I’ve appreciated the trip reports others have provided on Scubaboard, so I want to contribute my own.
In December 2023, we planned a long trip to Raja Ampat, starting with a 12 day liveaboard. Six dives in, I perforated my ear drum, abruptly ending my 5 week dive plans. It wasn’t the end of the world. I kayaked around the LOB in RA while my husband completed all the dives. Then we pivoted and instead of spending our vacation underwater, we spent a few weeks exploring waterfalls & temples in Bali and hiking up volcanos in Java (including hiking into Ijen caldera to see the blue fire).
One of the dive arrangements we had to cancel after my injury, was 10 days at the Raja Ampat Dive Lodge (RADL). We were unable to give them notice about my ear injury until the day before we were supposed to arrive (there was no internet at sea on the LOB so we couldn’t email them). All that to say- RADL was surprisingly understanding about the last minute cancellation. Despite being within the penalty window for cancelling, they refunded everything, no hassle.
So now in 2024—with my ear fully healed and tested—we knew we needed to go back to Raja Ampat. I needed to see the reefs and dives I had heard about but could only imagine. We didn’t want to risk another LOB with my ear (it was a long 10 days on the boat last year without diving/swimming). So this time, we just booked 10 days at the Raja Ampat Dive Lodge.
We were happy with our decision to stay on land. My husband says the diving was as good as any he did on the LOB last year after I had to quit diving. Most dive sites were an easy 15-20 minute boat ride on flat water. We even got to go to Melissa’s Garden Dive site, my husband’s favorite site from the entire LOB trip last year. Getting to MG was an enjoyable 75 minute boat ride from RADL. We had close-up sightings of humpback whales & lots of dolphins on the way over and back. After our two dives at/near MG, we stopped at Piaynemo overlook to walk up for the famous Raja Ampat view.
I originally learned about Raja Ampat Dive Lodge from others on Scubaboard. It’s a good choice for those looking to do a budget land-based trip, rather than a LOB. Beautiful views & sunsets. Charming, well-kept grounds. Moderately priced ($7500 USD for two of us for 10 days, including all diving, including the additional fee for Melissa’s Garden/ Piaynemo, a daily private guide and a private panga most days, and transport/from to the lodge.) The lodge has internet & air conditioning (both were important to us). The buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner were decent, although we got a little tired of the food. There was a nice overwater bar & sundeck and a great house-reef for snorkeling. We did two 60 minute dives every day. Afternoon and night dives were also an option, if we had wanted more. We specifically requested a private dive guide for just me and my husband. Half the time we shared a panga with a family of 4 but when they left, we had the panga to ourselves.
RADL is a basic, budget lodge. The lodge was only about half full. The rooms were ok—the bed had a mosquito net surround and we had a nice veranda overlooking the beach & little shared sundeck. The AC was marginal but kept us comfortable. The bathrooms were passable—but needing a renovation. There was mold on the tiles in the shower and the wooden bathroom counter was mildewed. There was plenty of hot water and a blow dryer. They cleaned the room on request. We got a bunch of laundry done one day and the total cost was only $11.
There is nothing much to do at RADL but dive, snorkel and read, as far as we could tell. We were surprised that about half the guests were not divers and were there just to relax and snorkel. We had one of the beach-front bungalows so we could go snorkeling right out front. The mosquitos weren’t bad, although I got a few bites despite using bug spray. The weather was ideal—comfortable mornings and evenings with warm afternoons, a nightly rain shower and water temperatures in the high 80s. The sea was flat every day so getting to/from dive sites was a breeze.
The diving in Raja Ampat was excellent, as expected. The corals are better than anywhere else we’ve been. We saw wobbegongs, rays, sharks, barracuda, turtles, mantas, a cuttlefish, lots of macro, etc. Others on our boat saw lobsters and octopus—we didn’t. We used our reef hooks on about half our dives. Our dive guide often called the current ‘mild’ when I considered it moderate. We often would just hook-in to get a breather from being blown along the reef. We dove the following locations: Yenbuba Jetty, Ransiwar Reef, Mayhem Reef, Citrus Ridge, Manta Sandy, Arborek Jetty, Melissa’s Garden, Fam wall, Sardine Reef, Chicken Reef, Saundarek Jetty, Cape Kri, Lau-Lau, Mioskon Reef, Kuburan Reef, Otdima Reef, Ambriemuk Reef, Gam Channel.
Getting there: We flew in via Jakarta > Sorong. Garuda’s only flight—a red-eye (not our favorite)-- got us there around 7am. Once we arrived, RADL picked us up and took us to the Swiss Bell Hotel for a good breakfast buffet while we waited for the other incoming arrivals. Around 11:30am, we were taken to the marina to catch our boat. It was a mid-sized boat, accommodating ~12 people for the 2 hour ride to RADL. We arrived in time for the lunch buffet. We stayed at the Aston for one night before heading elsewhere.
In December 2023, we planned a long trip to Raja Ampat, starting with a 12 day liveaboard. Six dives in, I perforated my ear drum, abruptly ending my 5 week dive plans. It wasn’t the end of the world. I kayaked around the LOB in RA while my husband completed all the dives. Then we pivoted and instead of spending our vacation underwater, we spent a few weeks exploring waterfalls & temples in Bali and hiking up volcanos in Java (including hiking into Ijen caldera to see the blue fire).
One of the dive arrangements we had to cancel after my injury, was 10 days at the Raja Ampat Dive Lodge (RADL). We were unable to give them notice about my ear injury until the day before we were supposed to arrive (there was no internet at sea on the LOB so we couldn’t email them). All that to say- RADL was surprisingly understanding about the last minute cancellation. Despite being within the penalty window for cancelling, they refunded everything, no hassle.
So now in 2024—with my ear fully healed and tested—we knew we needed to go back to Raja Ampat. I needed to see the reefs and dives I had heard about but could only imagine. We didn’t want to risk another LOB with my ear (it was a long 10 days on the boat last year without diving/swimming). So this time, we just booked 10 days at the Raja Ampat Dive Lodge.
We were happy with our decision to stay on land. My husband says the diving was as good as any he did on the LOB last year after I had to quit diving. Most dive sites were an easy 15-20 minute boat ride on flat water. We even got to go to Melissa’s Garden Dive site, my husband’s favorite site from the entire LOB trip last year. Getting to MG was an enjoyable 75 minute boat ride from RADL. We had close-up sightings of humpback whales & lots of dolphins on the way over and back. After our two dives at/near MG, we stopped at Piaynemo overlook to walk up for the famous Raja Ampat view.
I originally learned about Raja Ampat Dive Lodge from others on Scubaboard. It’s a good choice for those looking to do a budget land-based trip, rather than a LOB. Beautiful views & sunsets. Charming, well-kept grounds. Moderately priced ($7500 USD for two of us for 10 days, including all diving, including the additional fee for Melissa’s Garden/ Piaynemo, a daily private guide and a private panga most days, and transport/from to the lodge.) The lodge has internet & air conditioning (both were important to us). The buffets for breakfast, lunch and dinner were decent, although we got a little tired of the food. There was a nice overwater bar & sundeck and a great house-reef for snorkeling. We did two 60 minute dives every day. Afternoon and night dives were also an option, if we had wanted more. We specifically requested a private dive guide for just me and my husband. Half the time we shared a panga with a family of 4 but when they left, we had the panga to ourselves.
RADL is a basic, budget lodge. The lodge was only about half full. The rooms were ok—the bed had a mosquito net surround and we had a nice veranda overlooking the beach & little shared sundeck. The AC was marginal but kept us comfortable. The bathrooms were passable—but needing a renovation. There was mold on the tiles in the shower and the wooden bathroom counter was mildewed. There was plenty of hot water and a blow dryer. They cleaned the room on request. We got a bunch of laundry done one day and the total cost was only $11.
There is nothing much to do at RADL but dive, snorkel and read, as far as we could tell. We were surprised that about half the guests were not divers and were there just to relax and snorkel. We had one of the beach-front bungalows so we could go snorkeling right out front. The mosquitos weren’t bad, although I got a few bites despite using bug spray. The weather was ideal—comfortable mornings and evenings with warm afternoons, a nightly rain shower and water temperatures in the high 80s. The sea was flat every day so getting to/from dive sites was a breeze.
The diving in Raja Ampat was excellent, as expected. The corals are better than anywhere else we’ve been. We saw wobbegongs, rays, sharks, barracuda, turtles, mantas, a cuttlefish, lots of macro, etc. Others on our boat saw lobsters and octopus—we didn’t. We used our reef hooks on about half our dives. Our dive guide often called the current ‘mild’ when I considered it moderate. We often would just hook-in to get a breather from being blown along the reef. We dove the following locations: Yenbuba Jetty, Ransiwar Reef, Mayhem Reef, Citrus Ridge, Manta Sandy, Arborek Jetty, Melissa’s Garden, Fam wall, Sardine Reef, Chicken Reef, Saundarek Jetty, Cape Kri, Lau-Lau, Mioskon Reef, Kuburan Reef, Otdima Reef, Ambriemuk Reef, Gam Channel.
Getting there: We flew in via Jakarta > Sorong. Garuda’s only flight—a red-eye (not our favorite)-- got us there around 7am. Once we arrived, RADL picked us up and took us to the Swiss Bell Hotel for a good breakfast buffet while we waited for the other incoming arrivals. Around 11:30am, we were taken to the marina to catch our boat. It was a mid-sized boat, accommodating ~12 people for the 2 hour ride to RADL. We arrived in time for the lunch buffet. We stayed at the Aston for one night before heading elsewhere.
