August - honeymoon

[HJ]

My partner and I are getting married this year in August and we would like to go on a diving trip to somewhere different afterwards, mid to late August. We live in Bermuda so we dive when we can here, plus been to Cozumel, Little Cayman and Aquacat out of Bahamas together and my partner has been to Thailand, Philippines and Australia as well.

About our diving - we both have around 100 dives AOW+Nitrox. We dive throughout the year so I'd like to think we're ok divers. Neither of us do photography but we like macro stuff so I'm intrigued by muck diving. We're not into wrecks (plenty in Bermuda).

We're both fortunate to have good jobs so there's no set limit for budget. We're not into luxurious hotels (though cleanliness is important) and would rather stay out of all inclusive. No nightlife or shopping required either - just good diving!

The tricky part is time. We have 10 to perhaps 14 days max to travel which makes getting to places like Indonesia tricky. We have friends in Korea and Singapore, so can do a couple of days in either places in transit.

So far what I've considered are:

Liveaboard Komodo either Arenui or Danai
Lembeh
Alor
Sipadan

Sipadan sounds easiest to get to in terms of travel (We transit through East Coast - New York most of the time) though Indonesia sounds pretty amazing. However I don't want to spend half of the holiday getting there and coming back.

We travel a lot so I'm not looking for the trip of lifetime, but it would be nice to do something very different from Caribbean. Any advice would be appreciated!

 

[Quero]

In August, Sipadan would make a great honeymoon destination. Take a look at Kapalai Dive Resort. Not terribly posh, but nice enough for a memorable honeymoon. Be aware that it's going to take quite a while to get there because in addition to the longhaul flight to some Asia hub like Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, you need to fly to Tawau, take a van to Semporna, and get a ferry to the dive resort.

Komodo for a liveaboard is also a good option. for the season, but be careful where your boat departs from. If it's Labuan Bajo or Bima, you still need an internal Indonesia flight to get there, and usually an overnight someplace first (Jakarta, Bali).

Lembeh, even from here just a hop away, always requires me to overnight in Singapore because of the little Manado airport. Same for Alor.

Have you thought about Bali? That would be the quickest and easiest for you to get to. You could go to Tulamben and have your own guide just for the two of you, easily. And you could stay at one of several honeymoon-worthy places. The diving is superlative. Or maybe combine a Komodo and a Bali trip, if you've got the time.

Finally, have you considered Wakatobi? They've got various lengths of stay, e.g., 5-days, 7-days, 11 days, and they manage their own flights from Bali (you don't go on a commercial flight), which makes it so much easier.

 

[Bryan Cunningham]

Hi HJ

Although we are Canadian based we can help you out with suitable diving packages.
1) If you want somewhere close and convenient, ST Lucia is ideal for honeymoons and has pretty good diving.
2) Jardines de la Reina is probably the best dive spot left in the Caribbean, we would fly you via Toronto though as it is in Cuban waters. Only doable on live-aboard.
3) If you want to travel to Indonesia, we reccomend Raj4Divers. New well run facility on pristine reef. Resort only holds 18 guests and entire island population works for hotel.
4) Also a bit of a trip, but great for honeymoons and diving is South Africa. Although you may want to save this option for when you have more time. I am South African so can really spoil you for this destination.

I have plenty more options, shout if you want more ideas

Bryan
SCUBA DESTINATION DEALS - HOME

 

[cbm32]

You may want to take a look at Fiji. Some GREAT dive destinations there lovely places for a honeymoon. Lots of secluded picnic beaches.

 

[Dive Wananavu Fiji]

HJ, I agree with cbm32 in looking at Fiji... yes I am a bit biased as I live here but there is a reason I choose to live here. With a direct over night flight from LA to Nadi you arrive in Fiji in the morning and if you stay on the main island you'll be at your resort before lunch. If you need any help the resort I work with does some fantastic honeymoon packages and we can arrange diving into them as well, if you don't like us (not sure why you wouldn't) I am more than happy to suggest a couple alt ideas.

 

[The Arenui Team]

Not sure if you need specific date in August but we just recently opened up new availability ... so now have cabins available for the 31-Aug 2013 departure!

It's a great itinerary focussing on the central Komodo dive sites, with the visit to the famous dragons too! There was a recent report mentioned on this forum that gives you an idea of the diving in Komodo, and also the topside; Diving Komodo National Park, Indonesia aboard the Arenui | Making It Up As I Go

I'll add a bit of info below but drop me an email if you need more details; info@thearenui.com
- and also you can have a look at suggestions for how to get there with this new page we made (advice on traveling to Indoniesia - but of course we also help all guests with this once booked up); Arenui the Boutique Liveaboard - Frequently Asked Questions

Aug 2013 Komodo Focus: Trip departs Labuanbajo on 31 August 2013 for 11 nights, ending 11 September in Bima. Choice of cabin types available, from upper-deck twin to different designs of lower-deck deluxe (details online). Be amazed by the diversity of Komodo; the Komodo National park offers excellent muck diving, but also outstanding pelagic action - so whether its nudibranchs and rhinopias you’re after, or manta rays and schooling fish, this cruise really has it all. On this itinerary we can focus our time on the central dive sites, as we do not need to include travel time to/from Bali as we do on other itineraries (but it is still only a short flight at the start/end of the cruise to connect with Bali or other nearby destinations). View the ITINERARY or see the FB EVENT or read more on KOMODO