Question Land-based diving suggestions for a long stay in Indonesia (March onwards) other than Komodo/Raja4

[ScubaWithTurk]

If you come to the Amed area, stop by Prana Dive and say hi. As for the rain we currently have, it is typically afternoon rain and yes, the vis suffers a bit but the fish tend to be more active which makes the interactions very interesting.

 

[afieldofblue]

Hi Ben. If you want to do some different sort of diving then check our Wild Scuba Indonesia in Lombok. Run by Jay Catheral
It's called wild scuba for a reason. Fantastic dives and strong currents and reefs only this dive op goes to. Not for the feint hearted lol

One DMT in our group panicked on the first dive and never did any further dives. He thought he was an experienced current diver.
My buddy and I will be back again to do 7 diving days with Jay again this year. We stayed at Silver Ferns Resort run by some expats, very nice place and very cheap. I also speak Indo so getting out to the local warungs for some delicious food was great.

Wild Scuba Indonesia | Lombok

Wild Scuba Indonesia, Lombok, Nusa Tenggara Barat, Indonesia. Gefällt 1.271 Mal · 20 Personen sprechen darüber · 60 waren hier. Adventure Scuba Diving

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Thanks for the tip, sounds fun! I'll definitely look into it. Always been curious about Belongas, and it looks like there's more than the Magnet!
Otherwise, even though we're not really planning on going to Komodo, a Current Junkies trip with the right gang is still on the back of our mind - if they're still operating, that is....

 

[afieldofblue]

If you come to the Amed area, stop by Prana Dive and say hi. As for the rain we currently have, it is typically afternoon rain and yes, the vis suffers a bit but the fish tend to be more active which makes the interactions very interesting.

Thank for the updates, will do! We're planning on heading up there soon.

cheers
b

 

[Blackcrusader]

Thanks for the tip, sounds fun! I'll definitely look into it. Always been curious about Belongas, and it looks like there's more than the Magnet!

Yeah we quite enjoyed it my buddy and I and we for sure are going back. Our only regret is we only did 4 days there last year. This year will be 7 days 21 dives.

 

[matts1w]

I did Belongas years ago and it was pretty awesome- hammers, an oceanic white tip(!), and a huge school of eagle rays near shore. The other dive sites besides The Magnet were solid. We even saw an out-of-season mola mola.

The first day was almost flat. Day 2 was what we call "sporty" in Florida. A few of the guests were pretty beat up, but it was totally doable.

I should go back.

 

[Blackcrusader]

I did Belongas years ago and it was pretty awesome- hammers, an oceanic white tip(!), and a huge school of eagle rays near shore. The other dive sites besides The Magnet were solid. We even saw an out-of-season mola mola. The first day was almost flat. Day 2 was what we call "sporty" in Florida. A few of the guests were pretty beat up, but it was totally doable.
I should go back.

We had whale sharks and of course we went for the mantas... hammerheads at the cleaning station... but not see any
It's fun on some dives when even the mantas are going backwards against the currents.

 

[Dan]

Thanks Dan - I was actually considering Derawan / Sangalaki / Maratua as well.

Nice vid, really cool, big school indeed. That said, we also had really big resident schools of blackfin / chevron barracudas when we were working on the Andaman sea (eg 1 or 2 , could get bigger), and Borneo seems a long way for that (with a risk that it's been partially fished-out during lockdown, I imagine?)

Other than these how's the rest of the diving in the Derawan area?
I've watched a few clips like Nu's here or scubazoo's but it's hard to get a feeling for it, as these logically focus mostly on the local big 3, baracudas, whalesharks and mantas.

Overall, I'd say we're less interested specific highlights like a big resident school, whalesharks and mantas - it's always great to see them, but not something would be the main motivation for a dive trip.
It's one of the reasons we're also not super keen on another regional hotspot like Sipadan in neighbouring Malaysia (even though we love turtles, barracudas and sharks).

Other than the schooling Barracudas and Whaleshark under a Bagan, Sangalaki is the place for Turtle nursery and Stingless Jellyfish Lake in Kakaban similar to that of Palau, as shown in my YouTube videos, below.

 

[Dan]

If you come to the Amed area, stop by Prana Dive and say hi. As for the rain we currently have, it is typically afternoon rain and yes, the vis suffers a bit but the fish tend to be more active which makes the interactions very interesting.

Hi Turk! Long time no see. I think the last time we dove together was when you were in Freestyle Divers LLC

I’ll be in Bali this August. I’ll try to stop by & say hi then.

 

[ScubaWithTurk]

Yes it has been a long time. A few dive centers ago for me. That is great that you will be here in August. I look forward to seeing you again!

 

[jeremyl]

Rather than start another thread, I thought I might piggy-back on this since the sites mentioned are on my radar. I'll be diving 10D on Alor in June, and then a 6N Komodo LOB. Will pop over to Ubud for a few days since my friend wants to go back - yoga/massage/coffee. I may dive on/around Bali a bit (have done in the past)... but really thinking more about one of the more 'new to me' and remote areas. I have been to Lembeh and Bunaken on my last Indo trip (just pre-covid) so looking to go somewhere besides that. Dove RA4 a couple times on LOB (and will be my next trip most likely next season or so).
So anyway, was researching other places to try, and most were mentioned here.

I would be looking from June 23 -> early July. Could take a couple weeks if I wanted. Will be traveling solo, with my own gear. Experienced AOW diver (~500+ dives). Mid-range budget, whatever that means.

Derwin Islands - not quite sure where to base here. I know Scuba Junkies comes recommended, and seems "mid-range" of prices (on par with Alor). Would be OK tho takes some effort to get there, and I think maybe it's the wrong season for some of the bigger guys to be spotted. I did dive Sipadan some years ago - stayed on the oil rig.

Togian Islands - A friend suggested this, tho it seems a little less recommended compared to what you see other places.

Bira - don't know much about it, but reasonable to get there, and comes recommended.

Maluku - that name seems to encompass a fairly vast area of islands/ocean... but also seems to be one of the more recommended destinations.

Wakatoba - (Not the fancy place)... seems it's easier to get there these days, and some reasonably priced places to stay - but maybe not 'prime' season and seems like the consensus is there are other better places.

What else??? Help me decide pls