poll: Manado or Komodo

[takoyaki]

If you had to choose between Manado and Komodo, which one would you choose? Why?

 

[Batfish]

As an overall destination I would personally choose Manado, though would have to include Lembeh in the mix as they are close together. Something like 4 days in Manado (well, Bunaken) followed by 4 days at Lembeh would be ideal for a mix of marine life, plenty of critters and some comfort in the resorts. Some of the liveaboards in Komodo are nice, but (maybe I'm getting old) I like a good resort...maybe a new poll for that..do you like resorts or liveaboards?

The dive sites:

Bunaken Marine Park

Lembeh Strait

Komodo

 

[hallboy]

If you want easy diving and extraordinary small stuff ( but in bunaken, you also could see big turtles, a few barracuddas, some sharks, some Napoleons, bumpheads parrotfishes if you are lucky ) Go to Bunaken. I will recomend celebes divers whithout a doubt.
If you want more big stuff go to Komodo but water can be colder, and current sometimes pretty wild. Dive op Reefseekers in Labuan bajo: they are there the all year long. every years.

 

[dawhale]

Depends what kind of diving you like and what you may want to see. I do not much care for walls and personally did not care for Bunaken. On the other hand the Lembeh Strait was awsome for macro. I stayed at Kungkungan Bay Resort. I did a live-aboard for the Komodo area and would gladly return. I can not rate one over the other as Lembeh / Komodo are night and day but both are excellent. This is probably not a popular opinion but I would give Bunaken a pass. If you dive Manado take a trip to Banga Island. The place is loaded with soft corals. dawhale

 

[Bowmouth]

If you had to choose between Manado and Komodo, which one would you choose? Why?

They're both great dive destinations so regardless of which destination you eventually will do you can be assured of some very nice diving.

Manado MUST be done with a couple of days in Lembeh and preferably also at Bangka and Ruang and a day or so at Bunaken. Many divers don't realize that Bunaken has some VERY unusual small critters that are not found for instance in Lembeh. A good example is the Hippocampus Pontohi; the latest pygmy seahorse found first on the walls of Bunaken. It's a pygmy seahorse that is NOT associated with a fan and VERY hard to find. Another example is the possibility to see a dugong under water; an unexpected pleasure I had while diving at Bangka but is more common at Bunaken sites. The Bunaken Marine Park also includes mainland sites like Po-Po (sometimes called Bethlehem) with incredible easy and fantastic muck diving comparable (or better) than Lembeh. Besides lots of resorts there are also two Liveaboard options in Manado; The Agressor and Ocean Rover.

Komodo has fantastic diving too and the Komodo dragons are a special treat besides all the great diving. Fish and critter life on your Komodo trip can be truly mind boggling but currents can be tough too. Komodo is a Liveaboard destination only though and if you do not like being on a boat for a good week Manado is your better choice.

 

[Nut Bubblefish]

I fully agree with Hallboy, including for the dive operators. To me, he had made the right choices.

 

[pelan-pelan]

Never under-estimate Manado-side for macro. And its warmer than Lembeh. They are only just starting to realise the wealth of critters there. Poh-poh is the site that is becoming known, but there are others. Shore dive at lumbalumbadiving which is at Mokupa, between Manado and Tasik Ria. After three days you still won't have seen everything around their jetty. And there's still Poh-Poh and the other macro sites very close by. And their beautfiul eco-conscious dive lodge.

Preference - several days at lumbalumba and then cross to Bunaken. Try asking if you can be picked up by your Bunaken centre's boat from lumbalumba's when they go across to dive Bunaken's walls. Easy transfer!