Dive Review Of Komodo

[christ daniel]

Thanks for review

 

[johnnyafrica]

Yep usually we hooked in the novice divers but the more experienced ones had pointers that they just dug into the ground and held on. Or just hang on to a rock and try to avoid the fire corals

Also, as for the currents, Komodo is crazy. Currents are strong and unpredictable but that's why the mantas love it so much. Check out my post and there's a video on it showing the current strength. We drifted like 200-300m in 3 minutes.

 

[Manuel Sam]

Thank you, Johnny.

 

[Stout]

I like this thread, it intrigues me. Consider me sold on Komodo.

I'm liking the description of the wet season as I'm more than familiar what the term means on Utila and now that the Canadian dollar has tanked and Utila is no longer the deal of the century for extended scuba vacations, the rest of the world has opened up.

I was originally thinking Nusa Lembongan as a sort of opener for diving Indonesia but this thread coupled with my neighbours just getting back from Bali and saying they were glad they went in the wet season because the rain cooled the place down has me wondering October/November or January/Febuary.

I want MANTAS !! I've only deen them on one dive at one dive site ( Hin Muang/Daeng ) and the vis was less than steller. Oh ya, I want frogfish.... and a ribbon eel.

I've been watching Komodo videos on Dailymotion all morning, life is good.

 

[Adelaar Cruises]

Flying to Makassar at that time of year isn't one of my favorite things to do but sounds like it could be worth it.

Greetings from Komodo chillyinCanada,

Luckily you don't have to fly to Makassar to get to Komodo. If you want to start in Labuan Bajo you can fly right into Denpasar, Bali and from there take a non-stop to Labuan Bajo.

Bonus: Garuda announced it is now (again) allowing excess baggage for sports equipment, view GA rules at: https://www.garuda-indonesia.com/uk/en/garuda-indonesia-experience/on-ground/baggage/index.page

You can also catch a LOB directly from Bali .

Cheers.

 

[johnnyafrica]

I like this thread, it intrigues me. Consider me sold on Komodo.

I'm liking the description of the wet season as I'm more than familiar what the term means on Utila and now that the Canadian dollar has tanked and Utila is no longer the deal of the century for extended scuba vacations, the rest of the world has opened up.

I was originally thinking Nusa Lembongan as a sort of opener for diving Indonesia but this thread coupled with my neighbours just getting back from Bali and saying they were glad they went in the wet season because the rain cooled the place down has me wondering October/November or January/Febuary.

I want MANTAS !! I've only deen them on one dive at one dive site ( Hin Muang/Daeng ) and the vis was less than steller. Oh ya, I want frogfish.... and a ribbon eel.

I've been watching Komodo videos on Dailymotion all morning, life is good.

The CAD has tanked for sure but the lempira has taken a hit too so it's not THAT bad for you guys. Nevertheless, Utila does have super cheap dive rates but I went there over November 2 years ago and got stuck with a huge storm that knocked out all diving for a week. plus, I really didn't think Utila was all that special in terms of diving. The dive sites in Komodo are on another level in my opinion and again. I didn't find the weather to be overly hot at all as the rains really provided a cooling effect. I coudl sleep very easily at night time without wanting AC.

And of course, mantas during the wet season is an attraction on its own! Not sure when I'll get to drift dive, look backwards for my buddy, look forward about to run into a group of mantas.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Thanks for that info Adelaar. I was responding think johnnyAfrica's discussion regarding Makassar. Perhaps I've confused a dive site name with the place?

 

[Saboleft]

The only benefit to liveaboards is they can go to some sites further out that can't be reached in one day from land, but that's not a guarunteed thing.

Which sites can't you get to if you stay at Scuba Junkie? I'm looking to book a trip but I'm finding it really hard to match my dates up with the available live aboard trips but I had read that Liveaboards were the best way to dive Komodo. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

 

[dirtfarmer]

I dove with SJ in January and in 12 days of diving we went south 3 days, north 1 day and the rest in the central region. It can be weather dependent, and also dependent on other divers wanting to go south or north. I was lobbying heavily to go south and some divers stayed longer just to go there. Going south or north is a long trip leaving extra early and coming back late in the day. SJ is supposedly building building a second boat that will allow them to stay out overnight so they don't burn as much fuel to get to the south.
Liveaboards can be a great way to dive Komodo, I've done them 2x. I chose SJ for the cost savings and also the fact that during January most of the LOB's are in Raja Ampat. The ones that were in the park in January were ones that leave from LBJ and tend to shuttle divers to and from the boat and when I inquired with them they were less than clear that we would be diving the south. Alot will depend on what time of year you want to go.

 

[Saboleft]

I'm planning a trip for July. Are there any Liveaboards that you would recommend? I have about 1 week there and I'm not sure I want to rely on trying to get a group of divers together to do the longer trips North or South.