Tulamben - where to stay? Mimpi, Liberty, Seraya, TWD, Tauch...which is best?

[Leejnd]

My husband and I (advanced divers) are traveling to Bali in the fall, and wish to spend 3 nights in Tulamben to dive the Liberty wreck. I've been to Bali before, but ended up with Bali Belly on the days I was supposed to be in Tulamben, so I'm thrilled that I'm getting back there and will finally get to dive it. We'll have another couple with us who are not divers, but they love to snorkel and understand that we will be out all day diving.

Now the big question: where do we stay? We are willing to pony up for a nice place, provided it's worth it - this is also our 30th anniversary, so we're going as deluxe as we can afford. We'd love to get a beachfront cottage, but we can't seem to find just the right place.

So...any suggestions? I've been reading up on TripAdvisor, but I can't decide. Here's where I'm at:

Mimpi seems to have the nicest beachfront cottages, but they are 8th out of 10 hotels on TripAdvisor, and get some pretty spotty reviews, especially for staff, cleanliness and food. It's also the most expensive, so I don't want to pay top dollar if it's not going to be a top-dollar experience.

Liberty Dive Resort is listed as #1, and it gets rave reviews, but it doesn't have a beach-front cottage or villa.

Scuba Seraya gets good reviews and has sea-view villas, but they are pricier than other places and no free wi-fi, and it's apparently not real close to the Liberty wreck.

Tulamben Wreck Divers -- this one looked really promising, with nice affordable beachfront villas and the dive shop right in front of the Liberty, but I just discovered that the villas are a good mile from the resort itself so convenience is an issue.

Tauch Terminal - They have seaview cottages for a great price and this looks promising, but why are their reviews so spotty? Only 7th out of 10.

And on and on...just haven't found the right place yet. Would LOVE any insider information! Again, we're willing to pay for the nicest, but only if it's worth the money.

Thanks for any help!

 

[ukdave0]

I stayed at Mimpi for one night. Thought it was nice. The deluxe rooms have a nice secluded feel to them. You 1st enter through a gate to get to your garden/ room. Enjoyed the outdoor bathroom and the private detached cabana with comfy sofa and beach view. Don't remember much about the food.

It's a short 3 minute walk to where all the divers congregate.

 

[divewench1]

How about Villa Markisa? VILLA MARKISA - PRIVATE BEACH BUNGALOWS - DIVE RESORT - BALI :: Home as a special for your anniversary.

 

[Tippytoes12]

We stayed in Scuba Sereya and Tauch Tulamben....Tauch is far far better. The location ....just opposite the wreck ...is so perfect...did dawn dive and night dives on the wreck which were awesome. Their newer rooms are beautiful....sea facing and beautifully furnished. The food in both places is just OK and also the pool in Tauch T is far nicer. We also found the dive guides even more friendly in Tauch than in Scuba Sereya.


Have a great trip

 

[Leejnd]

I ruled out Villa Markisa because they have a mandatory full board of $40 a day, which is outrageous. We want to have the option of dining elsewhere. It looks very nice, but I'm not going to be forced to pay $40 a day to eat, when all the other resorts include breakfast and a reasonably-priced menu for other meals. Plus the dive prices seem to be the highest. While this looks like the most deluxe spot, and I'm willing to pay for deluxe to a point, I'm not willing to pay that much more for food/dives. That just prices the whole thing outside of our budget. Which is a shame, because the Sonata Villa looks like it would be perfect.

Tauch Terminal is looking better...they have a "family room" which appears to be two bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms off a main living room area. That may be a good option for us, although it doesn't look particularly luxe. And I'm still concerned about the spotty reviews...so, back to my research!

Still open to any other comments/feedback...keep it coming!

 

[Hintermann]

I am gong there in June and have booked with Liberty because i found them very flexible and helpful. They provide you with personal guides and as long as it is practical, try to let you do the itinerary. They come-up with suggestions for the best dive sites. I found Wayan very helpful.

 

[alcina]

I have friends who stay at the beach front villas Tulamben Wreck Divers about three times a year and they adore it. They provide transport to the dive sites and I believe that scooters are included, too. Drop them a line and ask. Sybille does the emails and Tony & Dot own it - all are super people.

Scuba Seraya is beautiful, but a ways from the wreck. The upside is it is right in front of some of the best muck diving in the whole area - that whole Seraya/Melasti etc bay is phenomenal for critters.

The wreck is, I guess, worth doing, but as I'm far more into the weird and wonderful of the underwater world, once would have been fine for me

 

[Wisnu]

we stayed on Liberty for the 3rd time on mid of Dec. 2013. Indeed, the beach is not exactly on their front; still withing walking distance, 80 m away. Their service is top class.
Next door to liberty is Tulamben ocean view - more luxury room with direct view to the beach. Never stayed there - we only stopped just to look their room which was quite nice.

 

[MothaNetha]

For the 30th anniversary trip, beachfront room is mandatory

That leaves you with Tauch Terminal and Mimpi Resort. I'd take out Seraya for the diving hassles (boat transfers) to the main Tulamben's sites (Wreck , Coral garden & Drop Off).

Used to stay at Mimpi since 2004, but shifted happily to Tauch Terminal (TT) in 2010 till now, due to better & much bigger room, cleanliness, better food and service, and all rooms are facing the ocean as opposed to Mimpi's bungalows (they have only 4 ocean view rooms, very overpriced, the rest are garden view rooms). TT has two swimming pools, both overlooking the ocean. Diving off the resort is easy, wreck is a 75m walk or swim, Coral Garden is front of the resort, Drop Off is the furthest (300m walk). Ask for rooms #2 to #6 (newer rooms, bigger terrace with sundeck, ground floor).

There's a lot of Germans (hence the resort name).

 

[clownfishsydney]

In 2012 we stayed at Tulamben Wreck Divers beachfront villas. Brilliant location and rooms. Yes, they are about 800 m north of town, but as stated above, you get a free scooter to use. If scooter riding is not for you (it is not like the rest of Bali, very little traffic), then their other accommodation is also very nice. We are going back again for two weeks this August.

Last year our club did a trip to Villa Markisa. Everyone loved it so much there is another trip going there this June.