian and international dishes. The kitchen staff accommodated those with dietary restrictions/preferences without a hiccup. Breakfast each day was a la carte from a long menu; lunch was served family style for the divers, and dinners were chosen by each diver from a menu that changed daily.

We were able to use the two dive tenders to make visits to remote beaches when anchored close enough to shore when not doing night dives, for some beachcombing.

The crew members were the happiest, friendliest bunch we had ever spent time with on a boat; it turns out many are quite musical, and almost all will happily engage you in a game of chess if you want.

My dive shop was impressed enough that they have already made arrangements to reserve Uwe and his liveaboard and crew for another trip to Indonesia, next time on a different itinerary. If you are interested in more info, Uwe's website is www.tamboradive.com. Cheers....
 
Sounds like an amazing trip! I'm now jealous that I'm stuck teaching High School science and my next dive adventure possibility will be spring break!
 
Sounds like a great trip. What part of the world did you come from to go? I ask because the practical feasibility of hitting a given destination often depends on how far one is away. On scuba trips, airfare can easily be over half the trip cost.

Looks like for 2015 their trips are all 9 to 13 nights, with most 11 or 12. Good to know; helped me cope with the sticker shock when I saw the prices (conveniently listed in U.S. dollars).

Richard.
 
We started out in Denver, Co. And yes, it was a long way there. I figure allowing 2 days on each end of the trip to get to out of the way destinations, allowing for unexpected delays along the way. Fortunately, our transfers, etc. went smoothly. We flew Singapore airlines most of the way, and had long layover in Singapore, staying overnight at a hotel within the airport, which helped out a lot. For me, this was my "bucket list" dive trip, possibly never to be duplicated, but who knows what will happen in the future?

---------- Post added October 5th, 2014 at 10:17 AM ----------



---------- Post added October 5th, 2014 at 10:19 AM ----------

I feel the same....I go to work with an eye on planning when I can get in the water again....living in Co. means traveling to get to warm water for diving, so it's not an every day thing.....
 
<<No need to set an alarm to wake up >> but the first dive of the day always has the best viz! :) Amazing how the same site can change on the next dive. Indo was awesome though, eh?

drrich2: Flights to that part of the world are pretty competitive (I've paid $750 to get to Jakarta) so airfare is much better compared to other places like even Palau.
 
What was the guide to diver ratio on the Tambora trip?
 
Ive done two trips on Tambora and have another booked - Uwe is awesome as are all the staff.Generally one guide to two divers. Cannot fault or speak highly enough of Tambora and if the sticker prices in USD are a shock you should try converting to AUD...shudder...but for the consistent service and great times im happy to pay for Tambora again over other boats.
No need for alarms that bell is loud enough and the food is in copious quantities of a great standard. Little things like Alfred waiting with hot tea and baked goods as you come up from the tender onto the deck after a dive are just some of the reasons I will continue to book with Uwe. How cute is little Felix? someone said they would not go on a boat with a child onboard....they didnt know what they were missing. The rare times you do see Felix are just a joy. Glad you enjoyed Tambora as much as I do.
Nice to be on a boat where the owner actually dives with you and lives onboard. Great review.
 
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