In planning a Raja Ampat trip, we found some airplane connections that were very convenient for us (we are also from California).
We flew to Singapore, stayed overnight in the airport hotel, flew to Manado in the morning. You will find that Lembeh resorts are happy to pick you up and you will be in the water that same day. We stayed in Lembeh (Kungungan Resort) for 4 days and then caught a short morning flight (Silk Air) to Sorong to meet up with our dive boat. This was MUCH easier than the trip to Sorong by way of Bali. It is very important to note that this flight is only twice a week so you must plan accordingly.
A completely different trip might be to go to Wakatobi. It is a quick flight out of Denpasar, Bali. We've been there twice. You could opt for the resort one week and the Pelagian dive boat the other week. Their concierge service at the airport is truly amazing.
Thanks all.
We are flying SFO - SIN and landing at 6:45 am. Spend the day and evening acclimating somewhat. *Hpe* to get into singapore at least for a little bit. Overnight at the airport and then Manado in the morning to NAD Lembeh for a week. NAD boat will take us to the pier where we'll be picked up by Gangga Island Resort for a week. Manado -SIN the next Saturday for the long voyage home
This all appeared more appealing than trying to jump around to different spots on regional carriers. We'll go somewhere else the next trip... maybe.