Indonesia for the 1st time! Would love some travel suggestions

[cetacean]

@Bookworm11

Compared to much of the rest of Indonesia, the south of Bali is extremely "touristy..." (and I would include Ubud in that as well)

 

[Bookworm11]

To each, their own. Compared to Japan, Bali isn't touristy at all. Sure, there were parts with lots of people, but not compared to Japan. Does it have lots more people than Raja Ampat? Certainly. But I didn't find Sorong enjoyable at all-I hated my time there, and the two days and nights there I felt were wasted. I never felt any of the time I spent in Bali wasted, even though there were more people there.

 

[cetacean]

@Bookworm11

Hmm... Sorong is a stopover point for diving Raja Ampat, the number of divers who look forward to spending time in Sorong is likely close to zero.

Comparing Bali to Japan is comparing a country to a fairly small island. Kuta, Seminyak, Canggu, Sanur, etc. are all extremely touristy (with Ubud not far behind).

Your "two nights" in Sorong were likely wasted, however the days diving before/after should have easily made up for that. That's going to be true for almost any reasonably hard to get to dive destination in SE Asia.

 

[icyz_]

You can go to Komodo Island (but beware not to dive there if you're still a beginner). Another option is Lombok (way cheaaper than Bali) but then it depends if you prefer the foreign tourism and food in Bali or Lombok instead which is more local.

 

[icyz_]

You can go to Komodo Island (but beware not to dive there if you're still a beginner). Another option is Lombok (way cheaaper than Bali) but then it depends if you prefer the foreign tourism and food in Bali or Lombok instead which is more local.

I think part of some people not really liking remote areas of Indonesia (like Raja Ampat, Lombok, etc) because it is less touristy hence less tailored to their culture compared to Bali (where you can idk, simply get Matcha, Pilates, Clubs, etc).

So again, it depends on what you like. Some people prefer to be blending with local culture, and others would just like to be within tourism area.