Trip to Bali

[ponny93]

I am traveling to Bali on mid May for less than 2 weeks. I am going to spend about 5 full days for diving(Including transit... it can be 7 days.).

I've done diving around 30 times in sipadan, boracai in philippines, red sea(around dahap), turkey, utila in Honduras. But the last diving was already 6 years ago. So I need to start from easier spot to get used to.

I'm thinking one of these..
1. only in Bali (Tulamben, Menjangen, Nusa Penida for 3 days)
2. Bali and Gili islands (some of above and Gili islands for 2-3 days)
3. Komodo (land based resort for 5 days)
4. Alor (land based resort for 5 days)

We are budget travelers, so I also think about the cost.
It seems the diving cost is more less same (2-300 EURO for 10 dives including equipments) for all of those areas. But for Komodo and Alor, I have to fly to there so it will cost 2-300EURO more.

It is not a season for mola mola in Bali, so I think that the diving in Bali or Lombok may be much less exciting than Komodo or Alor... But also I cannot decide between Komodo and Alor.

By the way, can you guys also recommend some dive shops/resorts which are inexpensive but reliable in those area?

 

[PeCaRi]

Hi Ponny

I just returned from a long Indo trip and have the invoice from Alor. I paid for 12 days (plus. 2 nights in Kupang, bad luck), more than 30 dives, bungalow, flight, food, and flights (Denpasar / Jakarta, 126€ per way to/from Alor) but with own equipment 1200 €. A flight from Zürich to Jakarta just costs about 950 US-$.
I dived with Thomas Scheiber (ALOR DIVE). It is absolutely recommended. He knows the area very well and has great boat.
Now, the big But comes: currents. We had dives as it started with surge, changed between down and up currents beside the normal horizontal. If there is no current (tiny little current) there is no fish! Thomas will adapt the dive sites to the customers skills. He told me that there are some places without a lot of currents.

oh, I have just seen that you will travel for less than 2 weeks. I would check the flight schedule Kupang... you cannot always fly to Alor in one day and Alor is worth the long trip.

for Komodo, I have no idea of the land based shops. I only know that the boat drive to the sites (in the park) is quite long.

In general, I have no idea if you really dived less than 50 hours. Please consider, that the currents in Sipadan / Red sea are not as wicked as in the Alor /Komodo.

A combination Tulamben / Padang Bay would probably fit best due to your time constraints.

 

[kathydee]

In general, I have no idea if you really dived less than 50 hours. Please consider, that the currents in Sipadan / Red sea are not as wicked as in the Alor /Komodo.

A combination Tulamben / Padang Bay would probably fit best due to your time constraints.

Hi there,

Your 2 week trip sounds exciting but quite ambitious . I've been to Bali many times on budget dive trips and think you would find it plenty engaging for 2 weeks. Perhaps you could combine Bali and Gillis which makes more sense with the time you have?

If you send a PM with more specifics of your travel style, I'd be happy to share details for budget scuba travel in Bali.

 

[ScubaduoAdventures]

As stated Komod and Alor may not be the place to warm back up to diving because of the currents you will experience if this is a concern of yours though they are definitely some of the great dive diving in the world. Also you would really do better with diving Komodo as a Liveaboard.
Bali is definitely worth a two week trip between the diving and everything else it has to offer and you can arrange a kind of diving safari diving north to south or vise versa. Also have you considered flying into Manado the diving between Bunaken and Lenbeh is fantastic and you will not have to worry about dealing with harsh currents if you do not want and still be able to add a few days to see Bali if you want. Here is a link to a company who can help you with booking resorts,liveaboards etc. for different areas in Indonesia.
Bali Scuba Diving Indonesia - Tulamben Dive Terminal Resort

 

[gee13]

I experienced some ripping currents around Nusa Penida/ Lembongan, in fact some of the strongest incl down currents, other sites were mild-ish to medium. Really depends on time of tide. There are some very good dive sites around there with pelagic life of course. Seeing the Mola Mola is best of course, in season.

 

[Tapas bali]

Dear Ponny,

Talking about budget travelling, hopefully you find my explanation below helpful

Diving in Gili, Komodo (land based) & Lombok is cheaper than Bali. But to be able to reach these places you will also need to pay extra budget for fast boat (to Komodo & Lombok) or flight to Komodo.

At the moment the recent publish rate for return boat transfer to Gili/Lombok is Rp 1,300,000/person (appr. USD 146).

Air ticket to Labuan Bajo (airport for Komodo area) is approximately USD 100/person/way - subject to economy class available.

There is a budget liveaboard in Komodo that has program 5 days/4 nights program, publish rate is USD 650 & cruise guarantee for minimum 2 passengers.

As you mentioned that you might want to dive for 1 week only, I would suggest to stay in one place. Bali has more than enough dive sites to be visited in 5-7 days of diving. If you don't mind with cold water & fan as your room facilities, there is always room cost Rp 100,000/room/night near Menjangan, Tulamben or Padang Bai (Nusa Penida) area.

There is always something for everyone here in Indonesia, you just need to ask. By joining this forum, you are in a right place already.

 

[ponny93]

Dear Ponny,
At the moment the recent publish rate for return boat transfer to Gili/Lombok is Rp 1,300,000/person (appr. USD 146).

I found this page... peramatour.com/bali_Shuttle.php
It says 350,000IDR for one way, so it will be 700,000IDR for return. Is it changed?
Also I think there must be other cheaper local boat than Perame shuttle... isn't it?

Thanks anyway!!

 

[Tapas bali]

Dear Ponny,

There are several boat transfers from Bali to Gili/Lombok. The price also vary depends on how long the boat transfer

The IDR 1,300,000 (return) is by fast boat that takes approximately 3.5 hours/way from Bali to Gili or Lombok. I usually suggest this to guests who has limited time so can not take Ferry.

Yes traveling by ferry is the cheapest way. My friend did it last year & she only paid IDR 125,000/person/way. But it takes approximately 8 hours/way. It is not a bad choice if you have the time. The ferry also have cafe where you can buy food from during the trip.

 

[Madacub]

Hi Ponny93, for 5-7 days my suggestion is to stay in Bali. There is plenty of excellent diving right there without needing to spend time travelling. I think you've got all the suggestions on the dive sites - there is enough variety to dive easy sites as well as dives with currents.

 

[ScubaJS]

Stay in Bali! The diving there is fine, particularly with the limited amount of time you have. We dove with Absolute Scuba in Padang Bai and were very happy.