Dive conditions at Bali

[nickyfan69]

Hello,
I was curious if someone could give me input about diving around Bali at the beginning of November. Or, how is the weather that time of year? Here are the sites I want to dive at:
Secret Bay, Pemuteran, Menjangan, Tulamben, Liberty Wreck, Amed, Candi Dasa/Amuk Bay, Gili Selang, Padang Bay and Lembongan Island/Nusa Penida.

Thank You,

 

[danz]

I was last year in November in Tulamben. Weather was fine, even no rain. Weather patterns may be changing. Locals told me that rainy season was starting late.

 

[divewench1]

You shouldn't have any dive site problems in November. Over the last few weeks, with the El Nino, we have suffered with big waves at Tulamben, Amed and in the channel between Bali and the Gili islands, which resulted in some of the fast boats between the islands being cancelled for a few days and the visibility of the North east being quite bad. However, we have not had to cancel any diving due to bad conditions, just maybe changing sites or diving times slightly.

November 'should be' the start of the rainy season, however the start and finish dates have altered in recent years. :cool2:

 

[tropikdiver]

Hi,

In my opinion November and december if the rainy season didn t start yet are the best months, offering the best visibility and the fewest divers. The first 2 weeks of december are very quite which is nice when you dive a famous dive site like the Liberty that can be crowded in the summer times.

Cheers,

 

[BLUESEASONBALI]

The best time to dive around Bali for the best conditions is when it is as dry as possible as many of the dives sites around Bali are directly off shore whether by beach entry or short 5 minute boat rides so the visibility of the reefs is greatly affected by run off from even the smallest estuary. The driest time of year if without doubt late July august and September, but unfortunately this also coincides with the busiest time of year so the number of divers increases dramatically. In my personal opinion the best time is to come is November time, just before the rainy season starts. Of course there is the chance that rain may start early, but the numbers of diver drops at this time and there is still a great chance to see the Mola Mola over at Nusa Penida and Tepekong.

With macro diving being such a highlight all year round in Bali, visibility is not really an issue for you dives if you are diving with a guide who knows the reefs like the back of their hands and could do it blindfolded. There are numerous dive sites around Bali that are famous around for their macro magic, such as Seraya secrets where you have Harlequin shrimp, Tiger Shrimp, Boxer Crabs and much much more and not forgetting Puri Jati in the North of Bali famous for its Mimic Octopus and the Pikachu Nudibranch.

BLUE SEASON BALI
Diving Bali | Dive Courses Bali
PADI Member Award Winner 2010; Outstanding Dive Center 2010
Commitment to Instructor Development 2010​

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[jacpot]

Hie,

I have been to tulamben to dive twice. The first time was in July a few years back, and second time was just last year beginning Dec. All i remember during the first trip was that there were hoardes of divers. I would almost say the liberty wreck was covered with divers. It was hard to see macro stuff because of the crowd and you either have to wait your turn and jus move on. Yes it was dry, almost zero current according to my log but i didnt enjoy the dives that much.

However, that all changed when i was there in Dec last year. Altho it was considered wet season, it rained maybe 2-3 days out of the 5 days we were there. And it mostly starts in the evening and thru the night. But the rain wasnt heavy anyway and you could still do shore entry with ease. There were slight currents most of the time but very slight so it was no struggle. The best part of gng during the off season was that there was hardly anyone! It was a real luxury to jus to take your time to look carefully for macros and take pics without feeling like you are holding up someone else's 'air time'. The resorts will also be be slightly cheaper and less than half occupied. So you would have very personalised service for both accomodations and diving.

So my advice would be to go during off season if you dont mind a lil rain. You may not come back with a tan but it definitely will not hinder yr diving if thats what you are worried about. Hope this helps!