Trip Report Nusa Penida, Komodo, Raja Ampat

[melliodora]

I just got back from a solo dream month-long dive trip to Indonesia - Nusa Penida, Komodo, and Raja Ampat (Arborek and Gam). Raja Ampat was always the focus, and after some great advice from folks on this board, and capitalizing on a promo sale with Scuba Junkies, I landed on these locations.

This is my first trip report, hopefully it's useful for folks planning something similar! Also, molas and mantas!

For some context, I've travelled a lot, including many many years backpacking in my 20s, and while I'm now (in my late 30s) a little past hostel dorms, I'm still pretty happy staying in simple/rustic accommodation. I also started this trip with ~70 dives, so definitely at the newer end - thanks to everyone who commented on my 'advice for surviving and thriving in RA' thread!

Itinerary overview (scubaboard keeps hyperlinking to third party websites, ignore any below related to accom/locations!)

• September 21 - 25: Scuba Junkies, Nusa Penida (4N/5D package, 9 dives over 3 dive days)
  • Accom: SJ have about 5-6 side by side rooms at their dive shop - simple but nice and spacious, A/C, balconies with drying racks, all the basics.
  • Cost: 7,956,000 IDR (~$670 CAD) for accommodation, diving, equipment rental, breakfast and lunch (2024 rates, 15% 'Flash Promo' discount)
• September 25 - October 1: Scuba Junkies, Komodo (6N/7D package, 15 dives over 5 dive days)
  • Accom: I stayed in one of their 'Garden Cottages' - it seems like they are progressively replacing their simple Garden Bales with these. Fairly small rooms, just space for a bed and small clothes rack + bathroom, but to be honest I spent such little time in the room it didn't really matter
  • Cost: 15,662,650 IDR (~$1,320 CAD) for full board in SJ resort diving, equipment rental (2024 rates, 5% return customer discount)
• October 2 - October 11: Arborek Dive Shop, Arborek, Raja Ampat (9N homestay, 17 dives over 8 dive days)
  • Accom: Kayafyof homestay (booked through Stay Raja Ampat) - a small wooden/palm roof hut on a jetty over the north-side reef, great food, electricity 7pm - 7am, bucket toilets/showers
  • Cost: 9,900,000 IDR (~$830 CAD) for diving/equipment rental plus 6,353,010 IDR (~$530 CAD) for homestay accommodation/meals
• October 11 - October 17: Tarzan Diving, Gam, Raja Ampat (6N homestay, 12 dives over 4 dive days)
  • Accom: Wainay homestay - a collection of slightly larger huts in a little cove right on the sandy beach, about 5-10 mins walk through a jungle path to Tarzan
  • Cost: 8,928,000 IDR (~$750 CAD) for diving/equipment rental plus 3,000,000 IDR (~$250 CAD) for homestay accom/meals

Total cost for diving (53 dives) and associated accommodation + most meals: 51,799,660 IDR/~$4,360 CAD

Nusa Penida
I mostly booked Nusa Penida for the chance to see molas and mantas, and they didn't disappoint! Apparently the waters have been warmer this year - they ranged from 26 - 29 degrees C, although lots of thermoclines (I wore a 5mm and still got cold at times!) - but this didn't stop three mola mola making an appearance at Crystal Bay, emerging from the depths right as we began our safety stop! (very grainy video below courtesy a fellow diver Chris Oddy)


We dove a good range of the sites around NP, from the sloping reefs around the north, to the famous Manta Point and Crystal Bay, to drift dives e.g., along Ceningan Wall (probably my top dive site there). Overall the currents were pretty mild - a little all over the place and surgey at Crystal Bay, and some big surge on Manta Bay dive #2 (compared to the amazing dive in manta soup with great viz there the day prior) - but none of the unpredictable down currents I'd read about. Three days was a nice amount of time to see a diversity of sites, I don't think I'd want any more.

Mornings started around 7am for breakfast for those staying at the SJ accommodation, individual plates with a choice between eggs or pancakes, plus fruit, coffee/tea. Dive sites and groups were put up on the whiteboard the afternoon before, with max 3-4 divers/guide and ~3 groups/boat. Full service - once everyone was gathered in reception, it was a short walk through an empty lot down to the beach, to the boats with gear fully set up. We did two dives, then lunch on the boat - everyone had their own lunch box/plate packed, typical Indonesian rice, veggies and then meat or tofu - before a third dive, then back to shore. The crowd leaned more towards younger (20s-30s)/a bit more backpacker vibes, but still a range of ages and experience levels.

SJ were great, a really well oiled machine. Communication with them throughout the booking/lead up process was also 5 star, super responsive and helpful. Not least, when I told them about my previous DCS, they offered to bring in Nitrox from another operator (150K IDR/tank) specifically for me, and had them ready for testing every afternoon for the next day. SJ Komodo then offered the same, really going above and beyond to bring tanks in from Labuan Bajo every day with their guest arrival.

Komodo
I'd read the "sketchy practices" SJ Komodo thread after booking here, but I can't praise these guys enough and am already dreaming of going back. Super professional operation, the most comprehensive briefings I've ever experienced, complete with hand drawn sites done new each dive (see below), and amazing local DMs and instructors as well as a few foreign ones. I think they invest a lot in training up local - and I mean really local, like, from the next village over - DMs/instructors. While they seemed to try and keep divers with the same guide over the course of a visit, for some reason I was with someone different each day, but it was actually a fantastic experience going out with guides who each had their own style. I was fortunate enough to be 1:1 with a guide for three full days, and most groups were 2-3:1.

The dives here were just... incredible. Most days we had really great viz and clear blue sunny skies. I think one of my most magical experiences of this whole trip was just floating gently around in the shallows at the south end of Siaba Kecil after a 'superman' drift dive, the sun sparkling off the colourful soft corals and anemone garden (video below courtesy of a fellow diver Celeste).. Over 5 days I dove most of the Central Komodo sites - unfortunately the day I was scheduled to go north there was a boat issue and we had to redirect, but I guess it's just an excuse to go back sometime. No luck with mantas at Manta Point/Karang Makasssar, and the muck dive (Gindang) wasn't much to write home about (although thorny seahorses, pikachu nudis, ribbon eels and white v octopus were all exciting firsts for me), but the other sites consistently blew me away. I love topography - walls, overhangs, pinnacles - so Polis Point and Batu Bolong were highlights, along with the beautiful corals gardens of Tatawa Kecil, with schools of fusiliers, various trevally, and some of the biggest napoleon wrasse and bumphead parrotfish I've ever seen. Despite often seeing a few other boats around, there were often no or perhaps just one other group in the water with us (the exception being Batu Bolong, waaaaay too crowded).


I was happy to be diving nitrox, as diving with my Shearwater 35/75 GFs there were still a few dives were I got close to my (personal) 10 min NDL limit. Temperatures were ~ 27-28 degrees C, I was still happy in my 5mm! (as a 5'9", ~130lb woman, I don't have a lot of bioprene and have pretty poor circulation, so I get cold!)

Due to the longer distances to sites - usually between 1-1.5 hours - the day usually started at 6.30 - 7am, with breakfast on the boats. The dive boats are large double deckers, the main deck with a table and booth where breakfast and lunch are served, a bench space for storing dry bags/personal gear, small bathroom, and then gear/tanks, again fully set up each morning and between dives. Upstairs was a half sun, half shaded area with bean bags and cushions, perfect for relaxing during SI and the long trips back to the resort. The food was consistently great - all Indonesian style (meat, tempeh, vegetables), with a big buffet for dinner and freshly baked sweet treats waiting for every afternoon back at the resort. I think I've eaten enough donuts/pandan bread/cake on this trip to last a lifetime!

Again, overall, the currents were mild to moderate, with the strongest being on the 'superman' Siaba Kecil drift dive. I posted about my experience with this and currents in general on this trip in the RA advice thread, and, despite some challenging moments, I really felt my confidence and skills grow over my time here.

(continued in a follow up post, reached my limit of attachments!)

 

[melliodora]

continued from above...

Raja Ampat - Arborek
I had heard about Arborek Dive Shop/Raja Ampat from a diver I met in Mexico a few years ago, and that's what kickstarted this dream trip. I specifically went to Arborek to dive with Githa/Arborek Dive Shop, due to her great reputation for supporting local conservation/research initiatives and training locals (including local women) as DMs/guides.

The very rustic homestays on Arborek/throughout Raja Ampat. But, perhaps one of the most beautiful views I've ever woken up to

To be honest, it was initially a bit of a transition coming to this small dive shop from an operation like SJ. It's fully owned and operated by Githa and her husband - she trains the guides, leads dives, runs the business, bakes the cakes for the SI, manages their social media, responds to inquiries, and everything in between. This meant that communication, completely understandably, was a bit more sparse at times in the lead up, but I asked to pay a deposit to secure my spot and checked in once I arrived and all went smoothly.

They have two small boats, each with two guides (Githa being one) and usually 5-7 guests. For my first two days I was on a boat with two of the other guides, one more experienced and one seemingly newer, who spoke fairly limited English (luckily I had studied Bahasa Indonesia in high school, it got a good work out in RA!). This meant that the briefings were fairly basic/limited. I was also a bit nervous diving on air for the first time since my DCS hit, especially in such a remote location. I was pretty vocal in explaining to the guides that I was running more conservative GFs and would let them know when I had to shallow up, and they were really accommodating, but there were quite a few dives where I was a good few metres above the group, or having to decide between staying close to the reef (out of the current) or getting a little closer to my NDL than I personally prefer. Because of this, I generally only did two dives a day, spending the afternoons lazing in my hammock or snorkelling the phenomenal house reef.

There were definitely a range of experience levels during my time there, but I would probably recommend being fairly confident in your skills and being on top of safety before diving here (although that could be said for RA in general). That being said, like SJ she was great at sorting divers based on experience/comfort level, and the two groups on a particular boat tended to either stay relatively close, or link up partway through, so they could be reshuffled as needed based on air consumption.

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Overall, I had an AMAZING time diving with Githa, particularly once I started diving with her personally, and would 100% go back. She just radiates excitement and enthusiasm and love for the oceans and creatures big and small. Every time we saw a manta/reef shark/pygmy seahorse/large school of almost any fish, her excitement was like she was seeing them for the first time, and you can't help but have it rub off on you. She also isn't about hustling for business, perhaps quite the opposite - I think she would prefer less diving and tourism in RA. She is also all about "the vibes", so don't show up just asking to be shown mantas to put on your social media, or expecting to be taken to certain sites. This might turn some folks off, but if you lean into it, you will leave feeling like you have a new dive family/dive mama. I certainly did!


We dove a bunch of sites around Arborek and west Gam, including the famous Arborek jetty (a moderately strong drift dive), Melissa's Garden, and many other less known sites, including one that we went to four mornings in a row just to watch anywhere from 2-7 reef mantas play and glide over the cleaning station. The added benefit was we were usually (always?) the only group around. Apparently a few days after I left, they saw an oceanic manta there! Temps were consistently 29-30 degrees C, and many people were diving just in rashies, but I still wore my 3/2 full.

Raja Ampat - Gam
I was sad, and a little hesitant, to leave Arborek, and wondering if I should cancel my booking with Tarzan just to stay longer. But I'm really glad I went, mostly as it meant a chance to dive sites in the Dampier Strait. I had been a little underwhelmed with some of the dive sites in RA so far, perhaps partly due to lower viz compared to Komodo (at least at the time I was there), and the reefs/corals just felt a little patchier. But so many of the sites I dove in my final days just blew me away, and now I wish I'd had more time at the end.

I was worried about bleaching, and there was definitely evidence of this and other damage/impacts at some sites (e.g., Sawandarek Jetty, Ransiwor). But overall, the corals were just phenomenal, and SO MANY FISH. Fish soup! Giant schools of barracuda, giant trevally, jacks, fusiliers, HUGE napoleon wrasse, and the most magical experiences with a pair of devil rays and a big old eagle ray that followed us along a sloping reef for half a dive. Lao Lao and Mike's Point have to be some of the best, if not the best, dives I've ever done. No oceanic mantas during my dive at Blue Magic (they're back around!) but the coral health and diversity there was phenomenal. I also didn't see any of the reported trash piles in the oceans - its definitely a bit of an issue in the villages/plastic bottles washed up on some beaches, but I hardly saw anything in the water, fortunately.

Tarzan is a relatively new dive shop, German/Indonesian owned. They run a really smooth operation, and boast of having "the fastest (dive) boats in Raja Ampat". Their local DMs were some of the most fun guides I've ever dives with - I don't think I've ever laughed/high fived/had so much fun under water - and were great at clueing into what excited me underwater, with eagle eyes for things like orang utan crabs, pygmy seahorses and cool nudis.

Despite wondering whether a month would be too long away/diving, I was nowhere near ready to leave. Luckily viz is starting to clear up here on the west coast of Canada, although it will be a bit of a shock after these warm tropical waters. I'm already scheming of a trip back to Indo next year...somehow.

 

[melliodora]

And finally, some logistics details, if this helps others planning:

Transport

I live in Canada but tacked this trip on to a family/work visit back to Australia. The major international legs were booked with Air Canada, flying Vancouver - Sydney, then return Jakarta - Singapore - Vancouver. My Australia trip ended in Perth, so it was a cheap (~$200 CAD) flight from there to Bali with Air Asia.

To Nusa Penida: I arrived in Bali late at night on the 20th, and had pre-booked a taxi with Booking.com to pick me up at the airport and take me straight to my accommodation in Sorong, right near the harbour, to get the ferry the next morning. First time pre-booking a taxi and it worked super smoothly, although I would probably avoid in future as these sites take a huge cut and I'd rather more go to the drivers. I stayed at Pondok Nuri - cheap, basic, but clean, A/C, and less than 5 min walk to the harbour (and a wonderful little warung serving 15K IDR breakfasts located around the corner in the quiet alley).

SJ Nusa Penida had pre-booked my fast boat ticket with Angel Billabong ferries, I just had to show up at their office by the ferry terminal, pay the 125K IDR, then straight to the harbour. There are a few harbours on Nusa Penida - SJ are located right by Banjar Nyuh - so make sure you get a ferry to the right one. The fast boat was hot and crowded, but luckily <1 hr journey without any hiccups.

To Komodo: SJ Komodo pick you up in Labuan Bajo to transfer you by boat to their resort further south on Flores, but to make this transfer they require you to get a flight arriving before 2pm. I decided to risk it, and get the early morning (7.30am) fast boat from NP back to Sorong. My trusty taxi driver was there to pick me up, and we hightailed it to DPS airport, making it with lots of time to spare for my 11.45 am flight with Batik Air to Labuan Bajo. SJ can arrange for a taxi to collect you at the LBJ airport (70K IDR) and bring you to their office. They then transport your gear to their boat, and you walk down as a group.

To Raja Ampat: After a morning transfer back to Labuan Bajo I spent a day wandering around town, stocking up on snacks and pharmacy needs, and getting my blocked ears checked out at a local clinic (Klinik Pratama Lanal for anyone who needs - 100K IDR for a check up from a super professional doctor with perfect English. Luckily just waterlogged, nothing two dry days didn't clear up).

After my LBJ - DPS flight with Air Asia, I had originally booked a direct flight with Garuda DPS - Sorong. As seems to be happening a lot (always?), a month or so prior Garuda cancelled the direct flight and re-routed me through Jakarta. Then, the morning I was meant to fly, the DPS - CGK flight was bumped, arriving 15 minutes before the subsequent CGK - SOQ. Cue frantic calls/whatsapp messages to Garuda, eventually cancelling for a refund and panic-rebooking with Sriwijaya air, DPS - Makassar - SOQ, including a fun 3+ hours in the middle of the night in Makassar airport. So much for Garuda being the reliable airline! There was no 9am ferry Sorong - Wasai the day I arrived, and I was so tired I gave in to the offer to share a 6M IDR fast boat with another homestay guest to go straight to Arborek.

Back to Canada: A mission, to say the least. I followed all the advice on the Stay Raja Ampat forum and booked a night in Sorong, as buffer in case ferries were delayed/cancelled. Then, an epic 2+ days travel, flying Garuda from Sorong to Jakarta, 8 hours wait (hot tip: book a massage in the Anara Airport hotel, and they wont mind if you wait in their comfy lounge instead of the airport!), then my final leg home via Singapore.