Trip Report - Misool Eco Resort

[Laval]

Here is my 'delayed' trip report about diving in Misool in February 2018.

Misool Eco Resort is a really nice resort to visit and dive. This was my first dive trip to Raja Ampat, and I was impressed with marine biodiversity.

At the same time, I should mention that during our 9-day stay I (and a number of other divers) started to skip some dives because the number of very good dive sites (like Magic Mountain) is limited. As such, I would not recommend purchasing the unlimited dive package.

If you have never been to Raja Ampat, be prepared to be impressed, but if you had a chance to dive at Dampier Strait, you could be disappointed a bit.

To get to the resort is quite a challenge. First you would have to get to Sorong (i.e. via Hong Kong and Jakarta). Then, from Sorong it will take about 4.5 hrs by a speed boat. Good news is that they have their own speed boat now, which I assume would provide a more comfortable ride.

They will meet you at the airport (at 6:30 am in our case), bring you to their office in Sorong, give you a bottle of water, and you will watch a TV for an hour or two. No food..., and you could not buy anything from them if you do not have local currency. For some reason, they do not accept credit cards at that place.

The last day of the stay is actually a 'write-off', because you have to vacate your cottage after breakfast and sit on your luggage half a day waiting for a new group to arrive. Then they bring you to Sorong by the end of the day, where you have to stay overnight.

We stayed at water cottage #5, which provided most privacy and was very nice. It was very convenient for my wife, who is a snorkeler, as she could have good snorkelling by just stepping down a few steps from the cottage.

Management and staff were very good and everything was organized very well.

For food, however, I would give them 3 stars only. In general, we do not like Indonesian food, but other guests were complaining about food as well. Also, my wife and at least one other guest were severely poisoned by tuna. At the same time, we like their fruits, juices and teas.

In addition, I should mention that the sea in Misool was quite littered with plastic (both on surface and underwater), which I understand is quite typical for this area.

Overall, we like our trip to Misool. But would we come back? Most probably not.

Below is my more detailed rating:

Getting there and back - 3 stars
Accommodation - 5 stars
Resorts grounds - 4 stars
Diving - 4 stars
Environmental Sensitivity - 5+ stars
Management, staff and attitude - 5 stars
Food - 3 stars
Value for money - 3 stars

Here is a link to my short video about Diving in Misool:

 

[Cali_diver]

Wow that is kind of a bummer that you had to overnight in Sorong at the end of the trip.

 

[Thrawn7]

Wow that is kind of a bummer that you had to overnight in Sorong at the end of the trip.

Last day is pretty much always a write-off anyway because of no-fly limits (and flights out of Sorong are usually fairly early in the morning). I'd rather relax in the resort during no-fly then sticking it out in Sorong. Maybe you can do a dive or two in the morning after you have checked out ?

 

[Cali_diver]

Last day is pretty much always a write-off anyway because of no-fly limits (and flights out of Sorong are usually fairly early in the morning). I'd rather relax in the resort during no-fly then sticking it out in Sorong. Maybe you can do a dive or two in the morning after you have checked out ?

I would much rather overnight where my International flight will be departing. Too much can go wrong with flights out of Sorong. This would probably add on another overnight in Jakarta or Bali for those of us that have to fly back to the States or such. That and it's So-Wrong ...

 

[Searcaigh]

Interesting report and nice video.

and you could not buy anything from them if you do not have local currency.

Tends to be the way in that part of the world, so I wonder why you didn't have any?

4.5 hours travel by boat is a long trip, fine if the weather is good but a rough journey wouldn't be much fun in a small boat.

 

[Stoo]

Misool has been on our bucket list so you're report is kind of disappointing. On the other hand, your video makes it look fantastic.

Thanks for the report!

 

[Laval]

Misool has been on our bucket list so you're report is kind of disappointing. On the other hand, your video makes it look fantastic.

Thanks for the report!

 

[Mike Veitch]

At the same time, I should mention that during our 9-day stay I (and a number of other divers) started to skip some dives because the number of very good dive sites (like Magic Mountain) is limited. As such, I would not recommend purchasing the unlimited dive package.

If you have never been to Raja Ampat, be prepared to be impressed, but if you had a chance to dive at Dampier Strait, you could be disappointed a bit.

Interesting... which sites didn't you like?

 

[Laval]

Stoo, Thank you for your comment about my video. Misool is a very good dive resort and diving is very good. At the same time, while at Misool, I felt that diving is a little bit not what I expected, even considering that it was my first trip to Raja Ampat. At Misool we met a very experienced diver from France (with about 40 dive trips to Indonesia), who, to my surprise, started to skip many dives, and in response to my question 'why?', said that he is not fully satisfied with diving at Misool. He rated diving at Misool as # 3 (after Sorido Bay Resort and Komodo). So, I followed his recommendation and booked a trip to Sorido Bay Resort. I decided to delay my 'Misool' report until after the trip to Sorido Bay Resort (SBR) to be able to compare these resorts. Also, at SBR other divers who went to both resorts (SBR and Misool), unenimously voted SBR as a better resort. To date, based my interviews, the score is 6 : 0 for SBR, where diving and accommodations are better, travel to and from is easier and much shorter, resort is smaller and less expensive.

Also, keep in mind that there is another sister resort, Kri Eco Resort (KER), on the same island as SBR. KER is a more basic resort (i.e. no air conditioning) and is cheaper compared to SBR, but they dive the same sites, and their house reef is better. We often went there for snorkelling.

 

[Stoo]

Stoo, Thank you for your comment about my video. Misool is a very good dive resort and diving is very good. At the same time, while at Misool, I felt that diving is a little bit not what I expected, even considering that it was my first trip to Raja Ampat. At Misool we met a very experienced diver from France (with about 40 dive trips to Indonesia), who, to my surprise, started to skip many dives, and in response to my question 'why?', said that he is not fully satisfied with diving at Misool. He rated diving at Misool as # 3 (after Sorido Bay Resort and Komodo). So, I followed his recommendation and booked a trip to Sorido Bay Resort. I decided to delay my 'Misool' report until after the trip to Sorido Bay Resort (SBR) to be able to compare these resorts. Also, at SBR other divers who went to both resorts (SBR and Misool), unenimously voted SBR as a better resort. To date, based my interviews, the score is 6 : 0 for SBR, where diving and accommodations are better, travel to and from is easier and much shorter, resort is smaller and less expensive.

Also, keep in mind that there is another sister resort, Kri Eco Resort (KER), on the same island as SBR. KER is a more basic resort (i.e. no air conditioning) and is cheaper compared to SBR, but they dive the same sites, and their house reef is better. We often went there for snorkelling.

Thanks @Laval I'll have to look into those as well. We're likely two years away due to work commitments, so when we go, our plan is to go for several weeks.