Starting to plan my trips for 2025 and trying to decide on one of the two for April timeframe
1) Lembeh - Halmahera - Lembeh on White Manta - 5 days at Halmahera w some extra dives in Lembeh (26 total) for US$2900
2) a week at Triton Bay divers - seems to be 5 days of diving (3x/day for 15 dives, night dives not guaranteed as a solo traveller) EUR$2729
I am set to return to Komodo and Raja Ampat this year on the Blue Manta, and have softly penciled in a Palau spawning trip in Feb 2025 and a Ambon - Banda - Alor - Maumere trip on Mermaid I for Oct 2025, which I plan to get off 1 day early and spend an extra week at Alor Divers Eco Resort.
The Halmahera trip starts/ends in Manado which is super easy direct 4h flight on Scoot from SG. I can easily add on a few days in Lembeh to get my macro fix in.
Triton Bay seems much harder to get to, but can still be done within the same day as arrival in Sorong, and on the reverse will take 3 separately booked flights but theoretically I can still make it back to SG on the same day (assuming no delays or cancellations.... but will be tight... and I've read cancellations are common?)
Cost is not really a main consideration (but Halmahera looks to be better value), but time is important to me as vacation days are limited - I would hate to lose extra days because of unreliable flights. Assuming all goes well getting to Kaimana will cost me 1 more day than getting to Manado (can leave in the morning and be diving by the afternoon...). I'm also a bit hesitant on the lack of 24h electricity.
Since my one year absence it seems Triton Bay has gotten a lot more popular - and I think I've read a few reports now about how it's even better than Raja. Certainly one of the key pluses would be the whale sharks, but curious if anyone has done both Triton Bay and Halmahera and can compare the rest of the diving. Last time I was in Lembeh the resident photographer at Bastianos told me his favorite place to dive is Halmahera but other than that I haven't heard much first hand experience on Halmahera.
Macro is not really a big focus for me for this trip because Lembeh, Anilao, and Tulemban are all within a short 3-4h flight from me and I can go on a long weekend. So I guess I'm really asking to compare: 1) overall reefs - health, color, soft vs hard corals etc, 2) fishiness, 3) sharkiness.
Is the extra hassle for Triton Bay worth it? Will one better complement the rest of the year vs the other?
1) Lembeh - Halmahera - Lembeh on White Manta - 5 days at Halmahera w some extra dives in Lembeh (26 total) for US$2900
2) a week at Triton Bay divers - seems to be 5 days of diving (3x/day for 15 dives, night dives not guaranteed as a solo traveller) EUR$2729
I am set to return to Komodo and Raja Ampat this year on the Blue Manta, and have softly penciled in a Palau spawning trip in Feb 2025 and a Ambon - Banda - Alor - Maumere trip on Mermaid I for Oct 2025, which I plan to get off 1 day early and spend an extra week at Alor Divers Eco Resort.
The Halmahera trip starts/ends in Manado which is super easy direct 4h flight on Scoot from SG. I can easily add on a few days in Lembeh to get my macro fix in.
Triton Bay seems much harder to get to, but can still be done within the same day as arrival in Sorong, and on the reverse will take 3 separately booked flights but theoretically I can still make it back to SG on the same day (assuming no delays or cancellations.... but will be tight... and I've read cancellations are common?)
Cost is not really a main consideration (but Halmahera looks to be better value), but time is important to me as vacation days are limited - I would hate to lose extra days because of unreliable flights. Assuming all goes well getting to Kaimana will cost me 1 more day than getting to Manado (can leave in the morning and be diving by the afternoon...). I'm also a bit hesitant on the lack of 24h electricity.
Since my one year absence it seems Triton Bay has gotten a lot more popular - and I think I've read a few reports now about how it's even better than Raja. Certainly one of the key pluses would be the whale sharks, but curious if anyone has done both Triton Bay and Halmahera and can compare the rest of the diving. Last time I was in Lembeh the resident photographer at Bastianos told me his favorite place to dive is Halmahera but other than that I haven't heard much first hand experience on Halmahera.
Macro is not really a big focus for me for this trip because Lembeh, Anilao, and Tulemban are all within a short 3-4h flight from me and I can go on a long weekend. So I guess I'm really asking to compare: 1) overall reefs - health, color, soft vs hard corals etc, 2) fishiness, 3) sharkiness.
Is the extra hassle for Triton Bay worth it? Will one better complement the rest of the year vs the other?