Question Indonesia itinerary August 2025

[Lu Y]

Mola mola are in Bali not Komodo.
There are sites in Bali which are not overcrowded, for instance I wouldn't call Gili Tepekong or Gili Mimpang overcrowded (the sites near to Padang Bai where you can have the most chance of spotting Mola Mola).

More over if you stay in Tulamben and dive with local dive centers/ops there are chances that you won't be diving with the herds of divers coming from Sanur or Amed. One thing for sure is that sites like Crystal bay or manta bay on Nusa Penida will be crowded, I wouldn't recommend diving them in august.
On the other hand N/Sulawesi Bunaken sites like Likuan are overcrowded in august season.
There is no generic figures about locations and their dive spots, it's only a matter of timing and specific sites.

For the record, Yansu the owner of Let's Dive Tulamben organizes Mola mola dives from Padang Bai : he has a very very good record of Mola spotting. (check his Facebook page you'll see)

Thanks a lot Luko! Yes we were thinking about Tulamben too. I'll reach out to Yansu to see if he's available for some diving in August.

 

[justspacelover_]

Your plan sounds amazing! I’d recommend transiting in Singapore if possible it’s a very smooth experience with a fantastic airport, while Jakarta can be a bit hectic. A 5-night liveaboard in Komodo and 7-night land-based diving in Bali is a great combo, as Komodo offers stunning marine life and Bali has diverse dive sites like the Liberty wreck and great muck diving. You could also check out other destination from this article Indonesia Tourism Statistics 2023 - All You Need To Know For a third destination, I’d suggest either Alor or Manado. Alor is remote and pristine, with amazing reefs and macro life, while Manado (or nearby Lembeh Strait) is perfect for wall and muck diving, plus it’s easier to reach than Maumere given recent flight issues. Have a fantastic trip!

 

[Lu Y]

Your plan sounds amazing! I’d recommend transiting in Singapore if possible it’s a very smooth experience with a fantastic airport, while Jakarta can be a bit hectic. A 5-night liveaboard in Komodo and 7-night land-based diving in Bali is a great combo, as Komodo offers stunning marine life and Bali has diverse dive sites like the Liberty wreck and great muck diving. You could also check out other destination from this article Indonesia Tourism Statistics 2023 - All You Need To Know For a third destination, I’d suggest either Alor or Manado. Alor is remote and pristine, with amazing reefs and macro life, while Manado (or nearby Lembeh Strait) is perfect for wall and muck diving, plus it’s easier to reach than Maumere given recent flight issues. Have a fantastic trip!

Thanks for the advice.

We deprioritized Alor given the overnight stopover required in Kubang.

I was thinking about layover in Jakarta for Manado as there are multiple flights per day vs. from Singapore just one flight every 2 days. Was your experience at Jakarta airport very bad?

 

[Luko]

while Manado (or nearby Lembeh Strait) is perfect for wall and muck diving

Bangka covers the best of all world : a mix of better coral dives than Bunaken and macro dives plus the possibility to do a daytrip to Lembeh (knowing that if you're staying in Tulamben, you'll get your share of macro / blacksand dives) .

I was thinking about layover in Jakarta for Manado

Jakarta is clearly not the best place to layover in Indonesia.

You'd rather overnight in Singapore (even a day more) plus it'd spare you an additional flight if you enter Manado directly : ie. SIN (overnight)-MDC on Scoot (stay)-DPS-LBJ (connexion on the same day+stay)-DPS (Stay)-SIN.
Otherwise it can work that way but you would then start with Komodo : SIN(overnight)-CGK-LBJ (connexion on the same day+stay)-DPS (stay)- MDC (stay)-SIN with Scoot.

 

[Lu Y]

Bangka covers the best of all world : a mix of better coral dives than Bunaken and macro dives plus the possibility to do a daytrip to Lembeh (knowing that if you're staying in Tulamben, you'll get your share of macro / blacksand dives) .

Jakarta is clearly not the best place to layover in Indonesia.

You'd rather overnight in Singapore (even a day more) plus it'd spare you an additional flight if you enter Manado directly : ie. SIN (overnight)-MDC on Scoot (stay)-DPS-LBJ (connexion on the same day+stay)-DPS (Stay)-SIN.
Otherwise it can work that way but you would then start with Komodo : SIN(overnight)-CGK-LBJ (connexion on the same day+stay)-DPS (stay)- MDC (stay)-SIN with Scoot.

Hi Luko,

I'm slightly confused on the layover comparison in Jakarta vs. Singapore. When I checked the direct flights to Manado, there are at least 4 per day from Jakarta, vs. just one from Singapore (the Scoot one), so one would think Jakarta is a better option. Did I miss anything?

Many thanks!

 

[Centrals]

Hello,

We are planning a diving holiday to Indonesia and would welcome some advice on itinerary.

- 2 divers, 50 logged dives each, AOW & Nitrox
- Date: likely 1-26 August

Questions:
- Would you recommend transiting in Singapore or Jakarta? We will fly from London.
- We are currently thinking about 5-night liveaboard in Komodo and 7-night land based diving in Bali. Would you recommend adding Flores (Maumere) or Alor or Manado as 3rd destination? We were initially thinking about Maumere however I read on this forum that flights were very unreliable in 2024.

Thanks a lot in advance for your help.

Kind regards,
Lu

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Gili Air or the other two.
Only a ferry ride from Padangbai.

You would not have time to visit Manado.

 

[Luko]

I'm slightly confused on the layover comparison in Jakarta vs. Singapore. When I checked the direct flights to Manado, there are at least 4 per day from Jakarta, vs. just one from Singapore (the Scoot one), so one would think Jakarta is a better option.

"Better" option depends on what criteria you put behind, since you only take one flight and not 4 at a time.
So depending on your schedule you can do either. The comparison is :

SIN is much more of a pleasant and relaxed city than Jakarta, nice food around. You can also stop there for a day to recover from the jetlag if you need too, though more expensive. If you plan your long haul flight accordingly you spend one night in SIN, eat out and unwind, get the scoot flight to MDC morning after, in your resort in the afternoon.

Pesonnally I try to avoid CGK as much as I can : the airport hotel is dreary with a very mediocre breakfast and certainly not worth the hassle to go downtown for the night unless you're a traffic jam lover.

I would say it makes more sense in your itinerary to start with N/Sulawesi diving wise (easier dives) than starting with Komodo (more demanding dives). CGK is a better entry to start with Komodo while I think SIN is more comfortable/relaxing for a first night and just as convenient as CGK for a MDC start providing the flight schedule fits in.

 

[paulcalf]

Manchester UK to Manado (one ticket) with Singapore Air/Scoot worked well for us in April.

Direct UK to Singapore flight - Daily from London.
We then spent a great 24hours in Singapore, you don't need to.
Our main bags had been checked straight through to Manado.
Scoot flight Singapore to Manado. 4 days a week.

Tangkoko National Park for birds and wildlife.
Bangka/Bunaken/Lembeh give you a wide range of different diving.
I think there are good onward flight options from Manado to other places you are considering diving at.

I flew back Manado to Singapore. Did a quick city tour, had a look at the Jewel etc. Freshened up with a shower in an airport Lounge, then flew back refreshed on the overnight from Singapore to Heathrow. The only poor bit of the trip was the train back from London.

If the timings and cost work i'd try and go direct UK to Singapore. Skip the extra flight and plane change in the Emirates.

You'll have a great time

 

[Lu Y]

"Better" option depends on what criteria you put behind, since you only take one flight and not 4 at a time.
So depending on your schedule you can do either. The comparison is :

SIN is much more of a pleasant and relaxed city than Jakarta, nice food around. You can also stop there for a day to recover from the jetlag if you need too, though more expensive. If you plan your long haul flight accordingly you spend one night in SIN, eat out and unwind, get the scoot flight to MDC morning after, in your resort in the afternoon.

Pesonnally I try to avoid CGK as much as I can : the airport hotel is dreary with a very mediocre breakfast and certainly not worth the hassle to go downtown for the night unless you're a traffic jam lover.

I would say it makes more sense in your itinerary to start with N/Sulawesi diving wise (easier dives) than starting with Komodo (more demanding dives). CGK is a better entry to start with Komodo while I think SIN is more comfortable/relaxing for a first night and just as convenient as CGK for a MDC start providing the flight schedule fits in.

Thanks Luko, agree with your assessment, I think we will layover in SIN and start the trip in N. Sulawesi

 

[Lu Y]

Manchester UK to Manado (one ticket) with Singapore Air/Scoot worked well for us in April.

Direct UK to Singapore flight - Daily from London.
We then spent a great 24hours in Singapore, you don't need to.
Our main bags had been checked straight through to Manado.
Scoot flight Singapore to Manado. 4 days a week.

Tangkoko National Park for birds and wildlife.
Bangka/Bunaken/Lembeh give you a wide range of different diving.
I think there are good onward flight options from Manado to other places you are considering diving at.

I flew back Manado to Singapore. Did a quick city tour, had a look at the Jewel etc. Freshened up with a shower in an airport Lounge, then flew back refreshed on the overnight from Singapore to Heathrow. The only poor bit of the trip was the train back from London.

If the timings and cost work i'd try and go direct UK to Singapore. Skip the extra flight and plane change in the Emirates.

You'll have a great time

thanks Paul, we are likely to spend 1 day in SIN as it's a bit brutal to fly London to Manado in one go (we travel in economy sadly)