November in Indonesia

[Dan]

Did Ambon - Banda - Ambon a few years ago and was underwhelmed. Far too many dives looking out in the blue for hammerheads with no results. Did not see one the entire trip. Outside of the waiting for hammerheads it was OK diving. Sea snakes, and a couple of land based excursions were the highlights of the trip. Alor is significantly better diving IMHO. I have been back to Alor three times since, unlikely I would repeat the Banda trip.

Sea temperatures is the key factor in seeing the schooling hammerheads in Banda Sea. Unfortunately El Niño cycle (warm water period) was started around 2016-2017, bringing the sharks to the deeper water beyond recreational diving depth. That warm water period was lasted for about 7 years. Then La Niña cycle (cool water period) seemed to begin in 2024, as shown by this WK’s Gone Diving video:

 

[Dan]

About 10 years go I did an Ambon-Banda Sea-Sorong trip and I really enjoyed it. I flew into Ambon a few days early to do some muck diving, then boarded my 15 day LOB heading out to the Banda Sea, the big draw there is the schooling hammerheads. We had some good Hammerhead action but YMMV. The Hammerhead action can run hot or cold and ocean temperatures seem to have an influence on their presence and depths they are at. I also enjoyed the other dives in the Banda Area, Manuk Island was really nice and has loads of sea snakes, and as we were arriving at the island there were thousands of sea birds of all kinds taking off to venture out fishing for the day. We then finished the trip with time in the Misool area and that was spectacular. I did follow up that trip with another 11 day LOB thru all of Raja Ampat and that was excellent diving as well. I was celebrating my 50th birthday so I was pulling out all the stops and this trip really met my needs and desires.

Unfortunately I can't compare to your benchmark of Alor as I haven't been, but the reefs I saw in Banda were healthy and scenic. While crusing from site to site we saw lots of whales and dolphins with one large pod of dolphins numbering in the hundreds. We never saw another boat in Banda and that really makes it feel off the beaten path. There are less dives on Banda cruises as there is alot of cruising from island to island so night dives are pretty rare. Would I repeat diving in the Banda Sea? Probably not as I have seen schooling Hammerheads in other locations too and have filled most of that interest, but the whole trip for me was worth it and I will have fond memories to last my lifetime.

When did you go to Banda Sea? During La Niña period? Well, that cold water cycle, which is bringing the schooling hammerheads to the shallows, within the range of recreational diving depth, seems to have started again in 2024. As shown by the recent Blue Manta promo video, below.



After seeing some of the videos of Banda Sea diving in 2024 with lots of hammerheads, I went ahead and charter Blue Manta for 14-22 September 2025, as shown here:

Liquid Diving Adventures | Blue Manta Liveaboard - Banda Sea and Ring of Fire

Embark on the Ultimate Diving Adventure Aboard the Blue Manta. Set sail on an unforgettable nine-day d

www.liquiddivingadventures.com

 

[Dan]

Besides chartering Blue Manta for Banda Sea diving this year, I also have booked Mernaid 1 for Biodiversity Special Raja Ampat-Banda Sea, crossing from Sorong to Ambon from Oct.31 to Nov.15 2026.

Currently I’m putting together a 2026 plan for a private dive yacht to cruise & diving from Bali in August to Komodo, Alor in September, Banda Sea in October, Raja Ampat in November & December and ending up in Triton Bay in January 2027.

 

[Luko]

Unfortunately El Niño cycle (warm water period) was started around 2016-2017, bringing the sharks to the deeper water beyond recreational diving depth. That warm water period was lasted for about 7 years.

Not exactly, Dan.
El Nino/La Nina Cycles only happens for one year but it had been observed 3 consecutive La Nina years from 2020 to 2023 which was exceptional.
Its only in 2024 that El nino struck back with the bleaching episode we can currently notice in SEA now.
Expectations for 2025 are either neutral or a moderate La Nina.

You can get the full picture here : El Niño and La Niña Years and Intensities

 

[Cali_diver]

Unfortunately, Banda has been so hyped up for its hammerheads (which are very shy and contingent on current/water temp ) that Banda is just a hot mess. We were there this year and it was straight up crazy. There were soo many boats on Suanggi that all you heard the entire dive was the whir of all the engines above as all of the tenders were crossing back in forth. We went multiple days over a couple trips so I had a good sampling. It was always packed. Most was 9 liveaboards and 4 day boats. A bunch of people were saying they think the hammers went somewhere else. We saw an occasional single or pair but no huge schools like we have seen in years past or even seen earlier this year. So many boats are doing a quick Ambon to Ambon turn around to see that "massive schools of hammers in the crystal blue water that you see on instagram" now so there is a constant barrage of boats. It made me so sad. I guess if you really want to do Banda do it early in the season.

 

[Dan]

Not exactly, Dan.
El Nino/La Nina Cycles only happens for one year but it had been observed 3 consecutive La Nina years from 2020 to 2023 which was exceptional.
Its only in 2024 that El nino struck back with the bleaching episode we can currently notice in SEA now.
Expectations for 2025 are either neutral or a moderate La Nina.

You can get the full picture here : El Niño and La Niña Years and Intensities

Thanks for sharing the data. I have been given false information.

There may be other parameters (local knowledge, conditions, timing, etc.) that may play role in spotting those schooling hammerheads, besides the El Niño / La Niña events.

The 2025 year being neutral or moderate La Niña at least help bringing them to the shallows.

 

[dumpsterpurrs]

Thanks everyone! All very, very useful perspectives. Sounds to me Banda can be a bit hit or miss: when it's good it's super duper good but otherwise it's just ok. I'm mostly retired/don't really work anymore, so cost is a huge concern. Perhaps a reasonable compromise would be a land-based Banda Neira - Ambon trip in Oct. My friend did it last Sep and saw lots of hammerheads. I also don't super love those dives full of staring into the blue, if I'm being honest...

Now, how do people book the Ambon - Banda Neira flight? I can't seem to find anywhere I can book or even just look at the flights online.

 

[Dan]

Now, how do people book the Ambon - Banda Neira flight? I can't seem to find anywhere I can book or even just look at the flights online.

There’s no flight from Ambon to Banda Neira that I know of. I do the Ambon - Banda Neira - Ambon liveaboard. So, I just need to fly to & from Ambon.

I fly to Ambon (AMQ) from Jakarta (CGK) with red eye, nonstop, 3.5h flight, like flying to Sorong. Red-eye flights are usually on time. On the inbound I can continue to fly home (Houston, USA) on the same day.

For example: using Citilink (QG) this year (2025):
Sep 14, 1:45 CGK - 7:55 AMQ with QG-210
Sep 22, 7:55 AMQ - 9:20 CGK with QG-211

Blue Manta would pick me up & drop me off at AMQ airport.

 

[dumpsterpurrs]

I fly to Ambon from Jakarta at midnight, nonstop, like flying to Sorong.

There's a direct Ambon-Banda Neira flight on a tiny plane, seemingly only bookable via local resorts.

 

[Dan]

There's a direct Ambon-Banda Neira flight on a tiny plane, seemingly only bookable via local resorts.

Good to know.

Or by ship:

GETTING HERE | Bluemotion

www.dive-bluemotion.com

• PELNI SHIPS

“Big liners that cover various large routes throughout Indonesia. Currently there are 4 ships that include direct Ambon-Banda and Banda-Ambon trips in their routes roughly twice a month: LABOBAR (8h trip), PANGRANGO (14-16h trip), SANGIANG (14-16h) and SABUK NUSANTARA 106 (14-16h trip). They all depart from Ambon city harbour. Nggapulu also makes it possible to reach Banda from Tual. Pelnis are the slowest, cheapest and most reliable option (no random cancellations). Cabins can be arranged with the crew once on board (IDR 800,000-1,000,000 directly to the crew).”