Sulawesi - 3 weeks

[Sebs]

My girlfriend and I are currently staying at black sands dive retreat and cannot recommend it enough. We have a beautiful villa (with AC) overlooking the bay, the food is a la carte and tasty and overall the resort is quite cheap, all things considered. We are paying 600 euros each for the 4N/6 dives package (+1 unguided house Reef dive/day free). From my research this was considerably cheaper than NAD and murex. Lembeh strait is so small that you don't really need to stay on lembeh itself to get to all the sites.

As for your questions:
I think 4 days is a good length of time, especially if you do the unguided dives and tack on some night dives. If you really like muck diving, do 5 days or longer. The resort is so beautiful you can just sit on your balcony and enjoy the view.

Can't comment on the mandarin dive or Blackwater dive as we have done neither.

We've seen amazing stuff here. Wunderpus, ornate ghost pipefish, flamboyant cuttlefish, even a stargazer on an afternoon dive.

We'll be coming back. If you have any other questions, ask away!

 

[Jay_Remi]

Thank you all for your kind input and suggestions; that was super useful.
After some discussion with my wife, she is not terribly convinced that it is the right season to travel to Sulawesi at that time of the year. Of course, the weather is unpredictable, but she prefers that we go when there is much less chance of rain.
So, Sulawesi will be for another time (but very soon I am sure). I am keeping all the valuable info gathered here for later.
I think we will go to the Philippines instead.
Again, big thanks to you all.

 

[Pearlman]

How responsive is Murex typically to email enquiries? I am planning a trip and emailed them two days back about reservations and pricing but got nothing back but dead silence ….

 

[Centrals]

How responsive is Murex typically to email enquiries? I am planning a trip and emailed them two days back about reservations and pricing but got nothing back but dead silence ….

You can chat with them on line.

 

[Jay_Remi]

How responsive is Murex typically to email enquiries? I am planning a trip and emailed them two days back about reservations and pricing but got nothing back but dead silence ….

They have been pretty responsive to me when I inquired. Did you try: reservations@murexresorts.com?

 

[Pearlman]

Yep ok I found them on WhatsApp and got their attention. Thanks

 

[Pearlman]

I don’t see a Murex Resort at Bunaken only at Manado - So where do the divers stay when doing the passport trip?

 

[Luko]

- So where do the divers stay when doing the passport trip?

In Murex Manado resort for the Manado/Bunaken part, then Murex Bangka and Lembeh resort.
From Manado they offer diving on Bunaken as well as more closer options you can also dive the Mainland spots such as Popo or mucky dives like City Express. More options for dining out or landtours as well.

 

[Tippytoes12]

My girlfriend and I are currently staying at black sands dive retreat and cannot recommend it enough. We have a beautiful villa (with AC) overlooking the bay, the food is a la carte and tasty and overall the resort is quite cheap, all things considered. We are paying 600 euros each for the 4N/6 dives package (+1 unguided house Reef dive/day free). From my research this was considerably cheaper than NAD and murex. Lembeh strait is so small that you don't really need to stay on lembeh itself to get to all the sites.

As for your questions:
I think 4 days is a good length of time, especially if you do the unguided dives and tack on some night dives. If you really like muck diving, do 5 days or longer. The resort is so beautiful you can just sit on your balcony and enjoy the view.

Can't comment on the mandarin dive or Blackwater dive as we have done neither.

We've seen amazing stuff here. Wunderpus, ornate ghost pipefish, flamboyant cuttlefish, even a stargazer on an afternoon dive.

We'll be coming back. If you have any other questions, ask away!

My husband and I recently left Black Sand, third stay for me. It is absolutely wonderful and the diving was as always sublime. The food was probably even better than the last times and with only six cottage it never feels crowded. Also there is a maximum of four divers plus guides on the boat. It seems as if every buddy pair has their own guide. There is a fantastic house reef, best explored at night, we saw stargazers, bobtail squid, devil scorpionfish, lots of octopus, great nudis, shrimp, crabs, catfish, eels, cuttlefish to name but a few. Motoring back across the bay after one morning dive, after seeing a baby blue ring, a big spotty fin appeared in the water in front of the boat…..a juvenile whaleshark ! PS have just seen that you have decided to go to the Philippines, wishing you a great trip !

 

[Centrals]

I don’t see a Murex Resort at Bunaken only at Manado - So where do the divers stay when doing the passport trip?

The resort is on the mainland rather than Bunaken Island. These two areas offer slightly different sites because of the distance. You need to know what kind of diving you prefer.
Resort in Manado can offer better facilities for comfort.