Raja Ampat north or south?

[andydob27]

There is a pretty decent priced livaboard boat that has a 6 night trip to the north of Raja Ampat and a 6 night trip to the south for the same amount of money. They have a trip that goes to both, but that is too long. I'm sure they are both amazing, but does anyone have any strong feelings either way?

Andy

 

[jcclink]

South around Misool has some really great dive sites. But there's also some great stuff up north. So if you haven't dove RA before its a win either way. The southern loop will probably have more cruising time than the north. Some boats dive the same site differently. This can make a big difference in the quality of the dive. Like diving the shallows at Melissa's Garden (great) vs diving the slope (very average). It all depends on the cruise director & dive masters as to where & how they dive. Be prepared for strong currents in some area. Take reef hook & inflatable sausage.

 

[bananas75]

Hi Andy,

I've been looking for a liveaboard with that time line for ages, could you share the name?

Olly

 

[hallenbad]

I am also very interested in the name. I would like to join a 7 days trip north in february 2012. Can anybody recommend this boat ? Anybody interested ?
Gerd

 

[andydob27]

They only have a couple short trips to Raja Ampat a year.

Raja Ampat Liveaboard - Felicia Trips, Prices, Scheduled Departure Dates and Itineraries

 

[hallenbad]

Thank you for this information. I made a reservation on the putiraja in feb. 2012.
Diving Raja Ampat, Diving Indonesia with Putiraja Liveaboard
Anybody knows this boat ?

 

[Magrone]

I was scheduled on the Felicia for a 7 day trip to the Banda Islands. A week before we were supposed to arrive the boat broke down and had to be repaired, hence canceling our trip. I was lucky enough to get on a different boat going to Raja Ampat which couldn't have worked out better in the long run. We had excellent conditions in Raja (March 2011) and the weather was nasty in the Bandas. I have heard several reports that the Felicia is OK, but cramped.

I would recomend doing the North for a first time visit especially a short one since the dive sites are closer together. We had more of a variety in the north as well; fishy sights, macro sights, hard coral gardens, amazing manta dives and even a dive with 15 sharks. The south was mostly walls with amazing sea fans and soft corals. The magnificent coral formations of the south are more dramatic than the north and my favorite dives were in the south (Nudi Rock, Boo Windows) but overall the north was more exciting.

You can check out my trip report here:
http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/in...cities-fish-raja-ampat-march-6-17-2011-a.html

 

[MA]

Thank you for this information. I made a reservation on the putiraja in feb. 2012.
Diving Raja Ampat, Diving Indonesia with Putiraja Liveaboard
Anybody knows this boat ?

I'm heading out on it in a couple of weeks. I can let you know then!

 

[hallenbad]

MA, thank you in advance.