The Gilis (Trewangan) end October

[Kate in Africa]

Hi everyone, and thanks in advance for any advice you can give me.

My fiance and I are visiting Indonesia in October. Much land-based fun will be had between 16-26 Oct on Java, but we're then planning to head from Java to Bali and immediately take the boat from Bali to Gili Trewangan on 27th Oct (as we understand the diving in the Gilis is better than on Bali?). We'll be there 3 days.

I see from various posts on this forum that the Gilis diving is not as great as can be found elsewhere in Indonesia, but we're piggybacking on my soon-to-be brother in law's itinerary and don't think we can really get anywhere else from Bali for such a short time. PLus, the Gilis do look fairly beautiful!

So - what are the best dive sites in the Gilis? And who is the best operator (we've read good things about the new 5* Manta dive Manta Dive - Dives trips, Dive courses, accomodation, getting here, Villas, transfers, Manta Dive, diving, scuba, dives, dive courses, dive shops, the Gilis, Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Bali, Indonesia, accommodation, Padi, SSI, courses, Open water, adva)? We don't have to be based on trewangan but it seems to be the obvious choice...

I read that the coral is quite bleached and damaged in some parts (but that it has improved in the last few years - is this true?), and that sharks and turtles are abundant and there's a good muck dive for the small stuff. I've also read that it's possible to see mantas from end October - whcih is something we would absolutely love! Has anyone seen them here, and if so what are the chances??

Any other info or advice would be gratefully received! As I say, we're piggybacking on someone else's itinerary here, so I'm a lot less well-informed on this area than if I'd planned it myself!!

Thanks!
Kate

 

[ScubaduoAdventures]

We have traveled and been diving around Indonesia for years now and we did enjoy 2 wonderful laid back weeks staying on Gili Trewangan.
As you probably have read it is a big backpacker destination and a lot of people go there to do dive courses. Though the Gilis are very nice and there is some good diving to be had they due not compare to other dive areas around Indonesia and the Tulamben and northern parts of Bali would probably be better just for diving. That being said we really did like Gili and the diving is good and you will see some nice corals and fish life. we did not see any Mantas but there are some white tips to be had. We were primarily there to kill some time waiting for a liveaboard we had chartered thru Blue Marlin to go to Komodo which was fantastic. We also did some technical Trimix diving with Blue Marlin and really liked them and there operation , of course they also cater to recreational divers.
We did not stay at The Manta resort but it looked very nice. The nice thing about Gili is that there is a lot of very nice places to stay in all kinds of budgets and some very nice restaurants and most everything is on or by the water.
You should just be aware that Gili is very popular during the summer months and everything is close together. They enjoy having full moon party's and other party's also and they can go very loudly most the night which is fun unless you want to actually sleep so you may want to ask Manta resort about this. Gili Air is a lot more quite if that is what you are looking for.

 

[Kate in Africa]

Thanks very much, Scubaduo! So with our 4 days, do you think it would be better to stay on Bali longer and try to get to the best sites there, and then perhaps just one night on the Gilis for the experience? Not sure we're that interested in the full moon parties; do they go on all through October-November too, or just summer months?

I know you can never guarantee wildlife, but as I say, we'd love to see Manta and we've also just been told Mola Mola (sunfish) migrate around Bali Oct-Nov. Has anyone seen them at that time of year and if so, where?

Our itinerary on these 4 days may be a bit flexible, so I'd like to know where are considered to be the best dive sites on Bali and the Gilis so I can work out an order of preference! I wish we had longer!

Thanks!
Kate

 

[Warmwater Wank]

K--At home it's always easy for me to imagine getting around to all sorts of places and wanting to see them all. When I get somewhere I'm reminded how nice it is to spend some time really seeing a place. When you factor in jet lag, travel hassles and even just dealing w/ traffic "less can be more" (my buddy Les Izzmore says this all the time...). If you want to dive and enjoy it, I'd say 4 days around Tulamben is not enough time. Bali is really a great place!

If you want to travel and see more country (and diving is a secondary concern) then sure, add more stops. Losing dive days because of waiting to fly etc. needs to be factored in as does getting around once you get somewhere (it's a 2hr drive to Tulamben from the airport and not a drive I'd want to do my own driving for!). We spent 8 days at Tulamben Wreck Divers and didn't run out of great places to dive (they can get you over to nearby places like Amed, Seraya etc.). We were there in early December and didn't have any expectations on what we would see, so we were knocked out by the variety. Didn't see any mola-mola (though one was reported, despite the lateness of the season). Manta are not near Tulamben but could be accessed through other dive operators on that side of the island. // ww

 

[ScubaduoAdventures]

We agree with Warmwaters comments that if you are really only using four days you will want to pick one area to try to stay in and dive.
As far as Gili since you will be there in October you will be in at low season and it will not be as crowded but the party's will probably still go on again I would contact the resort and simply ask them if this is a concern. You should not have your heart set on either seeing the Mola-Molas or Mantas from the Gilis though. If this is what you want to try and see you will want to dive around Penida Island which is off of southern Bali closer to the airport. October is a good month to try and see them and there is also Mantas in that same area and the other diving such as corals is quite nice also. It is best then to either stay in the Sanur area of Bali or on the Island itself which has some small resorts. One thing to consider is because the Mola Molas come up from the deep waters around the island the water is a lot cooler than other parts of Bali. You should at least have a 5mm suit and a vest helps out also, your dive operator might rent them but be sure to ask and here is a link to one that offers a package if you google Mola Mola diving Bali you will find some more.
Bali Sunfish Bali | Mola Mola Bali

Also as mentioned before the Tulamben area in the north of Bali is better diving than from Gili, again you probably will not see the Mola MOla or Mantas but the Liberty wreck is very good and Seraya has great small critters to see Google search for the Seraya resort it is very nice

 

[philip2711]

Hi Kate in Africa,
All the advice is spot on so far; I'd just share with you my own recent adventures having just returned from two weeks split between Gili Trawangan and Tulamben.
First logisitcs; getting to GT is an easy fast ferry ride from a number of ports on the east costs of Bali - Benoa being the one closest to the Kuta / Seminyak and Denpasar areas but there are also operations that run from Padang Bai further north and also Amed, just south of Tulamben. Travelling by sea is definitely quicker than by road!
The diving - I know that some people look down on GT in comparison to Tulamben and Nusa Penida but I found it to be in places quite beautiful; something of everything, and although there are areas of destroyed coral from dynamite fishing, there are equally areas of real beauty; there was just great visibility and the diving was comfortable - all boat dives, drift dives with little current (variable of course during the month) and just plain relaxing. If you want laid back for the 4 days then GT is perfect. Of course you can choose the quieter islands of Gili Air or Gili Meno, but in all honesty there are quiet parts of GT too, - i stayed at Trawangan Dive towards the northern end of the island and found it very quiet at night but 10 mins stroll from the action if needed; on the other islands you simply don't get the action! I can't comment on the operation of the other dive ops like Blue Marlin or Manta, but both seemed larger and perhaps less personal than Trawangan Dive; I loved the close relationship with staff, team and DMs (mostly Anglos such as English, South African, Canadian etc) that I built up during the week. TD also have their own recently built comfortable bungalows so all in all I'd say it would be a good choice given the limited time you have.
As for Tulamben, it is about 2:30 hrs from Kuta area and a scenic ride - although after Java, perhaps you'll be a little less in awe than the first time visitor. I stayed in Tauch Terminal - on strength of knowing one of the managers from a previous trip to Lembeh. The diving is very different; dominated by the USS Liberty wreck and the crowds of day trippers that come up from Kuta or are part of 'safari packages'. Tauch Terminal is on the shore line and Wreck Divers is 100 metres inland on the other side of the road. Most dives are shore dives (with local people carrying gear to and from point of entry). Once done for first time with DM, then you can do all these dives alone and in fact for all the communication of the DMs (all local) you're probably better off doing that. There are 3-4 'boat' trips - short dugouts that can take 2-3 divers max, gear on in water and a little but to be honest - with only 3 days available to you, going to other parts - giving due consideration to the time on the roads, you're better off staying put and maximising the time diving. Tauch Terminal is very comfortable, 2 pools, lovely gardens etc but not cheap.
The choice is yours!
Philip

 

[Kate in Africa]

Thank you so much everyone for your comments, and I'm so sorry not to have posted again sooner to say so! I really appreciate all the advice.

It's been a bit awkward to plan this, as the brother in law (who's itinerary it is) has now started his great adventure for the year - so the next time we're seeing him will be in Indo!

After a lot of discussion, we're sticking to just Bali for those 4 days - I'd love to see the Gilis, but as we're only arriving on Bali on 27th, and have to fly on the 30th to Singapore (at lunchtime) we'll only be able to dive 27th, 28th and a morning dive on 29th.

I don't think we can do the wreck - we'll be with 2 Open water divers and I've read it's at 40m? But Penida Island sounds really good, so I think we'll definitely try to get there!

Thanks so much again,
Kate

 

[philip2711]

Hi KiA,
Not pushing one place or the other, but couldn't help but notice your comment on the "wreck" being at 40m. If you are referring to the USS Liberty at Tulamben that's not the full story. This is actually a wreck that you can snorkel over. It starts in as little as 3 -5 metres. True it does go down to 30+ at the deepest point but there'd be no shortage of things to do and see within safe limits for those not used to diving a little deeper. You should balance that against the sometimes tricky currents that Nusa Penida gets.
Take Care - Philip2711

 

[Kate in Africa]

Thanks Phillip2711 - yes, since reading some inaccurate dive book descriptions about how the Liberty wreck starts at 40m (?!!) I've done a lot more research and we're definitely diving it. My fiancee and I are AOWs with just 40 dives under our belt, but our companions are 1 OW with 30 dives and 1 OW with about 5 dives (she'll only be learning in Thailand before coming to Indo to meet us). So we will need to take it a bit easy.

I had read that Nusa Penida currents can be strong - do you know if this is likely to be fast drift currents, or more scary changeable ones? Bali Scuba in Sanur has said they'd provide a private DM just to look after the 2 OWs when we dive - so do you think that would be OK? Do you know Bali Scuba? We have not booked anything yet, but I have read some good reviews of their operation...

Thanks
Kate

 

[Stijn]

There is a smaller wreck on the coast of Lombok about a 40 minute boat drive from Trawangan that sits on 40 meter on the sand. It's small and not really worth the effort. I would do the one in Bali which starts at 3 meters or shallower if low tide.

Enjoy!