Where to dive in Bali after Tulamben!

[AquaMarineDiving Bali]

If you are staying at Villa Markisa (good choice ) then you do not need to stay at Scuba Seraya as they are v close

Other than that, there's not much for me to add ... yes, you could go up and stay in Pemuteran in NW Bali so you can dive over at Menjangan Island (good wide-angle and macro, good viz, warm water), and can easily get to Secret Bay/Gilimanuk (muck) on the underside of the NW point of Bali, and to Puri Jati (muck) at Seririt on the N coast. Also 'Mimpi Channel' (you don't have to stay at Mimpi Resort to dive there) for Mandarinfish.

To dive outside Padangbai and Candidasa, you can stay in either place because your chosen dive company will provide transport, but the boats go from Padangbai.

I'm making the assumption you are photographers as you are staying at Villa Markisa.

Assuming you decide to dive outside Padangbai/Candidasa, you can dive the 'Blue Lagoon Area' which will take in The Jetty: Low viz, if diving on a Sat/Sunday - you really must watch out for fishing lines/hooks from the fishermen above! - where you can expect to see frogfish (inc Giant), last time I was there there were five Rhinopias (Eschmeyeri/Paddleflap and Frondosa/Weedy), lots of tiny, tiny cuttlefish, loads of Helmut gurnard, Fingered dragnet, Bentstick pipefish, Dwarf pipehorse, Orangutan crab, Shaggy frogfish, Crocodile snake eel, Napoleon snake eel, Demon stinger, Cockatoo waspfish, Blue ring octopus, baby Mantis shrimp, school of Chevron barracuda, a huge cuttlefish, and more.

Mimpang and Tepekong are next to each other, can have strong currents.

I personally love the little crescent-shaped island of Gili Biaha a bit further north, and right on Bali's most eastern point is Gili Selang.

You mentioned diving at Nusa Lembongan. Most of the dive sites are actually around Nusa Penida (the largest of the three offshore island) including Manta Point I and II, Manta Bay, and that (Nusa Penida) where you are most likely to see Mola-Mola (actually, they're Mola ramsayi, but Mola-Mola has a better ring!) - although you could ask if they've been seen at Mimpang yet as they tend to move to the mainland as the 'season' progresses.

For diving Nusa Lembongan/Penida, you have a choice of staying on the mainland or staying on N Lembongan. If you choose the latter, I'd suggest you dive with either World Diving Lembongan - Home or Scuba diving in Bunaken, Lembeh, and Nusa Lembongan, Bali - Two Fish Divers.

If you would like any further advice (eg: Candidasa accom), please feel free to e-mail me (no sales pitch).

Annabel

 

[Tippytoes12]

If you have two weeks in Bali spend at least a week on Nusa Lembongan where you have an extremely high chance of seeing multiple mantra rays , fantastic coral and possibly Mola Mola. If you are fine with currents , as we are ,you will love it.



Best fishes

 

[gekodivebali]

The unmissable dive sites for me around East Bali include Tepekong/Mimpang/Biaha (molas have started to make regular appearances this week), Jetty (macro), Tanjung Sari (sharks, pelagics and amazing corals when diving with a dive guide with local knowledge), Manta Point (mantas... & molas in season), Toyapakeh (large schools and molas) and SD (great corals).
I am not a huge fan of Crystal Bay due to crowds and the feeling that some of the world's worst divers seem to congregate here to damage corals and harass sunfish while their dive guides focus on banging their tanks. That being said, I did have 9 molas in 2 dives there last week...

---------- Post added September 12th, 2014 at 03:42 AM ----------

Ah, and one more tip: do book your accommodation in advance if you elect to stay in Padang Bai to enjoy getting on your dive boat just in front of your hotel, as October is a popular time to dive from this traditional Balinese village. There are some great new options for hotels. PM for more!

 

[Cali_diver]

I am not a huge fan of Crystal Bay due to crowds and the feeling that some of the world's worst divers seem to congregate here to damage corals and harass sunfish while their dive guides focus on banging their tanks. That being said, I did have 9 molas in 2 dives there last week...

---------- Post added September 12th, 2014 at 03:42 AM ----------

Oh that is our worst nightmare.... bad divers and a dive guide that likes his tank banger... Is there a good dive op on Nusa Lembongan that uses smaller boats with smaller groups, thus reducing the percentage of the world's worst divers?

 

[Jpalcg]

Hi,

Cali_divergirl the issue seems to be more on the dive site and the dive centre you choose than from where you base yourself. I dived with Geko and had most of the dive sites for our group. Their local dive guides were quite good. I wasn't there in peak season though, but from what I saw you would be safeguarded from your worst nightmares

Cheers


www.lifesauntering.com - Travel and scuba diving blog with a dash of photography
www.facebook.com/lifesauntering

 

[divenski]

Thanks, All, for some great information about diving Bali. I do have one more question, which hopefully fits in this thread... what about crowds? I hear that Bali diving can be a mob scene.... if so, which sites are to be avoided or what are the strategies for diving in quieter times (such as given for Crystal Bay...) We are hoping to go in late April/early May 2015.

 

[Hintermann]

I was in Tulamben in June, which is a busy if not a peak season. There was no crowd at all, not even at the Liberty wreck. That is where the personalised guides of Liberty Dive Resort were so good; they take you to various dive sites at times when they are least likely to be crowded.

There were more people on the Nusa Penida trip but the boat certainly did not seem crowded - I believe there were 12 of us. That is significantly better than to 30+ crammed into some of the boats in Phuket.

 

[Cali_diver]

I have been to Tulamben before and have stayed at both Scuba Seraya and villa markisa. I love Tulamben! I know I want to stay on Nusa Lembongan for a few days. I was just trying to figure out if it was worth it to add on a couple more days and dive Pandang Bai.

 

[FTD 83]

Thanks, All, for some great information about diving Bali. I do have one more question, which hopefully fits in this thread... what about crowds? I hear that Bali diving can be a mob scene.... if so, which sites are to be avoided or what are the strategies for diving in quieter times (such as given for Crystal Bay...) We are hoping to go in late April/early May 2015.

I'm sure the operators can elaborate more but one of the problems with diving in Bali is the unpredictable nature of the wind, waves and current. This means grabbing windows on the popular sites when they are available. That said, apart from Crystal Bay things were never that bad and certainly not the Thunderball scenario you get in Egypt.

The Liberty in Tulamben had approx 60 divers kitting up on the beach but in the water you hardly notice other divers due to it's size. If you are really concerned about this you can split you're accommodation between Tulamben and Candidassa/Padang Bai so you're up and out before the buses from other parts of the island arrive.

 

[gekodivebali]

Crystal Bay, Manta Point and the Liberty are the only dive sites where crowding occurs regularly. Apart from Tulamben, it can be tricky to change dive schedules in the hope of having these dive sites to yourself due to conditions (swell and current).
In Tulamben, you can opt to do one afternoon dive, then a night dive if you want a more personal experience.
Crystal Bay is not IMHO one of the unmissable sites in Bali. Others are just as good whether for molas, big schools or corals and are not crowded.
Manta Point is quite a large site. Crowds can be avoided by leaving the cleaning station. Mantas can be met away from this area regularly.

At the end of the day, diving in Bali does not need to be a crowded experience. I often meet no other divers on my dives even in high season. Of course, if you dive peak season and decide to dive only the crowded sites, you will end up with a lot more divers in water than I do...