Komodo liveaboard - trip report

[ClairevL]

@tamas970October to April is the best season to dive the Southern part of Komodo, whereas April to December is the best time for diving the Northern part (although you could dive there all year round). The Northern part will give you warmer water and better visibility, but the South has a very rich invertebrate life.I have been to Bali as well, but I have only dived in Nusa Penida/Nusa Lembongan and Tulamben, so I can only compare these to Komodo. Nusa Penida/Nusa Lembongan had great visibility (better than Komodo when I was there), beautiful coral (comparable to Komodo), but some of the dive site, especially Crystal Bay, were so crowded. That was because I was there in the peak season for mola molas...which would be great to see, but at the cleaning stations I couldn't actually see them through the wall of divers/bubbles. There are some more quiet dive sites as well and you could see manta rays there. Although, I thought the amount of fish at some of the sites in Komodo was hard to beat. In Tulamben I've been diving at the wreck, which was beautiful, but completely different from Komodo of course. Lots of fish life, and the schools of bumphead parrotfish were amazing...but no spectacular corals. This is just too different from Komodo to compare the two. I've heard Ahmed is also great, but I haven't been diving there. There are some posts on the forum about diving in Bali.

 

[Heg]

What were the water temps like when you were there? We are going next week and i'm dithering over which wetsuit to take with me...

 

[Nasser]

Thanks for this report. I've had Komodo and Raja Ampat on my short list for a while so this is very helpful.

Cheers.

 

[beaverdivers]

We did a 7 day liveaboard with Dive Komodo a couple of weeks ago and it was such a wonderful trip! Dive Komodo is not one of the big liveaboard companies, and I think they are mostly known for day trips. However, the also have excellent liveaboards. The main differences between Dive Komodo and the more well-known liveaboard companies seem to me:
- the price: We paid about 1400 USD each for 7 days, 25 dives
- the number of divers: the boat is smaller and has a maximum of 8 guests
- the boat: the boat is not as fancy as some of the bigger liveaboard boats. It has private cabins, but shared toilets and showers.

- The itinerary is not fixed. This can either be a pro or a con. We stayed 7 days, but other guests stayed shorter, so new people came on board during the trip and therefore it was harder to move out to the extreme corners of the national park. New guests were brought in by a different boat, so we didn't have to go back to the harbour. An advantage of this flexible itinerary was that the dive guides really took into account our wishes regarding the dive sites. The fact that there was only a small group of divers also made this easier.

The dive guides were great. They have a lot of dive experience in Komodo and know everything about the dive sites. They gave excellent briefings before the dives and after the dives they were always enthusiastic about helping you to identify fish. Furthermore, they were great at finding stuff, both big stuff and macro. Also, both the guides were so much fun to hang out with!

The dive sites were amazing! The coral was incredibly beautiful, there was so much fish around and we saw a lot of mantas and reef sharks. Currents were very strong at some sites, which could be a thrilling experience in itself. At one site we had a current of over 6 knots, but this was something the guides expected and only my buddy and I went there with one of the guides, while the others did a more quiet dive. The visibility was quite good, about 25 m in North and Central, a bit less in South. My favorite dive sites were Batu Bolong, Crystal Rock and Castle rock. There was just so much fish life, big schools of fish everywhere. Even though these sites are some of the most famous in Komodo, they were not crowded, since there are so many sites that we didn't often find any other boar at the same site. In the bays we also saw Rhinopias, lots of nudi branches, and on sunset dives mandarin fish. Also on the night dives there was lots of interesting macro stuff, and many large octopuses. We didn't find as many hunting moray eels as on previous trips in the Red Sea.

The boat was an excellent place to stay. Plenty of space on the dive deck, good cabins to sleep in, lots of nice space to hang out when we were not diving. The boat crew were super friendly as well. The food was really amazing. Always fresh, healthy, delicious and plentiful. After each meal there was delicious fresh fruit. My buddy and I are vegetarians and the crew made sure there was always plenty of vegetarian food for us.

We didn't rent equipment, but some other divers did, and I can say it was in good condition.

Furthermore, the boat has all the required safety equipment. I would really recommend this company both for day trips and liveaboards!

Thank you for your trip report. I am glad to see that they are different levels of accommodations at different prices. I believe that the bottom line is
" Do you feel that you received an excellent value for your money? " It sounds like you did:blinking:.

I'm curious, what was the crew to diver ratio?

 

[rcaqua]

Thanks for the report. Quick question: how was the temperature for sleeping at night, in the absence of air-conditioning in the cabins....?

Rene

 

[pazz]

Thanks so much for the review. I was looking forward to this one because I have read mixed reviews about Komodo. There are some who love it and then there are those who say that they are paying "Indonesian prices" for "Thailand level" of diving. I have not been to either so I am always going ...

Btw ... where else have you been diving and how did the over-all diving compare to your other dive destinations?

If someone were to offer me an all-expense paid trip to repeat my Thai diving or to repeat my Komodo diving, I would easily choose repeating my Komodo diving. Now, if someone were to offer me an all-expense paid trip (no diving) to visit Thailand or Komodo/Indonesia, I would choose Thailand.

 

[Adelaar Cruises]

What were the water temps like when you were there? We are going next week and i'm dithering over which wetsuit to take with me...

Greetings from Komodo,

Our last 10 day trip in Komodo was spectacular! I am happy to report the waters in Manta Alley in Langkoi have warmed up a bit to 24c/76f, however Cannibal Rock in Horseshoe Bay, South Rinca was still rather chilly 22c/72f. Torpedo Alley and Yellow Wall were a bit warmer at 23c/73f. Which had actually increased from the previous trip. Both were well worth braving the chilly waters, we had a Manta train of 15, Cannibal Rock & Torpedo were amazing as always!

The North was still warm, hovering around 27-28c/81-82f.

Bring a 5mm or 7mm wetsuit and a 3mm hooded vest for the days spent in the south.

The sun was blazing and we still haven't had any rain (for dive holiday purposes - knock on wood, but we need it badly!).

Have a fantastic trip, Komodo will not disappoint.