Just back from Indonesia

[diveUAE]

Hi

I thought I would share our recent experience traveling to and within Indonesia.

We arrived in Bali end of June 2022- was just asked for vaccination certificate (fully vaccinated with booster), nothing about the PL app, insurance or hotel stay. Luggage took forever.

We spend 3 days in Kuta and 5 in Padang Bai. Loved PB - so laid back and slow/easy - we stayed at lovely Puri Rai hotel and did 5 dives in total - 3 local and 2 in Gili Mimpang and Gili Tepekong - with Widana dive service. Ok diving (we did not do the jetty, as Widana said the small critters are mostly gone:-() Our favourite was Gili Tepekong.

On July 8th we flew from DPS-KOE (Kupang), we were supposed to only have 1 h layover, but the late flight to Alor (our final destination) was cancelled, so I had to reschedule and fly 1 day earlier to avoid missing out on days in Alor. We were not asked for any vaccination certificates or anything else at check in, flight was ok and on time (Lion air). July 9th we continued the journy to Alor (wings, but since our first leg was with Lion, we did not have to pay extra for the luggage - we also did not pick up the luggage in Kupang, just had our carry on)

From July 9th to 16 we were in paradise at Alor Eco Divers. Seriously one of the best places we have ever stayed - diving was fantastic and the resort .... as I said: paradise - except for the mosquitoes. Just the way we were greeted at arrival, the huts, food, staff, sun beds, everything really (but you need to accept a bit of "wild life" in your hut as they're semi open, so if you have a fear of spiders maybe get some therapy before you go;-))

July 16th we flew from Alor to LBJ - via Kupang. In Alor they would not let us into the terminal, before we showed our vaccine certificates (even though the new regulations for domestic travel should not come info force before 17th).

Flight was 45 min delayed and we feared for our connecting flight, since we only had 20 min layover. So after landing we ran to the terminal, went through security and hurried to the boarding gate. It opened 1 min after we arrived, we showed our boarding passes, then boarded the exact same airplane we just left - on the exact same seats.

Arrived in LBJ late, luggage took forever.

In Komodo I booked a private LOB - the name of the boat is Mimic and the company is called Wunderpus. The boat is basic - no ac, sleeping on mattresses on upper deck, sharing 1 bathroom, but crew is great and chef is amazing (the best food we ever had on a LOB), so we had a fab time - totally recommend! The cruise director (Dolin) knew all the good spots (of course), he also expertly picked the best times to dive for light and current. Since our daughter does not dive, they sent a snorkle guide just for her, so while we dived she could snorkle with Leri and she saw everything she wanted and more: manta rays, white/black tips, tuna, Nemo, Dory, lots of turtles and more. It was the first time we had a guide separately for our daughter and it just made everything so much easier, since she was also occupied and saw some of the same stuff as us, and we could talk about it after the dive.
We also got lucky and saw mantas (including the biggest one I ever saw), lots of black/white tips, dolphins (under water, one of my biggest wishes), sand tiger shark (we had to google this one to find out, what type of shark it was, since none of us had seen it before) of course there was lots of beautiful corals and millions of fish as well.

Even so, we found the diving in Alor better for diversity and "special" things - viz was also much better in Alor. Our favourite dive site in Komodo was Cauldron/Shot Gun - did it 2 times, just because it was fun.

After Komodo we travelled back to Bali - to enter the airport in LBJ we again was asked to show our vaccination certificates. Check in was slow - Batik air - and flight was 1 hour late, but finally we made it back to Bali and spend 3 days in Ubud.

Departing Bali was easy: just show up at the airport 2,5 hours before flight, check in (we had to show vaccination certificates - flying Singapore Airlines to Copenhagen) and wait. There's not a lot of places to eat inside the airport (they're renovating and found it better to prioritise selling alcohol and cigarettes over food and toilets)

All in all this has been one of our best trips ever - Alor being the highlight - Komodo a close second, if you're traveling with non divers I really would recommend Mimic, it made a huge difference for us.

 

[drrich2]

Appreciate the info. Anything you wish you’d known or preparation you’d have made in hindsight?

The tropics without ac wouldn’t work for me.

 

[Centrals]

Appreciate the info. Anything you wish you’d known or preparation you’d have made in hindsight?

The tropics without ac wouldn’t work for me.

I prefer open deck on a LoB than AC at night in a cabin myself.

 

[diveUAE]

Appreciate the info. Anything you wish you’d known or preparation you’d have made in hindsight?

The tropics without ac wouldn’t work for me.

Actually I think we came pretty prepared - I followed several groups on FB for the latest info. My husband and I were already boosted, but I made sure our son also had the booster before we travelled - and since the rules changed while we were in Alor I'm very happy I did. Our daughter is 11 and fully vaccinated - only reason for her to have the vaccinations was to be able to travel (she wanted to visit her friend in Abu Dhabi) We had all our vaccine certificates printed out, so it was easy to show.
It was a bit frantic the day I found out our flight to Alor was cancelled - they did not send any e-mails, I just followed the departures/arrivals and could see the flight was always cancelled, so logged into my booking and saw they rescheduled us for Saturday morning at 8 am - 3 hours before we were supposed to leave DPS. I then tried to change the DPS-KOE online, but it was not possible, so had to call and call and call - kept being disconnected, until finally at 4 pm I got through and it took less than 10 min to change the flight. Nothing really I could have done to prevent that, my advice would be to keep checking your booking with the airline, just in case.

If I'd known Alor was our paradise (no ac in the hut, just a fan and it's perfectly fine in July), we would have stayed longer.

I was very, very worried about the no ac - we lived 11 years in UAE and I would normally not book without ac, but 1: we wanted a private boat (and don't have unlimited finances) 2: Mimic had many great reviews both for the boat and crew (many mention the great timing of the dives, which was high on my priority list) 3: the snorkeling guide won me over, since it gave our daughter something to do, while we were diving (many LOB's ask that 1 guardian stay on board with the child at all times others did not offer the private snorkeling guide since we were just 4 persons traveling they suggested 1 dive guide)

In fact no ac on the boat was a blessing, as it also meant nights were so, so quiet (they have a private mooring line in a secluded bay) and some days/night we were actually a bit cold (they have nice thick blankets and on the first night I was thinking that would be too much, but by 3 am I was very happy to have a thick one

If we were going back to Komodo I would definitely book Mimic again - I've even suggested they get a boat for Raja Ampat, so we would know who to book with there.

 

[dflaher]

I prefer open deck on a LoB than AC at night in a cabin myself.

Is there no chance of rain at night?

 

[Centrals]

Is there no chance of rain at night?

There is always cover and where do you think the crews sleep?
Remind me of the camping Swag in OZ.
Twinkle twinkle little stars!!! Very hypnotic and soothing and also remind me of how minute I am in the Universe.

 

[jjmochi]

Great to see you had a good time and thx for the report. I'll be diving Padang Bai area for 3 days then going on a 10D Komodo liveaboard on Mermaid I at the end of Aug.

Any particular sites in Padang Bai (locally) that you recommend? Or not so worth it for afternoon / night dives? My plan is to do Tepekong/Mimpang and Crystal Bay/Manta Point/Penida 2 tanks in the mornings. How was the water temp?

How was the wifi at Puri Rai - was it stable and did you have it in the room or only in common areas? Puri Rai is much closer to the dive shop I booked with (Geko) but reviews rated wifi at a 5.6 or something like that so I'm currently booked into Bloo Lagoon but can still change.

How big of spiders are we talking in Alor Eco Divers? Any wifi? How was the shower - water hot, good pressure? Food is good?

What was the water temp at both Alor and Komodo? My friend just came back from a Komodo 10 day liveaboard on Indo Siren in July and said it was super cold 21-22C throughout the entire park. Online research seems to point to 27-28 in the north and 25-26 in the south... My friend dove drysuit w J2+xerotherm in Komodo lol and I'm planning to do the same but my husband only has a 5mm so I'm wondering if we'll need to get him a 7mm semi-dry somehow (impossible to find in SG!)

I've been wanting to go to Alor but have always been put off by 1) the need to fly Lion Air and have a full 2 days to connect, 2) mentions of cold waters and very cold thermoclines. But I recently bit the bullet on a custom drysuit (fourth element argnonaut and full range of J2/xerotherm/artic undergarments) and feel like I can probably handle down to 16C or so.

 

[Cali_diver]

What was the water temp at both Alor and Komodo? My friend just came back from a Komodo 10 day liveaboard on Indo Siren in July and said it was super cold 21-22C throughout the entire park. Online research seems to point to 27-28 in the north and 25-26 in the south... My friend dove drysuit w J2+xerotherm in Komodo lol and I'm planning to do the same but my husband only has a 5mm so I'm wondering if we'll need to get him a 7mm semi-dry somehow (impossible to find in SG!)

I've been wanting to go to Alor but have always been put off by 1) the need to fly Lion Air and have a full 2 days to connect, 2) mentions of cold waters and very cold thermoclines. But I recently bit the bullet on a custom drysuit (fourth element argnonaut and full range of J2/xerotherm/artic undergarments) and feel like I can probably handle down to 16C or so.

Wow I have had it that cold down south in Komodo during this time of year, but never up north!! That is cold!

We had 18c in Alor once on a specific dive site known to be cold, but usually the majority of the dives are warmer. 25-27c. In Alor I use a 5mil with a heated vest on the cold dives but the rest is usually pretty comfortable. I think there are definitely thermoclines in Alor and I have a mantra to "swim away from the shimmer" in order to survive (watch out for the downcurrents too). One time I actually had such a drastic thermocline that it fogged my viewfinder for the rest of the dive. Alor is still one, of if not my favorite place to dive in Indonesia.

 

[diveUAE]

Great to see you had a good time and thx for the report. I'll be diving Padang Bai area for 3 days then going on a 10D Komodo liveaboard on Mermaid I at the end of Aug.

Any particular sites in Padang Bai (locally) that you recommend? Or not so worth it for afternoon / night dives? My plan is to do Tepekong/Mimpang and Crystal Bay/Manta Point/Penida 2 tanks in the mornings. How was the water temp?

How was the wifi at Puri Rai - was it stable and did you have it in the room or only in common areas? Puri Rai is much closer to the dive shop I booked with (Geko) but reviews rated wifi at a 5.6 or something like that so I'm currently booked into Bloo Lagoon but can still change.

How big of spiders are we talking in Alor Eco Divers? Any wifi? How was the shower - water hot, good pressure? Food is good?

What was the water temp at both Alor and Komodo? My friend just came back from a Komodo 10 day liveaboard on Indo Siren in July and said it was super cold 21-22C throughout the entire park. Online research seems to point to 27-28 in the north and 25-26 in the south... My friend dove drysuit w J2+xerotherm in Komodo lol and I'm planning to do the same but my husband only has a 5mm so I'm wondering if we'll need to get him a 7mm semi-dry somehow (impossible to find in SG!)

I've been wanting to go to Alor but have always been put off by 1) the need to fly Lion Air and have a full 2 days to connect, 2) mentions of cold waters and very cold thermoclines. But I recently bit the bullet on a custom drysuit (fourth element argnonaut and full range of J2/xerotherm/artic undergarments) and feel like I can probably handle down to 16C or so.

In PB I dived Bias Tungel - many big turtles, Nick turtle point - ok and Tanjung Sati - a little bit better than the 2 others, but all are fine. Tepekong was our favourite - so much fun playing in the current. We didn't go to CB/MP/Penida, as it was too early for molas and we've already been to Nusa Lembongan and dived all the places. Water temps according to my dive computer: 27,1-28,9 C. Will be colder in August - I remember MP being really cold, when we went beginning of August 2017.

Wifi at Puri Rai was strong and fast, both in room and outside (although not as strong in the restaurant), we had 2 family rooms and I'm trying to remember the number, might be 320+? Interconnecting - when you walk in the resort there's a pool to the right and our rooms were at the end of that pool (there are other pools as well)
I emailed Geko several times, never got a reply, that's why we dove with Widana.

I did not see any spiders at Alor - my son saw 2 big ones: one outside he made a video of it crawling over his foot (I think it was maybe 8-10 cm) and 1 was in their room and he (20 years old, 2,04 cm tall, not afraid of spiders), did not want to come near it with a shoe, so he choose a towel and it crawled away. (He went and asked to manager, if there were any poisonous spiders and was told "no", so he kindly opted not to tell his sister that the spider was in their room somewhere.
Wifi was slow to non existing ... our Danish mobile supplier is called 3 - we can use our phones for free in many countries - including Singapore and Indonesia. Worked perfect in Bali and Kupang, but not at all in Alor and Komodo. We were told (by locals/managers), you have to buy a local sim card and upgrade it to 4G connection, then it works fine (the managers at Alor were kind enough to share internet with us, and there was also 4G sharing set up in the common area, but it didn't work - they might have sorted that out by now) Shower had hot water ... sometimes too hot, then cold - pressure was ok and the shampoo/conditioner they provide were so good my daughter wanted to know what it was, so we could buy some and bring it home. Food was fantastic.

Water temps in Alor pr my computer: 26,7-28,3 C - I was fine in my rash and 3 mm shortie - on the dive, where they said it would be cold I added my 2,5 mm hood.
In Komodo we did not go south as the cruise director said his friends said the water was green/murky/bad viz and cold (what did your friend say about the color/viz - it seems like our director was right about it being cold) also the weather was a bit rough in the south, we were on a smallish boat and our daughter get sea sick easily (But did not have any problems during our trip) Our coldest dive I've noted 25,4 C at our night dive at Soloria and warmest 27,9 C at Gililawa Laue - again diving in rash+shortie and wish I'd taken the hood for the night dive;-)

Generally I dive in my trusted old 3 mm and rash for anything above 26 C, add the hood down to 23 C, for colder water I have a (not often used) 7 mm 2 piece hooded suit - often I just use the upper part paired with the rash, as I can cope with my legs being a bit cold and I wear booties with my fins, so it's only a small part of my legs exposed. Don't have a dry suit as I don't like cold dives, but I took my advance certificate in Norway in October (water was 3-6 C) and did a dry suit speciality in Denmark in June/July (10-12 C) and dived Iceland in 2020, when we couldn't go anywhere warm to dive (water temp 2-4 C)

We want to go to Galapagos, but prices and cold water is putting me off, so currently looking at Tubbataha in April, but might not happen, since the only boat we can get on does not really go well with our possible travel dates, so might have to postpone to 2024 or 25.

 

[Luko]

Any particular sites in Padang Bai (locally) that you recommend? Or not so worth it for afternoon / night dives? My plan is to do Tepekong/Mimpang and Crystal Bay/Manta Point/Penida 2 tanks in the mornings.

My personal recommendation :
If only two days your selection is quite good except that I would go for Toyapakeh in Nusa Penida which is a BEAUTIFUL site, Crystal bay is overrated IMO and Mola mola are better seen in Tepekong or Mimpang.
If you have 3 days, I'd check out Jetty as a morning dive and speak before with Cedric, Kanox or Made to check what is going on currently critterwise (I am in Tulamben currently : the number of Rhinopias they find is incredible like 3 on one site, they should be back in PB as well).

Puri Rai is much closer to the dive shop I booked with (Geko) but reviews rated wifi at a 5.6 or something like that so I'm currently booked into Bloo Lagoon but can still change.

Puri Rai is a good choice if you take the family rooms, the garden and the pools are really nice and it's perfectly located.

I've been wanting to go to Alor but have always been put off by ....2) mentions of cold waters and very cold thermoclines.

There are some site like "Anemone city" which can be very cold, I've already had 21C on this site while in the afternoon it was 28C in the northern Pantar sites.
btw you can have very cold temps in Tepekong, Mimpang or Crystal bay when Mola mola show up... like 20C and even below!

In PB I dived Bias Tungel - many big turtles, Nick turtle point - ok and Tanjung Sati - a little bit better than the 2 others, but all are fine.

I wouldn't suggest any of these local sites. Deep Jepun, Secret jepun and Jetty would have been a better choice IMO.

Water temps in Alor pr my computer: 26,7-28,3 C - I was fine in my rash and 3 mm shortie - on the dive, where they said it would be cold I added my 2,5 mm hood.

I am taking a 5mm + a sharskin underneath and a hood, I survived Mola molas in PB like this.