Traveling to Indonesia, dive places,

I've been several times. Can't wait to go again. Happy to answer questions.

Some important questions for you to get you better answers...

• Are already you a certified SCUBA diver, or just interested in learning to dive?
• If yes, what is your level of experience, and your comfort level in the water?
• Indonesia has some of the most spectacular diving on the planet. But it may take a little effort to reach that world-class stuff. None of that is in/near Jakarta. And Indonesia is a vast country, so generalizations may be misleading and distances can be surprising; it can take a long time to get places you may want to go.
• How long is your trip?
• Where are you coming from?
• Have you done a "dive trip" before? If so, where?
• Have you been to Indonesia before?
• Have you been to Asia before?
• Indonesia has lots of beautiful things to see and do both underwater and topside. What kind of "mix" are you looking for between a "dive trip" and a general vacation (the non-diving stuff)?

There are no wrong answers, it's your trip so you get to decide everything. But for some divers, a "dive trip to Indonesia" may be an epic, life-changing adventure that they've dreamed of for years. For others, not so much. If you are a SCUBA diver, for most folks going to Indonesia pretty big deal.

Hi, thanks for the info.I am an advanced scuba diver and have been diving for about 25 years. I do want to do other things though. I believe I decided to go to Bali because it seemed safest for a women alone. I spent a month in Thailand a couple of years ago and it was very safe. I will be coming from a Orangutan adventure in Sumatra so Bali is not toooo far. Any other suggestions?Oh I am from Oregon USA
Thanks again ,Sue

OK, thanks for the additional info.

First, as a male, I can't really give you much to go on regarding safety as a solo female traveler, other than this: I've traveled around Indonesia a bit, including to a bunch of very remote places, always felt 100% safe, observed no hint of any safety threats at all. I think any experienced traveler with some common sense should do just find throughout the country.

So the good news is you are certainly well qualified and prepared for the diving. I've been diving since the 1980s, all over the wrod, and the diving in Indonesia by far beats anyplace else, by a long shot. You are headed for the world's best, it is worth your while to get to some of that, even it if requires some extra time/money/hassles to reach it. Indonesia is a stunningly beautiful country topside, so yes it makes sense to mix in some land-based time, too....but the underwater options are so compelling, it makes for a real dilemma on any trip, no matter how long it is. Suffice to say that as a SCUBA diver, you owe it to yourself to do as much diving as you possibly can while you're in-country.

I think the absolute best diving in the world - at least that's accessible to a tourist (without a dedicated full expedition and foundation to pay for it all) - is in Raja Ampat. It's pretty remote by any standard (and certainly not anything like cheap) but it's the stuff of SCUBA divers' dreams. We completely swooned over this place: Misool, a remote private island resort for divers, in the heart of Raja Ampat. The website makes it look good. The reality was 100X better. Because it's out-of-the-way (and expensive) it requires some dedication to go there. Every bit of the effort and money was completely worth it. I'll send you a PM with a link to some video I shot there.

Can't quite manage Misool? (Are you really really sure? I'd move mountains to get there again...). Other swoon-worthy locations: North Sulawesi (around Manado, Bunaken island and nearby) is great. Lembeh is popular with muck divers (personally, I have my limits when it's mucky). The far corners around Bali were nice (NOT the touristy corner around Kuta - "the Cancun of Indonesia") - we greatly preferred the far NW corner (Menjangan), the north coast (Tulamben) and east coast (access to Nusa Penida) were nice also - Coming face-to-face there with a Mola-mola the size of a refrigerator was a pleasant surprise.

Indonesia is a very big place, and there are plenty of great options. I hope you make time to get to some of the better underwater places. Happy to answer questions if you want (probably best via PM, there are few active SCUBA divers here, and while you'll get some well-intentioned general tourist advice, if you plan to dive, you need to intentionally get far away from the places that non-divers will know about and will recommend).

You are going in May - of this year? That's very, very soon...you have some significant planning to do. Good luck and have fun.

Hope some of that helps.

I do want to caution you about sexual harassment in Indonesia. It's not uncommon. Be safe and report back.

Bunaken National Park has incredible scuba and skin diving. It is on Bunaken island just offshore from the city of Manado in Sulawesi. There are more than 340 species of coral and newly discovered marine life is constantly sighted by marine biologists who come here to photograph and study the extensive marine life.
There are only resorts catering to divers on Bunaken so you mostly see other like-minded travelers in addition to 7,500 residents— a very relaxing and safe environment. ( There were single women staying at the resort I was at). Direct flights from Jakarta to Manado run about $100-$175. A daily 2pm water taxi completes the trip from Manado to Bunaken in about 45 minutes.