outpost31
Contributor
Hi,
I've heard of the legendary muck diving of Lembeh Strait for a long time and so I finally took the plunge...and I'm so glad I did!
NAD Lembeh Resort:
As soon as I stepped through the departure lounge, my driver was there, sign in hand and drove me down to the dock in Bitung. A quick speedboat ride and I was greeted with smiles and a cool face cloth by a friendly face who already knew my name. This was sign of the level of service I was about to receive at NAD. I was recommended 3 places by fellow divers on here and I choose NAD due to price, altho the 3 were all pretty close. When I arrived I found there was a jacuzzi right in front of my room with a view of the sea...can't ask for better than that! My room was spacious, a very comfy & clean bed (two beds actually), fan/aircon, a very powerful and hot shower & drinking water/free snacks provided...everything i needed.
There's a separate and large room devoted to cameras which was great. The main eating area (with sea view) was spacious and clean, every meal was lovely, sometimes there was breakfast with option requests like sausages, eggs & bacon! The staff and owner Zee also eat there so I had many interesting chats with them about the area, diving & other travels which was nice as i was a solo traveler.
As soon as i arrived, the service was excellent. I told them my previous hotel couldn't do my laundry at midday (only a few items) to be ready for next day and so NAD took it and had it done by the morning. They leave a basket outside your room for your diving gear and as soon as you fill it they take it to the boat and you never need to carry or clean a single item. Nothing was too much trouble, every member of staff was professional, friendly and greeted me by name every day. NAD Resort gave me 5* service every day and it was just perfect staying there! Thank you so much!
The Diving:
Oh..My...God! I've never been diving to any place where I've seen so many incredible creatures on every single dive that blew my mind. The diversity is amazing. I came with a wish list of about 10-12 creatures...the top one being blue ring octopus and I saw that on the 3rd dive on the first day. I showed my list to Zee the owner, and she immediately listed what dives sites were best to see them and what the likelihood of seeing them was (based on season)...which is exactly the response you hope for. I ticked off everything on my list (never had that before) plus i saw so many things i didn't even know existed. The guides are excellent, tell them what you're after and they'll do their best to find it.
Critters Seen:
Blue Ringed Octopus, Wonderpus, Longlegged Octopus, Cuttlefish, Pygmy Cuttlefish, Flamboyant Cuttlefish, Cockatoo Waspfish, Banggai Cardinalfish, Devil Scorpionfish, Hairy Forgfish, Wart Frogfish, Harlequin Shrimp, Mantis Shrimp, Juvenile Barramundi, Blue Ribbon Eel (Male, Female & Juvenile), many Nudis and even an Octopus iprotecting its eggs inside a glass jar on a night dive!
Conclusion:
NAD resort is the best resort I've ever stayed in (I've dived for 15 years all over Asia/Indo/Pacific) as the staff's attitude and service were impeccable and professional. The diving was nothing short of spectacular and i wished I could have stayed more than 5 days. The facilities, accom and food was fantastic. I cannot recommend NAD enough. See pics for Wows!!
Thank you Zee, and Sonja who was the one I emailed and worked out a great package and price for me, and all the guides and staff. I wish i was still there!
I've heard of the legendary muck diving of Lembeh Strait for a long time and so I finally took the plunge...and I'm so glad I did!
NAD Lembeh Resort:
As soon as I stepped through the departure lounge, my driver was there, sign in hand and drove me down to the dock in Bitung. A quick speedboat ride and I was greeted with smiles and a cool face cloth by a friendly face who already knew my name. This was sign of the level of service I was about to receive at NAD. I was recommended 3 places by fellow divers on here and I choose NAD due to price, altho the 3 were all pretty close. When I arrived I found there was a jacuzzi right in front of my room with a view of the sea...can't ask for better than that! My room was spacious, a very comfy & clean bed (two beds actually), fan/aircon, a very powerful and hot shower & drinking water/free snacks provided...everything i needed.
There's a separate and large room devoted to cameras which was great. The main eating area (with sea view) was spacious and clean, every meal was lovely, sometimes there was breakfast with option requests like sausages, eggs & bacon! The staff and owner Zee also eat there so I had many interesting chats with them about the area, diving & other travels which was nice as i was a solo traveler.
As soon as i arrived, the service was excellent. I told them my previous hotel couldn't do my laundry at midday (only a few items) to be ready for next day and so NAD took it and had it done by the morning. They leave a basket outside your room for your diving gear and as soon as you fill it they take it to the boat and you never need to carry or clean a single item. Nothing was too much trouble, every member of staff was professional, friendly and greeted me by name every day. NAD Resort gave me 5* service every day and it was just perfect staying there! Thank you so much!
The Diving:
Oh..My...God! I've never been diving to any place where I've seen so many incredible creatures on every single dive that blew my mind. The diversity is amazing. I came with a wish list of about 10-12 creatures...the top one being blue ring octopus and I saw that on the 3rd dive on the first day. I showed my list to Zee the owner, and she immediately listed what dives sites were best to see them and what the likelihood of seeing them was (based on season)...which is exactly the response you hope for. I ticked off everything on my list (never had that before) plus i saw so many things i didn't even know existed. The guides are excellent, tell them what you're after and they'll do their best to find it.
Critters Seen:
Blue Ringed Octopus, Wonderpus, Longlegged Octopus, Cuttlefish, Pygmy Cuttlefish, Flamboyant Cuttlefish, Cockatoo Waspfish, Banggai Cardinalfish, Devil Scorpionfish, Hairy Forgfish, Wart Frogfish, Harlequin Shrimp, Mantis Shrimp, Juvenile Barramundi, Blue Ribbon Eel (Male, Female & Juvenile), many Nudis and even an Octopus iprotecting its eggs inside a glass jar on a night dive!
Conclusion:
NAD resort is the best resort I've ever stayed in (I've dived for 15 years all over Asia/Indo/Pacific) as the staff's attitude and service were impeccable and professional. The diving was nothing short of spectacular and i wished I could have stayed more than 5 days. The facilities, accom and food was fantastic. I cannot recommend NAD enough. See pics for Wows!!
Thank you Zee, and Sonja who was the one I emailed and worked out a great package and price for me, and all the guides and staff. I wish i was still there!
) Throw in some of the best dive guides in the straits and it's hard to match NAD's advantage.
