Komodo vs. W. Irian Jaya/Raja Ampat

[reefsong]

We're looking to book a trip to Indonesia sometime in 2006. I'm still in the process of doing lots of "homework". I'm trying to figure out whether we'd prefer the area around Komodo or perhaps the area around Raja Ampat/Irian Jaya. We're only looking at live-aboards since we want to maximize our dive time as well as the diversity of the area and don't want to be tied down at just one land-based area.

Our only experiences on that side of the world have been land-based in Palau and liveaboard in Fiji on the Nai'a. We loved everything about Nai'a and Fiji, but would like to re-experience the electric excitement of Palau with it's abundant large animals. Although we'd enjoy the occasional muck dive, we prefer larger animals and pretty, colorful reefs.

Does anyone have any recommendations for specific areas in Indonesia that might match what we're looking for?

 

[baragon]

Having been to neither, I would select Raja Amput as it seems to be the next "last undived place on the planet". I have heard some wonderful stories about the place. There is a liveaboard, MV Ondina I think, that goes there at selected times.
Hope this isn't a totally useless piece of information for you!!

 

[scubashooter]

Papua Barat (Rajah Ampat) is the biodiversity capital of the marine world right now. The reefs are pristine and the coral diversity is incomparable. If you are looking for big pelagics, there are a few sites that have it. I've seen 2m groupers and other big fish but almost no reef sharks and napoleon wrasse. The coral and reef fish life is what you go for. There is more color in a few of the sites than in all of Fiji.
Komodo has recovered a lot from the devastation of fishing. Lots of pelagic sites, with reef sharks, and the macro in the muck sites is better than what I've seen at Papua Barat. It's as close to the real Komodo (my first dive there was in 1991) as I remember.
A few people I know were not as impressed with Rajah Ampat. Some sites are current dependant and the coral growth is so profuse that finding the rarer marquee creatures is so much more difficult. It's a critters place for the mantis shrimp eyed.
Either one you won't regret, depending on what you want to see of course! LOL

 

[pigletfish]

We took a Komodo liveaboard trip in August 2003. We saw only a few reef sharks, but on other trip reports people seem to have seen more, and rays, too. The reefs are beautiful though, and swarming with fish. Very colorful. And seeing the dragons on Komodo is very cool! The liveaborad left from Bali, a beautiful island where we also spent a week, enjoying the plentiful land-based activities. Have fun deciding!

 

[reefsong]

Thanks Scubashooter, Baragon and Pigletfish for your replies. I'll check out MV Ondina. Based on your comments, Scubashooter, maybe I shouldn't worry about making it Raja Ampat first time up .......sounds like a trip to Komodo may include all that we're looking for, although "all the color of Fiji" in a single place (Raja Ampat) sounds mighty appealing.
Pigletfish, which liveaboard did you travel on? Any comments about their service? My only hesitation about leaving from Bali, is that I understand it's a really long, long steam to Komodo from there.

 

[pigletfish]

We were on the Mermaid I, booked through Tauch Terminal Tulamben Bali.

Here are the positives:
-- small boat, comfortable, ensuite baths, nice common areas
-- friendly crew
-- good food (but Thai food only)
-- one of the Indonesian dive masters was a former park ranger on Komodo, so he was an excellent guide to the dragons on Komodo and Rinca islands

And the negatives:
-- the boat spends only 4 months a year in Indonesia (April-October); the rest of the time it is in Thailand and Burma. Our trip in 2003 was their first season in Indonesia, and they were clearly not regional experts. The area reefs provide lovely diving regardless, but I think we could have had an even better experience with a crew who were not such newbies themselves. By the time of your trip in 2006, they will be on their fifth Komodo season, so this may no longer be an issue.
-- Not a single sweet was offered the entire week, just pineapple. (You can guess that I have a sweet tooth!) The owner of Tauch Terminal Bali was on our trip with us, and he was also craving and somewhat aghast, so I have a feeling sweets may now be on offer -- but if you want them, double check to confirm that you won't have to bring your own!

The dates for our Bali trip were not flexible, and we chose the Mermaid because it worked for those dates. We had wanted to go on the Komodo Dancer, though, and I would suggest you look into that one -- and probably a few others -- before deciding.

Oh, and regarding the distance from Bali -- we steamed out overnight and then dove at great sites every day on the way to and from Komodo. All sailing was done at night, so we didn't feel that there was any dive time wasted. We were able to do 24 dives in 6 days, including several night dives.

Cheers!

 

[reefsong]

Thanks Pigletfish!!
I've definitely got a lot more homework to do. Thanks for the description of Mermaid. I think I need to give more thought to Komodo again. Komodo with a departure from Bali is actually where I started this whole thought process some months ago. There are so many choices!! I get sucked into the internet and ending up surfing from one site to the next with no real direction.
What I need is the winning Lotto ticket so I can actually VISIT all these places and not just surf the web about them!
Thanks again.

 

[neilstewart]

I too was looking into this sort of trip.

Here are a couple of web sites for organisation that I heard really good things about. Divetastic is operated by two english guys.

http://diveliveaboard.info/schedules.htm

and

http://www.thebestdivingintheworld.com/ENG/index.html

These are a spanish company and their prices are in euro's.

Bearing in mind that 6 days on any of the agressor boats costs $2000+ both these charters offer excellent value.

Neil

 

[Jimi]

I have had the pleasure of diving in both komodo and some islands (or Gili in Indonesian) around Lombok, Indonesia. Lombok is sort of a sister island to bali, but the three Gili off the southern coast are amazing. There are many turtles, sharks, and even a sunken WW2 wreck. "The Wall" near Gili Trawangan is teeming with reef life. The place i stayed at, the Blue Marlin resort, is great too. They have high quality rentals, their own private boats, nice rooms, a restaruant with some key party features; nice sound system, a bar, and a big tv for your best surface interval ever. They even have their own high quality dive shop. It was the best vacation i ever had. I suggest you choose Indonesia, because it is less secluded than Raja, and is like a good dive-free vacation with clubs and tours and restaraunts, but with good diving.

 

[scubashooter]

Jimi, Raja Ampat islands are Indonesian. As for your description of diving in the Gilies, I think over 80% of the sites have bad corals and only the deeper reefs have better hard coral.Ah ok your profile says you're 13 with 8 dives in Lombok. The wreck is nice but a tech dive at 47m with very little in between. What was Blue marlin doing letting a junior OWD dive the wreck?
You must like partying since Blue Marlin turns into a big rave party every tuesday with the requisite drugs etc.
Did you do a liveaboard in Komodo or just dive from the Labuhan Bajo death traps?

I have had the pleasure of diving in both komodo and some islands (or Gili in Indonesian) around Lombok, Indonesia. Lombok is sort of a sister island to bali, but the three Gili off the southern coast are amazing. There are many turtles, sharks, and even a sunken WW2 wreck. "The Wall" near Gili Trawangan is teeming with reef life. The place i stayed at, the Blue Marlin resort, is great too. They have high quality rentals, their own private boats, nice rooms, a restaruant with some key party features; nice sound system, a bar, and a big tv for your best surface interval ever. They even have their own high quality dive shop. It was the best vacation i ever had. I suggest you choose Indonesia, because it is less secluded than Raja, and is like a good dive-free vacation with clubs and tours and restaraunts, but with good diving.