sharkbait98
Registered
AMBON, NUSA LEMBONGAN AND BALI
APRIL 2011
This was an amazing dive, adventure and critter trip.
FLIGHT
We left Buffalo via United to Chicago where we boarded Korean Air for the haul to Incheon. We went from Incheon to Bali via Korean Air. The flights were all on time and the connecters ran smoothly, however the food on Korean Air was not the worst I had ever had, but it certainly wasn't the best. The flight attendants were nice and the service was pretty good. The in-flight entertainment was good with a large selection of movies to choose from.
Upon arrival in Bali we had a seven hour layover until we could board our Lion Air flight to Ambon via Makassar. We basically hung around the airport until our check-in time came. We boarded Lion Air on time and off we went. The stewardess tried to tell us we had to check our carry-ons and we told her that they could not be put down there due to the value of the contents. She protested and my hubby informed her that if they would not fit in the overhead compartment then we would comply. Needless to say, they fit no problem. The funny thing was, a woman had a bigger bag than us was just allowed to come on with it, no questions asked. Bizarre. Lion Air needs to be brought up to speed as far as hygiene is concerned. Upon entering the bathroom we noticed that there was no toilet paper, soap or water. It was pretty disgusting. Even the seats had leftover food bits on them and we couldn't wait to get off of that plane. We will not be flying Lion Air ever again. If you do end up on Lion Air be sure to pack toilet paper and Purel in your carry-on.
AMBON
We stayed at Maluku Dive Resort ( www.divemaluku.com ) and it was FANTASTIC. I cannot think of anything that I would change about this resort. The people that work there are great, the food was great, the room was great, the dive operation was great, and the dive boats were great.
HOTEL
Our room was very spacious with a large bathroom and two laptop tables. The bed was two doubles wide and was extremely comfortable. The air conditioner worked great. One day it did start condensating allot and upon telling Marcel he had it repaired good as new by the time we got back from the morning dive. Outside of your burr there is a large porch area with two chairs and a table with waterfront view (which by the way was spectacular). There is an outdoor eating area that all the guests meet at (by the way, they only cater to 16 divers max and that keeps things really nice and personal) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The food here was great. Breakfast was the usual fair of eggs, noodle soup, fried noodles, omelets, toast, and coffee and tea. You can get coffee, tea and water any time of the day and night. Lunch consisted of some homemade soup to start. The soups here were great. I don't eat soup at home but I had soup here with lunch and dinner. I just could not get enough of them. Lunch also came with some sort of meat (chicken, beef etc) and rice (or fries) and a veggie. Dinner was soup, a meat or fish and potatoes with veggie. On the days that fish was being served I was given an option. I don't eat fish and they were more than happy to make me an alternative. The day we arrived we had a BBQ and the food was awesome. Chicken, beef, tuna, and some sort of big shrimp seared to perfection. Back to the hotel, when you walk through the eating area around the corner is a large outdoor seating area with two large ceiling fans. There is a small library so be sure to pack a book to leave. Walking past that area is the camera/reg rinse tanks and behind them is the secured gear storage area. Within this area there are two barrels. One for rinsing BCDs and masks and one for wetsuits etc. Beyond this area are the steps leading down to the dive boat. This is a very well laid out resort and one of the best dive resorts I have ever been to.
STAFF
When I first found out about Maluku Dive Resort I emailed for a quote for my group. Andy is the gentleman that responds to the emails. He was so helpful in making this holiday happen. I emailed him so many times it was insane. He answered ALL my questions and was never short with me or made me feel like any question was unimportant. All his emails came back in a timely manner and all the information provided was accurate. I asked him to book my Lion Air flight as Lion Air won't let you purchase unless you have an Indonesian credit card. He booked exactly what I asked him to and billed me with my final payment. Talk about giving you the full service package. The only thing that was a bit of a drag was that when we arrived we had to fill out paperwork in order to go diving that day. I suggested that they put this online in a PDF file that one can download at home and fill in ahead of time and Andy said he is going to try to get that up and running on the website.
At the resort there is a gentleman named Marcel. He would be the equivalent to the hotel manager. He was very personable and informative. When I asked any question, no matter how small or trivial, he would answer or find the answer out for me. When I asked for extra pillows, poof, extra pillows in our room. Even when I asked for extra chairs for our friends to come sit on our porch he was more than happy to oblige. After the first dive my husbands BCD inflator crapped out and Marcel dug him up one to borrow for the time we were there. Way to save the day. We did end up purchasing it for a more than fair price. Marcel keeps everything running smooth and makes the guests feel really welcome. He definitely adds to the resorts ambiance.
The chef they have is great. He knows how to cook that is for sure. The people that wait on you, Hoffas and Dion were always at the ready to clear your plates and bring you water. Hoffas is the king of the village that the fresh water eels are, more on that later. The ladies that cleaned our room were very good. When we would come back for lunch the bed was always made nicely and the bathroom cleaned. They would change your sheets and towels everyday but we did ask that our sheets and towels only get changed once every four days as we are trying to help with the environment and they were more than happy to oblige. Once again I will say that the staff here helped make this a magnificent vacation.
DIVE BOATS / CREW
We did three boat dives per day with unlimited shore diving. When you did your shore diving the staff would have your BCD and tank all ready for you to simply don and walk into the water. What a great way to start a vacation. Now for the dive boats. They were awesome. Ours had a large canopy and proper tank holes to securely hold your gear while suiting up. The ladders were very well done with proper flat steps for your feet. You would back roll in and when returning from your dive you would simply take off your fins and BCD and hand them up. They would haul the gear up and change your tank for you. I felt bad for the guys because we were weight integrated but they pulled them up with a smile. The dive masters were great. For most of our stay we had Samuel and Stoner. These guys have eagle eyes. I mean they would show me an area and I would look. I see nothing. Then they would gently put the poker down and there would rise out of the sand a mimic octopus. I never laughed so much underwater than I did on this trip. So here is the short list, we saw mimic, coconut, wonderpuss, and longarm octopus, ambon scorpionfish, rhinopias, giant frogfish, warty frogfish, pygmy frogfish, harlequin shrimp, ghost pipe fish, leafy scorpion fish, cuttle and pygmy cuttlefish, waspfish, two spot lionfish, nudies, false stonefish, nemo, dori, butterflys off all kinds, anemone fish, all kinds of angels and triggers, all kinds of crabs, basking stars, I could go on and on. The diving here is so spectacular. You have muck and reef. Its amazing. In order for you to understand that I have something to relate the diving to here is the short list. I have been to Lembeh, Wakatobi, Bunaken, Philippines, Sipidan to name a few, but this place was magical. Every dive was a new adventure of discovery. The other good thing about the dive staff is that once they see that your an experienced diver they let you dive your profile, providing you have a computer and did not deco dive, so diving freedom was given. On our day before we left the guys hung all our stuff out in the sun to ensure it would be as dry as possible for our flight out of Ambon.
A special thank you goes out to Samuel and Stoner for making this trip a great experience!
DAY TRIP
I asked Hoffas if he could get us some scooters to rent for the day before we flew out and if he would take us to his village to go see the freshwater eels. Next day he had gotten us two scooters (we were a group of four) and said that he would be glad to take us. We left at 9 AM and off we went. On the trip to his village he would stop at certain places so we could get some beautiful pictures of Ambon and the villages. The villages here are very clean and full of pride. One village would be all Christian and the neighboring village would be Muslim. They live in respect of each other. Something the rest of the world could learn. At one point when we stopped this little old lady came up to check us out. She was so curious about us. I don't think they see white people on scooters ever. When we arrived at Hoffas's village we walked down to where the fresh water eels are. He chummed the water and up the stream they came. It was bizarre. You could pet these things. They basically look like a catfish head with an eels body. Hoffas fed them for about 20-30 minutes and it was so cool to see the children playing with them. Upon leaving this area there is a tip box where you can put in a couple of dollars for the village. Hoffas then took us up to a place called sail rock. Another beautiful vista. We then drove back to the hotel where we tipped Hoffas who reluctantly took a small tip.
I just want to say at this point that this resort/dive op runs exceptionally well. Its hard to believe that you are in such a remote part of the world. I suggest that you go and see for yourself. You will not be disappointed.
Special note of thanks to Andy and Marcel. Your patients and hard work made this a wondrous time for my group. Good Job!!
Our flight back to Bali was as disgusting as on the way there, but we made all of our connectors and got to Bali on time. The only issue with the flight was that on the way back our e-tickets stated that we would be flying Ambon to Surabaya, Surabaya to Bali. Well apparently they stop in Makassar on the way which is ok but we did not know and got all freaked out, but in the end it all worked out. Even our luggage made it ok.
APRIL 2011
This was an amazing dive, adventure and critter trip.
FLIGHT
We left Buffalo via United to Chicago where we boarded Korean Air for the haul to Incheon. We went from Incheon to Bali via Korean Air. The flights were all on time and the connecters ran smoothly, however the food on Korean Air was not the worst I had ever had, but it certainly wasn't the best. The flight attendants were nice and the service was pretty good. The in-flight entertainment was good with a large selection of movies to choose from.
Upon arrival in Bali we had a seven hour layover until we could board our Lion Air flight to Ambon via Makassar. We basically hung around the airport until our check-in time came. We boarded Lion Air on time and off we went. The stewardess tried to tell us we had to check our carry-ons and we told her that they could not be put down there due to the value of the contents. She protested and my hubby informed her that if they would not fit in the overhead compartment then we would comply. Needless to say, they fit no problem. The funny thing was, a woman had a bigger bag than us was just allowed to come on with it, no questions asked. Bizarre. Lion Air needs to be brought up to speed as far as hygiene is concerned. Upon entering the bathroom we noticed that there was no toilet paper, soap or water. It was pretty disgusting. Even the seats had leftover food bits on them and we couldn't wait to get off of that plane. We will not be flying Lion Air ever again. If you do end up on Lion Air be sure to pack toilet paper and Purel in your carry-on.
AMBON
We stayed at Maluku Dive Resort ( www.divemaluku.com ) and it was FANTASTIC. I cannot think of anything that I would change about this resort. The people that work there are great, the food was great, the room was great, the dive operation was great, and the dive boats were great.
HOTEL
Our room was very spacious with a large bathroom and two laptop tables. The bed was two doubles wide and was extremely comfortable. The air conditioner worked great. One day it did start condensating allot and upon telling Marcel he had it repaired good as new by the time we got back from the morning dive. Outside of your burr there is a large porch area with two chairs and a table with waterfront view (which by the way was spectacular). There is an outdoor eating area that all the guests meet at (by the way, they only cater to 16 divers max and that keeps things really nice and personal) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The food here was great. Breakfast was the usual fair of eggs, noodle soup, fried noodles, omelets, toast, and coffee and tea. You can get coffee, tea and water any time of the day and night. Lunch consisted of some homemade soup to start. The soups here were great. I don't eat soup at home but I had soup here with lunch and dinner. I just could not get enough of them. Lunch also came with some sort of meat (chicken, beef etc) and rice (or fries) and a veggie. Dinner was soup, a meat or fish and potatoes with veggie. On the days that fish was being served I was given an option. I don't eat fish and they were more than happy to make me an alternative. The day we arrived we had a BBQ and the food was awesome. Chicken, beef, tuna, and some sort of big shrimp seared to perfection. Back to the hotel, when you walk through the eating area around the corner is a large outdoor seating area with two large ceiling fans. There is a small library so be sure to pack a book to leave. Walking past that area is the camera/reg rinse tanks and behind them is the secured gear storage area. Within this area there are two barrels. One for rinsing BCDs and masks and one for wetsuits etc. Beyond this area are the steps leading down to the dive boat. This is a very well laid out resort and one of the best dive resorts I have ever been to.
STAFF
When I first found out about Maluku Dive Resort I emailed for a quote for my group. Andy is the gentleman that responds to the emails. He was so helpful in making this holiday happen. I emailed him so many times it was insane. He answered ALL my questions and was never short with me or made me feel like any question was unimportant. All his emails came back in a timely manner and all the information provided was accurate. I asked him to book my Lion Air flight as Lion Air won't let you purchase unless you have an Indonesian credit card. He booked exactly what I asked him to and billed me with my final payment. Talk about giving you the full service package. The only thing that was a bit of a drag was that when we arrived we had to fill out paperwork in order to go diving that day. I suggested that they put this online in a PDF file that one can download at home and fill in ahead of time and Andy said he is going to try to get that up and running on the website.
At the resort there is a gentleman named Marcel. He would be the equivalent to the hotel manager. He was very personable and informative. When I asked any question, no matter how small or trivial, he would answer or find the answer out for me. When I asked for extra pillows, poof, extra pillows in our room. Even when I asked for extra chairs for our friends to come sit on our porch he was more than happy to oblige. After the first dive my husbands BCD inflator crapped out and Marcel dug him up one to borrow for the time we were there. Way to save the day. We did end up purchasing it for a more than fair price. Marcel keeps everything running smooth and makes the guests feel really welcome. He definitely adds to the resorts ambiance.
The chef they have is great. He knows how to cook that is for sure. The people that wait on you, Hoffas and Dion were always at the ready to clear your plates and bring you water. Hoffas is the king of the village that the fresh water eels are, more on that later. The ladies that cleaned our room were very good. When we would come back for lunch the bed was always made nicely and the bathroom cleaned. They would change your sheets and towels everyday but we did ask that our sheets and towels only get changed once every four days as we are trying to help with the environment and they were more than happy to oblige. Once again I will say that the staff here helped make this a magnificent vacation.
DIVE BOATS / CREW
We did three boat dives per day with unlimited shore diving. When you did your shore diving the staff would have your BCD and tank all ready for you to simply don and walk into the water. What a great way to start a vacation. Now for the dive boats. They were awesome. Ours had a large canopy and proper tank holes to securely hold your gear while suiting up. The ladders were very well done with proper flat steps for your feet. You would back roll in and when returning from your dive you would simply take off your fins and BCD and hand them up. They would haul the gear up and change your tank for you. I felt bad for the guys because we were weight integrated but they pulled them up with a smile. The dive masters were great. For most of our stay we had Samuel and Stoner. These guys have eagle eyes. I mean they would show me an area and I would look. I see nothing. Then they would gently put the poker down and there would rise out of the sand a mimic octopus. I never laughed so much underwater than I did on this trip. So here is the short list, we saw mimic, coconut, wonderpuss, and longarm octopus, ambon scorpionfish, rhinopias, giant frogfish, warty frogfish, pygmy frogfish, harlequin shrimp, ghost pipe fish, leafy scorpion fish, cuttle and pygmy cuttlefish, waspfish, two spot lionfish, nudies, false stonefish, nemo, dori, butterflys off all kinds, anemone fish, all kinds of angels and triggers, all kinds of crabs, basking stars, I could go on and on. The diving here is so spectacular. You have muck and reef. Its amazing. In order for you to understand that I have something to relate the diving to here is the short list. I have been to Lembeh, Wakatobi, Bunaken, Philippines, Sipidan to name a few, but this place was magical. Every dive was a new adventure of discovery. The other good thing about the dive staff is that once they see that your an experienced diver they let you dive your profile, providing you have a computer and did not deco dive, so diving freedom was given. On our day before we left the guys hung all our stuff out in the sun to ensure it would be as dry as possible for our flight out of Ambon.
A special thank you goes out to Samuel and Stoner for making this trip a great experience!
DAY TRIP
I asked Hoffas if he could get us some scooters to rent for the day before we flew out and if he would take us to his village to go see the freshwater eels. Next day he had gotten us two scooters (we were a group of four) and said that he would be glad to take us. We left at 9 AM and off we went. On the trip to his village he would stop at certain places so we could get some beautiful pictures of Ambon and the villages. The villages here are very clean and full of pride. One village would be all Christian and the neighboring village would be Muslim. They live in respect of each other. Something the rest of the world could learn. At one point when we stopped this little old lady came up to check us out. She was so curious about us. I don't think they see white people on scooters ever. When we arrived at Hoffas's village we walked down to where the fresh water eels are. He chummed the water and up the stream they came. It was bizarre. You could pet these things. They basically look like a catfish head with an eels body. Hoffas fed them for about 20-30 minutes and it was so cool to see the children playing with them. Upon leaving this area there is a tip box where you can put in a couple of dollars for the village. Hoffas then took us up to a place called sail rock. Another beautiful vista. We then drove back to the hotel where we tipped Hoffas who reluctantly took a small tip.
I just want to say at this point that this resort/dive op runs exceptionally well. Its hard to believe that you are in such a remote part of the world. I suggest that you go and see for yourself. You will not be disappointed.
Special note of thanks to Andy and Marcel. Your patients and hard work made this a wondrous time for my group. Good Job!!
Our flight back to Bali was as disgusting as on the way there, but we made all of our connectors and got to Bali on time. The only issue with the flight was that on the way back our e-tickets stated that we would be flying Ambon to Surabaya, Surabaya to Bali. Well apparently they stop in Makassar on the way which is ok but we did not know and got all freaked out, but in the end it all worked out. Even our luggage made it ok.
). The ladder steps were close together which made it so easy to climb up on that I actually was able to bring my gear up with me. Now for the diving. This diving has current. Some dives it was just ripping, other dives not so bad. We did see a demon stinger, nudies, stonefish, clownfish, butterflys of all kinds, and angels of all kinds, bamboo shark, football fields of hard coral and last, but not least, MANTAS!!!! They hung around for a long time and it was fantastic!!! On our last day diving we dropped in and one big manta just hovered at a cleaning station three feet away from me. I just hung there in awe. What a magnificent creature. On our last day of diving Sarah had put together a clean-up dive on the house reef. We were more than ready and willing. We did the dive and picked up allot of discarded materials that people had dumped underwater. It was a free dive and I give kudos’ to World Dive for having this program installed into their dive operation.
