Pick one spot at Bali - Tulamben or Nusa Penida?

[scorpenesub]

If your husband doesnt like the marco stuff, there is only Nusa for you. But beware the surges... the upcurrent and downcurrent... you said you are intermediate divers (around 50 dives)...what exactly is your certification... OW, OW or higher. IF you have only OW, forget Nusa, 18 metre depth limit is merely skimming the top at NUsa. You need AOW to enjoy Nusa, better if you have trimix certification.....

 

[silent running]

You need AOW to enjoy Nusa, better if you have trimix certification.....

Hello scorpenesub, I dive tmix CCR and I'll be in the South Bali area in late April. On previous trips to Komodo diving tmix, I found that the fish life is great down to about 65M-lots of big stuff-and starts to thin out at about 75M. What kind of depth do you think is optimal for Nusa and which sites? -Andy

 

[Bali-Freak]

You need AOW to enjoy Nusa, better if you have trimix certification.....

I wouldn't do any dives requiring deco at Nusa - the currents are way too strong and decidely unpredictable. It would be so easy to run out of reef (or get pushed away from the reef) during a long hang and end up in the blue, and easy for your boat to lose you - the surface and underwater currents often run in opposite directions so maintaining an SMB for any length of time can be troublesome. Also (as you mentioned) currents can pull you both down and up so sticking to stops would be difficult.

Tulamben & Menjangan are good for tec though ...

 

[Travelnsj]

Sharka....I have stayed in both Amed and Tulamben and had lunch and dinner many times....I found no 5 star restaurants...but the meals were always good in the outside Cafes....If you are looking for the Ritz or a Ruth Chris...you will not find it there.....I go for the diving.

 

[Sharka]

Hi thanks so much - we are around 50 dives with AOW. I understand the whole upsurge thing - sometimes it's hard to manage that, especially for people like me who really just don't dive frequent enough (unlike people who dive for a living or can dive locally), together with the cold water temp nusa penida maybe tough...

Agree Tulamben is more well suited. East Bali seems like commercialized anyway. I don't need to have fancy 5 star food everyday (heck we live in NY, so we can do that at home). I guess I just don't want to eat peanut butter sandwich on our honeymoon. I'll be happy eating good cheapy local indo food for a couple of days (sort of like eating good cheapy local chinese food) - things that locals will eat and like it's good (not tourist trap or semi-western concoctions for tourist palate). I am assuming you can find that in Tulamben?

 

[Travelnsj]

Yes many things have a western twist (even pizza) and spicy if you like....I have always found great food and great atmosphere....and I have never ate at a cheapy local indo food place...LOL....remember Bali has many Australians that go there.

 

[Wisnu]

Sharka
Food in Tulamben is not that bad and you have several choices; ther's more than 10 restaurants in Tulamben area mostly belong to the hotel.
However I have to agree, western food particularly beef based meal is far below western standard or even my "local" standard. Balinese predominanly Hindu does not eat beef. They buy frozen beef from Denpasar, 3 hours away and refreeze and keep in fridge for few few days or week; same thing with bread. They also may serve very sweet orange syrup instead of unsweetened orange juice.
So, do not expect to have tender and juicy steak there but still okay for local or oriental spicy stir fried style cooks and served with warm fragance rice. For sea food please ask and check for fresh catch only; and you will have inexpensive good seafood.
You can also ask the duty manager if you have any specific preference; they will try to accomodate your special request.
Or, another tips, on the way to Tulamben you can ask the driver to stop at makro (not far from airport) or carrefour at Kuta where you can purchase good quality imported fruit juice, beer, cheese, wine ect.
Other alternative, less expensive than amankila but still luxury is Alila Manggis, luxury seaside resort in East Bali very close to Candidasa dive sites.
Cheer

 

[laughingman]

Food at Scuba Seraya is quite good. Not a huge selection, but all done very well. And if your fiance is a "wuss" as you say, you barely have to walk ten feet to get to the water for great macro. We saw a sea horse and harlequin shrimp on our first dive. Make sure you dive Batu Kelebit and the Tulamben drop off as well as the Liberty wreck. I can't think of a nicer place for a Honeymoon, and we've visited some lovely places. Go for one of the Villas, with the hot tub and bale begong (outdoor day bed). You'll have plenty of privacy and be close to plenty of dives to keep you busy for a week.

 

[Bali-Freak]

Other alternative, less expensive than amankila but still luxury is Alila Manggis, luxury seaside resort in East Bali very close to Candidasa dive sites.
Cheer

Mmmmm .. one of my favourite hotels in Bali. Simple, but absolutely relaxing, with fantastic food. About $100/night, give or take.

 

[Manuel Sam]

Sharka,

I agree with Wisnu: the food in Tulamben is decent. I don't think that you or your SO will go hungry. At least in Tauch Terminal, there is enough choice in the menu to provide a satisfying meal for a week, and in a worst case scenario, I can live on Nasi Goren (Indo fried rice) or Mi Goren (Indo fried noodles) for several days. At least once a week, they have a buffet BBQ, and that's a good take. I'm sure Mimpi has decent food too. I didn't venture out so I don't know what the food is like at other Tulamben places.

As far as diving Nusa Penida, keep in mind that not all of the Nusa Penida dives expose you to constant surge and possible up and down currents. 50 dives experience may not be a lot of dives in relative terms, but it also depends a lot on how comfortable you are in the water.

Also, you could request that the operator NOT take you to dive sites like Crystal Bay, which can be pretty wild, but instead to some of the sites on the more sheltered side, like where the Schoolhouse is. At least when I was there, you drift in a current with little or no surge and there was no up or down currents.......and we still saw Mola-Molas, altho they were beyond 100 ft. Be aware also that Nusa Penida tends to be colder water - lo 70's or worse.