lologrande
New
I recently returned from 7 days of diving with Liberty Dive Resort in Bali. The trip was fantastic. This is my 2nd time in Bali. However, on the first trip I only did a few dives. This time it was all about diving. I logged 26 dives over 7 days.
LDR turned out to be the perfect choice for me. I was traveling solo with a camera in tow. Upon arrival I was picked up at the airport by the LDR driver (arranged in advance). The driver was happy to stop off for me to change some money and grab a water. The trip took us about 2.5 hours. Upon arrival at the resort I was given a glass of fresh watermelon juice and couple of watermelon wedges as well. All of my luggage was handled for me. I chose a standard room at $45US per night. The room was very clean and spacious and had a nice desk that was great for setting up my camera. The lanai out front was really nice as well. There are two nice pools on the property. I ate the majority of my meals at the restaurant on site. Breakfast was included with about 10 options to choose from. The lunch and dinner options included Indonesian dishes and many western dishes. Plenty of options for my stay. The food was good but not great. You have many other options if you are willing to walk about 10 min down the road to the "busy" part of Tulamben.
I would like to make quick note on the staff. Every employee I encountered greeted me with a smile and a hello. It is not a big thing but it makes a huge difference. Customer service is definitely a priority and everyone seemed happy with their job.
The diving. I was, quite honestly, blown away. I am interested in macro photography and prefer the muck type dives. I was expecting it to be good but not like this! At this point it is time to give credit where credit is due. My guide for the entire trip was Agus. His eyes are crazy good. I work as a guide/instructor in Hawaii and feel pretty good about my spotting ability. Not so much anymore. He told me that he has been working in the area for 4.5 years. It shows. We did 2 day and 2 night dives on the Liberty wreck which is about a 70 meter walk from the resort. All of my other dives were at other sites which are accessed by truck from the resort. The times and number of dives per day was up to me. Night dives start a 6:30. I love night diving and did one every day. Agus was great about going slow, waiting on me to take a few shots and then having another critter to show me. It was pretty much non stop nudis with a steady diet of charismatic shrimp and crabs thrown in for variety. There are plenty of fish to be seen too but I am inverts man. We did encounter quite a variety of currents and visibility. My stay was close to a full moon and we had currents to match. On some of the unprotected slopes it got moving quite quickly downhill. Water temps were typically between 82-84 F with the occasional cold spots. I wore an old 5 mil wetsuit and was happy most of the time. I know, I am soft. I wear a 7 mil in summer in Hawaii. The crew handled all of my gear while I was there. They set up my tanks (32% nitrox for free) kept things locked up for me at night.
I had a great time. Agus was fantastic. The staff was really friendly. I give it two thumbs up.
Bali photo set
LDR turned out to be the perfect choice for me. I was traveling solo with a camera in tow. Upon arrival I was picked up at the airport by the LDR driver (arranged in advance). The driver was happy to stop off for me to change some money and grab a water. The trip took us about 2.5 hours. Upon arrival at the resort I was given a glass of fresh watermelon juice and couple of watermelon wedges as well. All of my luggage was handled for me. I chose a standard room at $45US per night. The room was very clean and spacious and had a nice desk that was great for setting up my camera. The lanai out front was really nice as well. There are two nice pools on the property. I ate the majority of my meals at the restaurant on site. Breakfast was included with about 10 options to choose from. The lunch and dinner options included Indonesian dishes and many western dishes. Plenty of options for my stay. The food was good but not great. You have many other options if you are willing to walk about 10 min down the road to the "busy" part of Tulamben.
I would like to make quick note on the staff. Every employee I encountered greeted me with a smile and a hello. It is not a big thing but it makes a huge difference. Customer service is definitely a priority and everyone seemed happy with their job.
The diving. I was, quite honestly, blown away. I am interested in macro photography and prefer the muck type dives. I was expecting it to be good but not like this! At this point it is time to give credit where credit is due. My guide for the entire trip was Agus. His eyes are crazy good. I work as a guide/instructor in Hawaii and feel pretty good about my spotting ability. Not so much anymore. He told me that he has been working in the area for 4.5 years. It shows. We did 2 day and 2 night dives on the Liberty wreck which is about a 70 meter walk from the resort. All of my other dives were at other sites which are accessed by truck from the resort. The times and number of dives per day was up to me. Night dives start a 6:30. I love night diving and did one every day. Agus was great about going slow, waiting on me to take a few shots and then having another critter to show me. It was pretty much non stop nudis with a steady diet of charismatic shrimp and crabs thrown in for variety. There are plenty of fish to be seen too but I am inverts man. We did encounter quite a variety of currents and visibility. My stay was close to a full moon and we had currents to match. On some of the unprotected slopes it got moving quite quickly downhill. Water temps were typically between 82-84 F with the occasional cold spots. I wore an old 5 mil wetsuit and was happy most of the time. I know, I am soft. I wear a 7 mil in summer in Hawaii. The crew handled all of my gear while I was there. They set up my tanks (32% nitrox for free) kept things locked up for me at night.
I had a great time. Agus was fantastic. The staff was really friendly. I give it two thumbs up.
Bali photo set
