Papua Explorers Dive Resort or Kri Eco ??

[Luko]

There are very few reviews of RADL here on SB and they are a definite option considering they are even slightly cheaper than Explorers.

You wanted information about RADL, so that's in a nutshell :
- accoms are quite good, nice wooden bungalows with aircon all seafront. There are standard fan rooms which are located nearby or behind the dive centre, haven't seen inside but they might be hot and unpleasant.
- beachfront is okay, a mangrove beach but not really swimmable, whereas the wooden jetty is a lovely place to spend some time looking at the sunset of even for a refreshing swim. The hotel is set at the foot of cliffs covered with jungle, from 5PM you can spot flocks of really big and noisy white parrots flying from trees to trees, all bathing in a golden sunlight while underneath our feet we had a view on fish hunting on silversides. We could spend hours just looking at the views.
- Food might be the only downside (with painfully slow Wifi but who's there for Wifi, to be honest), a mix of untasty and greasy thing on the plate. I've been to many indonesian places, my expectations about food are quite low, but it really needs to be improved to get the average mark here.
- The staff is really friendly, We had nothing but good things to say about them.
- Dive centre : lots of young and enthusiastic dive guides coming from Manado. I've also read the bad tripadvisor report about one of their staff, I cannot imagine it happened with these guys. I believe the bad guy, if there was actually one, has been sacked since. Two speed boats and the main sites 15-20 minutes only boatride away.
- For some unwanted reason I imagine, RADL is evolving below the marketing radar, therefore I spent half a week with only 3 bungalows occupied, the other half with only another family and ourselves. As a result I had one boat and two dive guides Gustin and Fadly only for myself.
- Diving ... you all know the answer. FAN-TAS-TIC!!! Night dives could be arranged from RADL jetty, had my first blue ringed octopus ever, ghostpipefish, pygmy cuttlefish, toadfish (a first one too : I thought the noise was coming above the water), uncommon nudis, etc.
- They also arrange birding trips to Batanta (but didn't go, prefered to dive instead)
- Also thanks to their sales office, they showed they were very flexible, for some reason my bank couldn't make a money transfer to the indonesian bank so they accepted to book us without any deposit.
- conclusion, do I recommend them : YES, would I go back : Immediately if I could afford Raja Ampat every holiday.
- One more tip : stay in Sorong at the Royal Mamberamo, their restaurant is EXCELLENT and its located nearby tribal art/sculpture stalls, where you can buy great gifts back home such as Kotekas (sculpted or woven tribal penis sheaths).

a few images :

Cape Kri sweetlips


Reefscape


Sardines reef


First BRO

 

[AlMitch]

Asked and answered!! Thanks Luko.
It is surprising how little you hear about RADL. Clearly dont have the marketing budget other resorts have.
Pity about the food. Hope you pointed this out to the owners. Tasty food is not difficult to achieve even in the jungle.

Thanks for the Royal Mamberamo tip, I lways wanted a tribal penis sheath! ha ha ha

 

[SpeckledGrouper]

SpottySeaBass any chance of whipping together a trip report on your trip to RA and Bali? There are very few reviews of RADL here on SB and they are a definite option considering they are even slightly cheaper than Explorers.

Luko said it all.........

A few additions:

Reservations and Communications:
Excellent and prompt. I dealt with Linda at their reservation office and got all my emails answered quickly and efficiently. I decided to go through a Travel Agent in California, they accepted my check for deposit and final payment, it was the same price and I didn't have to pay Wire Transfer fees.
Linda did make the flight reservations from Jakarta to Sorong and back to Bali, I did wire them the money for that. They kept on top of the schedule and informed me of any changes.

Accomodations:
We had Bungalow 102, one of the largest and last one in the row, so the most private. Spacious, A/C, comfy bed, hot water, fridge, lovely porch.
We asked for extra pillows, no problem, 2 extra towels, no problem......
We brought Mosquito Coils, Wipes, OFF and everything in between. Didn't need any, NO Bugs!

Staff:
This is really where RADL shines, everybody was so genuinely friendly and caring, we where addressed by first name from the minute they "found" us at Sorong Airport to the minute we left. I cannot say enough about all of them, I actually had tears in my eyes when we left the dock the morning of our return flight.

Wi-Fi:
Yup, sucks bad, but oh well, I got my emails and took a well needed FB break

Diving:
Luko said it. Better than GBR, better than PNG (that one was a hard decision to say, but Raja is just different)
First 2 days, we where the only ones in the boat with 2 Guides (Gusti Made and Joni) and Captain (Hassan), the remainder 4 per boat and we had Made as our guide. He was absolutely phenomenal. He learned what we wanted to see and take pictures and video off, he left us alone when we took time to get that perfect shot, just watched over us and was there when he needed to be there. We started to call him "Eagle Eyes", he was so good at spotting things that I had no idea what I was even taking a picture off until I saw it on the computer screen. I had my heart set on going to Wayag, but it was far and also closed, so we paid extra and went to Fam, which was very very good. I have 2 bad knees and cannot walk or climb ladders with my gear, Made and Hassan made it absolutely effortless for me!

Yeah...the Food:
Well, it wasn't bad, it was edible. Once again it all depends on your taste and what you are used to. I'm an exotic food lover and will put anything in my mouth at least once except bugs...lol, so I could cope with it. My boyfriend, the "meat and potato guy" and also sensitive to spices had a much harder time.
For breakfast it was rice, noodles, an egg dish that rotated every 3 days, scrambled, fried, omelet, scrambled, fried, omelet. Some kind of meat, bacon, sausage (suspect Vienna out of can) or unidentifiable. Toast, jam and fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, never changed), cereal and some fake orange looking drink (Tang?)
For Lunch it was rice, noodles, salad, and then some kind of meat that was mostly overcooked and dry but highly spicy, maybe some other dish and fruit (same melon trio)
For Dinner it was soup, rice, noodles, veggies, 2 kinds of meat or fish, shrimp or squid, all mostly overcooked and dry, but spicy, fruit (guess...), a few nights some cake or jello that wasn't overly exciting either.
Again, it wasn't bad, just not very innovative and too heavy on the spices for people with sensitive stomachs.
What disappointed me the most was that on Christmas day, there was nothing different than the other days, no extra effort was made to spruce up things a bit, same old, same old. Got to give Walindi the points on that one, they put out a spread that was fantastic to say the least.
Yes, they are in the middle of nowhere but come on, how about a fresh Watermelon Juice instead of the Tang, and they do have Oranges there.....How about a freaking Coconut????

Would I travel 13 hours from Jakarta to reach RADL and 19 hours back to Bali again? Yes, I would go back (with a canned ham in the suitcase for Xmas).

 

[AlMitch]

SO all in all RADL seems to be a pretty good option! Thanks Speckled & Luko.

 

[adad28]

I just spend two weeks at Raja Ampat Biodiversity. First I was a bit skeptical because I didn't find any reviews but I was so happy there that instead of the one planned week I skipped my flight and stayed there for one more week. There are just 4 new bungalows, therefore the maximum of diver is 8. Sometimes I was the only person in the resort and I really enjoyed the "dives for experienced divers only" with Rey. The food was awesome, the location is lovely (nice beach, just in front of one of my favorite dive sites "Batu Lima") and everything is organized well. I wouldn't go back to Kri Eco Resort. I was there in October and there were some issues which made me think that I payed too much money for what I got. The bungalows were run down and every day when I checked my equipment on the boat, something was missing (I don't mind setting up my own equipment, as long as I know it beforehand..), the whole organization seemed a bit sloppy and impersonal. Let me know if you want more information.

Hi Andreni, did you dive south of R4? If you can only dive either north or south? where would you go?

Thanks!

 

[AlMitch]

Hi Andreni, did you dive south of R4? If you can only dive either north or south? where would you go?

Thanks!

Adad I've done a LOB that did both N & S. And if you put a gun to my head and said CHOOSE I would go with the N. The N seems to have more fish (schools of fish just seemed bigger) where as the South has more colourful soft coral. Both are BRILLIANT!!
The N also has a far greater choice of resorts, as this thread indicates. The S only has the Misool Eco Lodge as far as I know and it is not cheap!
I know it isn't every ones cup of tea BUT I would strongly suggest doing a LOB for 10 days that does both N & S then you get the best of both. The travel to get to RA from Mexico is HUGE so you may as well do it properly.
Well that's my 2 cents worth!