Where to dive in Asia (from now until next year)

[Miffy]

Yes, another question about where to dive in Asia, but after spending 3 days reading the forums, my head is spinning. Lots of older posts, but nothing that speaks to my request So, since everyone here really helped me with my last dive trip, I thought I'd reach out again for some experienced help!

Looking for:
1. big stuff (anything goes but my favourites: mantas, whalesharks, hammerheads, dolphins etc; would love to see Mola Mola and any other big stuff
2. small stuff (nudies, and i love my clown fishes!, pygmies, etc.)
3. warm water (26-30C; anything colder and I will freeze even with my 5mm and hoodie… A couple of colder dives and thermoclines ok but nothing that lasts the whole trip )

Where have I been:
1. Mabul, Sipadan (resort)
2. Layang Layang (resort and only 1 sighting of a hammerhead )
3. Komodo (liveaboard)
4. Donsol, Philippines (no sightings of whalesharks however )
5. Cozumel (resort)
6. Isla Mujeres (snorkelling with whalesharks)

Dive cert: PADI Rescue

When?
Help me plan my year!
Want to go ASAP (July, Aug, Sept), and again in the new year (Jan, Feb, Mar, April, May...)

A group I know are doing a liveaboard to Thailand in December, but I hear its best to go in February / March (for Mantas and Whalesharks). Is that true? Why would it be better to go to Thailand in December over Feb/Mar?

I also would love to do a liveaboard in Maldives, but I have read its not a good time to go July, August, September? I'm actually really confused… Many sites saying its good and others saying best to go December to March… Help!

I've also read its monsoon season right now which seems to be limiting my choices unfortunately

What about Indonesia? Bali? East Kalimantan? Should I just go back to Mabul? Is it safe since the gunmen / kidnappings last year?

Ok, please clear my head on this. So hard to sift through all the info on the web

Miffy

 

[adamchooi]

Dear OP,

July/Aug/Sept are great months to dive at Tioman Island, Malaysia. Loads of macro stuffs from nudies and clown fishes at most of the dive sites. The Jetty at Salang almost guarantee for sightings of Ghost pipefish, pygmies and cuttlefish. A great easy dive destination as most of the dive sites have good viz(10-20m) and low current to non existence. Just a mere 90 mins drive from Singapore and another 90 mins of ferry ride.

 

[Luko]

Looking for:
1. big stuff (anything goes but my favourites: mantas, whalesharks, hammerheads, dolphins etc; would love to see Mola Mola and any other big stuff
2. small stuff (nudies, and i love my clown fishes!, pygmies, etc.)
3. warm water (26-30C; anything colder and I will freeze even with my 5mm and hoodie… A couple of colder dives and thermoclines ok but nothing that lasts the whole trip )

....

When?
Help me plan my year!
Want to go ASAP (July, Aug, Sept), and again in the new year (Jan, Feb, Mar, April, May...)


What about Indonesia? Bali? East Kalimantan? S

July Aug sept this is Indonesia time :
1- Bali ! easy to go, cheap, LOTS of exciting stuff from biggies (MolaMola, manta rays, sharks) to super macro/muck (Tulamben, Seraya) and coral dives (Nusa Penida).
2- Komodo : coral dives, loads of fish, amazingly colorful soft corals.
3- Alor : superb visibility, neon blue water, lots of corals and fish, sometimes rhinopias and hammerheads !
4- North Sulawesi : Bangka and Lembeh, great corals and pygmy seahorse heaven in Bangka, loads of strange critters and octopii heaven in Lembeh.

December to May is Philippines time :
1- Anilao : macro critters galore, nudibranches, octopii, crustacea and nice blue water dives too (Beatrice, sombrero)
2- Visayas : corals, turtles, fish schools (Moalboal, Balicasag), black sand critter diving (Dauin), threshers and manta rays (Malapascua) whale sharks (South Leyte, Oslob).
3- Tubbataha live aboard : walls and any shark you name, reef sharks, whale sharks and sometimes even tiger sharks !

December to March Indonesia is back :
1- Raja Ampat, the best diving in the world maybe. More fish schools you will ever see anywhere. Expensive though.
2- Maluku : Ambon with rhinopias and muck critters, great coral dive in the Lease islands. Awesome beaches too (Molana).

Thailand and Maldives would be really second for me after these locations.

 

[ukdave0]

North Raja Ampat! Many people will say this is the wrong season for Raja and they are correct for the Southern Misool region. Great diving in the North with not too many other boats in the area.

 

[dirtfarmer]

Just listen to Luko, he's like a swimming compendium of Coral Triangle destinations.

Bali, Lembeh are awesome. Bali has everything from Macro to Mola-Mola and is really affordable. Lembeh is great for Macro/Muck and even has nice coral habitat, just not stellar visibility for wide angle photography. And heck you've been to Komodo so you know that's good. I'd love to tell you about Raja but that will have to wait till I'm back from a trip there in Nov.

The Philippines can range from great to where the hell are all the fish? Anilao is really good, and Dauin has some nice muck, with nice coral at Apo Island. I was a bit disappointed with Malapascua this last Jan, the fish population is really low, there's been way to much dynamite fishing. It has the Coral Triangle diversity and all but the fish population was very low in my opinion. Off the beaten track in the PI is the Sipalay area, it has some nice diving and the fish population seems to be recovering.

You might also check out Palau. Incredible shark action and good Manta sightings also. Macro seems to get overlooked there, the small stuff is out there but most the guides I dove with just swam right over Nudi's etc.

 

[mikeynl]

Last year I spent a while in Indonesia. First a few weeks in Lembongan (a little island just south east of Bali) where we saw manta rays on most dives on the south coast. Dives on the north side are usually drift dives (I guided an instructor from Komodo and she thought the drifts were too fast ), alongs the most amazing coral fields. Lembongan is famous for it's Molas too, but only in the right season. [edit: actually it's Nusa Penida that's famous for the Molas, but you'll likely be staying at Lembongan]

After that I spent a few days in Tulamben. Not too impressed by the wreck, but I got to tick so much stuff of my "to see" (or "to photograph") list: nudis everywhere, pygmee sea horses, pipefishes, all the amazing macro stuff. Would definitely go there again.

 

[Miffy]

Wow… this is great everyone. Looks like Bali is *the* place to go. Is it right to assume July, Aug, September is the season for Bali diving?

I'll do a bit more digging on the boards. Do you guys have recommendations resort vs liveaboard? And which dive outfit / liveaboard company?

Ok.. I'll be back for more questions once I dig around here …. again

Miffy

 

[Hintermann]

March-April is an excellent time for a combo trip to the Philippines. First to Anilao where you'll see more nudies than on a naturist beach and lots of other small stuff. Then onto a Tubbataha liveaboard for the big stuff.