Northern Sulawesi in November - Too Wet?

[SnappyTheDiver]

We are thinking about a dive holiday to Northern Sulawesi, Lembeh and Gangga Island, in November. Our understanding is that this is the rainy season. How much of an issue is the weather at this time of year. A lot of rain? Winds? Would we ever see the sun?

Any information would be most helpful.

 

[Mike Veitch]

well, Nov has been pretty dry the last 2 years that i have been here, rain not really started until late dec or jan. Even when it is the wet season it only rains for a few hours at a time.
However.. it is July now and evidently the wettest in the last 20 years. Last July? not a drop the whole month.. so.. I would say that predicting the weather doesn't work

 

[Kilili]

Done this the past few years, as it is quieter then. Minimal rain, lots of sun. However, as mentioned weather in general seems quirky these days. Even in bad weather, Lembeh is pretty sheltered. Bunaken is a different story

 

[chinacat46]

I've been there twice at the end of Nov start of Dec and it was fine both times. It did rain at night a few times and once during the day but then only for an hour or so.

 

[SnappyTheDiver]

Thanks. It will be great if there is a bit of sun and not too much rain.

 

[Malene]

I was in Bunaken and Pulisan last November. It did rain a bit but never enough to be an inconvenience. It might have had a effect on visibility but it was still good.
And as Mike said, every body in this area says that is now impossible to predict the weather and know when the dry / wet seasons start (I was in Lembeh again in May, and although it was supposed to be the dry season, we had rain every day and sometimes almost all day long, but again, it did not disturb the diving at all).

So go ahead!

 

[GEODIVE]

i was in Mike's diving center in November 2008 and we had sun all week long!
We did have some rain during the nights, mainly, but you must know that our diving was not affected at all!

Anyhow, to my humble opinion cloudy days are better for photography-videography!

Do not think about it , travel to Sulawesi and enjoy some of the best diving of the world!

 

[highdesert]

Another vote for November in N. Sulawesi! You'll probably get some heavy showers, but still have great weather. Best odds of sunny dives in the morning. We had glassy calm seas some days in November.