- Trip from Ambon to Ternate through the Banda Sea and Raja Ampat
- Explore the Banda Sea's swim-throughs and deep walls
- Dive the world-class muck diving sites of Ambon
- Search for hammerheads on current-swept dive sites in the Banda Sea
- Visit the pristine coral colonies of Nusa Laut
- Land visit to the former capital of the spice trade, Banda Neira
- Discover dramatic underwater landscapes and stunning reefs in Misool
- Encounter both reef and oceanic manta rays at renowned dive sites
- Enjoy muck diving at Penambuan and pelagic walls at Bacan
- Dive the remote and rarely visited island of Halmahera
Day 1 and 2: Arrive into Ambon
Guests will arrive in Ambon and have time to get comfortable on the boat. We will do a couple of dives in the mucky Bay of Ambon, a heaven for critter hunters: Rhinopias, Frog fish. Ghost pipefish, Seahorses, pretty much the whole collection can be found in these waters.
A short trip to the reefs outside the bay will give us the first impression of the different bottom contour of these area: A large underwater arch in Pintu Kota will delight our senses and provide great wide angle opportunities for those with a camera
No. of Dives: 2 and 4
Day 3: Nusa Laut
There are two distinct dive sites at Nusa Laut. Akon Wall is a beautiful drop off with a natural limestone swim through in the wall. There are clouds of colourful Anthias and Damselfish hanging off the wall. Amed Slope is a sloping reef with excellent hard corals and schooling fish.
No. of Dives: 4
Day 4: Run, Hatta & Banda Sea
We'll first pass through the Island of Run for a dive before moving towards Hatta for the second dive. Both islands are sites that invite big ocean pelagic and great fish life. After the first 2 dives of the morning, we will spend some quality time around the Spice Islands in the shadow of Gunung Api volcano. There are a selection of unique dive sites including the hard coral at Lava Flow and the very fishy underwater pinnacles at Batu Kapal.
If time permits, we can even tour around the island and visit its historical buildings, Banda was the centre of the spice trade and of capital importance at the time. Late in the afternoon, we will go back in the water for a world class mandarin dive experience.
No. of Dives: 4
Day 5: Koon
At the far eastern end of Seram there is the island of Koon. There is only a single dive site, but it is well worth diving twice. Too Many Fish! is a sloping reef that drops off into the deep and there are plenty of pelagic hanging around here; giant trevally and large tunas come in to feed, schools of snapper and barracuda hang off the drop off. There are some cool coral heads in the shallows to explore at the end of the dive.
Long crossing at night: Around 105 miles or 16-17 hours
No. of Dives: 2 or 3
Day 6: Boo & Fiabacet
This amazing string of small islands has a colourful array of great dives sites. The signature sites in the area include Boo Windows, Nudi Rock, Tank Rock and Whale Rock. The whole place is a delight for the eyes.
On a calm day you can visit the amazing seamount Magic Mountain and experience cruising sharks, schooling fish and mantas cleaning. A truly spectacular dive!
No. of Dives: 4
Day 7: Blue Water Mangrove
Travel down to the most southern of the Four Kings to a special place where the blue water of the reef meets the roots of the mangrove's trees. A photographer's paradise with colorful soft corals growing on the roots, hard corals nestling up to the shallows and a sandy-rubble slope for critter hunting.
**For safety reasons, we do not recommend night diving as there have been sightings of crocodiles in the area.
No. of Dives: 3
Day 8: Pulau Pisang
This small island in the middle of the Seram Sea has some great fish action; snapper, barracuda, fusiliers, rainbow runners.
No. of Dives: 4
Day 9: Bacan
Begin the day with a dramatic wall dive off Tanjung Marengarango. Check out the schooling fish; barracuda, snapper, fusiliers and the potential for some great passing pelagics.
Spend the afternoon enjoying some excellent muck diving along the boat-building beach at Penambuan; excellent habitat amongst the variety of black sand, pebbles, algae and coral heads. Hunt for octopus, colourful nudibranchs, frogfish, seahorses, cuttlefish, unusual shrimp.
No. of Dives: 4
Day 10: Goraici
The small islands of Sikko have some good pinnacle diving current permitting. Lots of fish and passing pelagics. For a more sedate dive Sikko Gardens is a beautiful white sand coral plateau with garden eels, rays, nudibranch and lots reef fish.
In the region, the dive site known as Equator has something for everybody. Excellent fish life, interesting macro subjects and sometimes majestic manta rays and eagle rays passing by. For the afternoon the pretty corals of Leilei Jetty are usually a perfect spot to enjoy the brilliant colours and the unique macro subject of Halmahera.
No. of Dives: 4
Day 11: Halmahera Sea
Will be looking for undersea mountains with vibrant reefs and the highest congregation of fish in the area. Oceanic triggerfish, Snappers, fusiliers, black and white tip reef sharks.
No. of Dives: 2
Day 12: Departure
Guests will be escorted to the airport in Ternate and assisted with check-in procedures, no doubt full of talk about the wonders of the most popular dive destination in the world.
Sample itineraries are for guidance only. Actual itineraries may differ slightly due to factors such as weather, wildlife, logistics and local regulations.
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Double bed1 personShareable
