From the category archives:

Indonesia

Banda Islands Scuba Diving

by Chris on July 2, 2009

Indonesia's Banda Islands are historically famed for their spices, but they also possess some excellent scuba diving around the coast line of this tiny five island group. [click to continue…]

Nusa Laut Scuba Diving – Banda Islands, Indonesia

by Chris on June 26, 2009

Lying to the east of Ambon, the island of Nusa Laut possesses some stunning hard coral seascapes - the sheer size and variety of corals here is absolutely stunning [click to continue…]

Ambon Scuba Diving – The Twilight Zone

by Chris on June 22, 2009

Ambon is fast gaining a reputation as an unmissable muck diving destination, with a density of amazing underwater critters to rival Lembeh. The Twilight Zone is the main Ambon dive site that repays repeat visits [click to continue…]

Diving Gunung Api: Volcano Of The Sea Snakes

by Chris on June 8, 2009

In a remote part of Indonesia's Banda Sea lies the still active volcano Gunung Api, or "Fire Mountain" - and below its lava-encrusted shoreline the volcano is home to hundreds of highly venomous sea snakes that hunt in packs and show little fear of human scuba divers [click to continue…]

Diving Komodo Videos

by Chris on May 28, 2009

Komodo National Park in Indonesia - home of Komodo island and the famous Komodo Dragons - has an incredible diversity of underwater life. These videos show some of what can be seen while diving there [click to continue…]

Got The Shot: Bali Wrecks And Muck Diving – Julian Cohen

Julian Cohen got some invaluable underwater photography tuition from photo pro Mike Veitch while in Bali. Here he describes how he got the shot for five of his best Bali pictures

Read the full article →

Got The Shot: Lembeh Strait – Julian Cohen

Julian Cohen was the recent winner of FINS Magazine and ScubaCam’s Photo Shootout in Lembeh Strait, Indonesia. Here he describes how he got the shot for five of his excellent pictures

Read the full article →

Lembeh Diving Videos

Lembeh Straits in northern Sulawesi in Indonesia are famous for the incredible diversity of weird and wonderful critters within its waters. These videos show some of the strange, rare and sometimes wholly unknown marine species to be seen at Lembeh

Read the full article →

Scuba Diving The Banda Sea, Indonesia

The Banda Sea is one of the most remote areas of Indonesia to go scuba diving, and the location of Ganung Api, the famous Island of the Snakes

Read the full article →

Raja Ampat Videos

Raja Ampat is located in the far east of Indonesia, on the northern end of Papua island. Its remoteness makes it a dream destination for scuba divers thanks to its pristine coral reefs and amazing marine life. These videos capture some of its magic.

Read the full article →

Scuba Diving Bangka, Indonesia

Bad weather stopped a planned exploration of Sulawesi’s Sangihe archipelago, but diving around the astounding sites of Bangka more than made up for it

Read the full article →

5 New Species Of Pgymy Seahorse (Possibly 6!)

National Geographic have just published some stunning images of five new species of Pgymy Seahorse that have been found as far apart as Indonesia and the Red Sea – but they don’t include Muhani’s Seahorse

Read the full article →

A New Species Of Pygmy Seahorse?

Indonesia’s Lembeh Strait is famous for its high critter count – and it appears a new species of Pgymy Seahorse might have been discovered there

Read the full article →

Raja Ampat Manta Rays

One of the thrills of diving in Raja Ampat in Indonesia is the close encounters with giant manta rays – and this excellent video shows exactly what you might encounter if you’re lucky

Read the full article →

Diving At Castle Rock – Komodo Scuba Video

My friend and ace videographer Ai Futaki has put together another short video from our Komodo liveaboard trip – this time at the amazing dive site Castle Rock

Read the full article →

Scuba Diving Ambon

Tony Wu put together this great multimedia presentation of his recent trip to Ambon in November 2008 – the famous Spice Islands of Indonesia.

Read the full article →

Pulsing Stripe Cuttlefish – Like CGI Gone Mad

I’ve seen a lot of cuttlefish, and they create incredible colours on their bodies, but I’ve never seen one do this – pulsing a broad stripe the full length of its body, completely changing the look of its body and looking like an expensive computer generated movie effect

Read the full article →

Evil Mermaid, Komodo

Ever wanted to see a mermaid while you’re scuba diving? Well, be careful what you wish for…

Read the full article →

Chomp! Ribbon Eel Catches Catfish

I couldn’t quite believe this happened while I was filming – a black ribbon eel snaked out of its hole and grabbed a catfish several times the size of its own head and dragged it back to its lair

Read the full article →

Nudibranches – Ocean Rover Sulawesi Trip Report August 2008 Part 6

For nudi lovers, Sulawesi has an incredible array of nudibranches all around Lembeh and Bangka, in all shapes, sizes and colours

Read the full article →

Velvet And Ornate Ghost Pipefish – Ocean Rover Sulawesi Trip Report August 2008 Part 5

Ghost Pipefish are some of the most beautiful creatures in the ocean, and there is an abundance of different species around northern Sulawesi

Read the full article →

Flabellina, Frogfish and Demon Stingers – Ocean Rover Sulawesi Trip Report August 2008 Part 4

Hairy frogfish, giant frogfish, mottled frogfish… nearly every species can be found in Sulawesi – rare elsewhere, they are almost common in Lembeh. Flabellina and Demon Stingers are also present for sharp sighted spotters

Read the full article →

Crocodile Fish and Octopi – Ocean Rover: Sulawesi Trip Report August 2008 Part 3

Inquisitive octopi and indifferent crocodile fish are also easy to find around Bangka in Sulawesi – although with an octopus, you’ve got to be quick before it disappears either across the sand or into a hole

Read the full article →

Bangka and Lembeh on the Ocean Rover: Sulawesi Trip Report August 2008 Part 2

Spearing mantis shrimp, pygmy seahorses, pipefish and leaf fish are just some of the amazing critters you can see scuba diving in Sulawesi

Read the full article →

Ocean Rover Liveaboard: Sulawesi Trip Report, August 2008 – Part 1

Ocean Rover is one of Asia’s most famous diving liveboards, which has just relocated from Thailand to Indonesia under new management. I joined a 10 day trip around Sulawesi’s Sangihe archipelago to see how the Ocean Rover is taking to its new home

Read the full article →

Freediving In Komodo

Scuba diving is not the only way to explore the underwater wonders of Komodo National Park in Indonesia – some of Komodo’s sites are perfect for freediving too, as this video by Ai Futaki demonstrates

Read the full article →

NAD Lembeh Trip Report – Lembeh Strait, Indonesia – August 2008

Indonesia’s Lembeh Strait is renown for its amazing marine life, with a welter of rare and unusual underwater creatures on its black sand dive sites. It’s also remarkably scenic above land and easily affordable – there’s no reason not to go!

Read the full article →

Diving Sulawesi and Komodo

I won’t be posting much for the next month as I’m heading to Sulawesi and Komodo on two back to back dive trips

Read the full article →

Dive Report: Palau Weh, Banda Aceh

Palau Weh is a tiny island at the tip of Acer in Indonesia. It’s not easy to get there but it’s renown as a spectacular dive spot that survived the tsunami and continued to flourish. Ayesha Cantrell describes her experience of this hidden gem

Read the full article →

Raja Ampat to Triton Bay Liveaboard – Trip Report

Indonesia’s Raja Ampat islands have become one of the most famous places to go diving in all of Asia thanks to the area’s pristine coral reefs and incredible diversity of marine life. In February 2008 I went on the MSY Seahorse’s 11 day diving liveaboard from Raja Ampat to Triton Bay, exploring the amazing underwater [...]

Read the full article →

Komodo Scuba Diving: Enter The Dragon

Indonesia’s Komodo island is home not only to the famous Komodo Dragon but also some of Asia’s most spectacular diving. Experience the smorgasbord of different dive conditions and incredible underwater life within this still largely unexplored marine park.

Read the full article →

Cuttlefish Face Stretching, Bali

Do you know what this cuttlefish is doing in this short video clip? Please leave a comment and let me know!

Read the full article →

Scuba Diving The Liberty Shipwreck, Bali: A Quick Guide

The Liberty Shipwreck is Bali’s most famous dive site, and there are plenty of other great places along the north eastern coast of Bali too, making it an ideal – and cheap – dive destination.

Read the full article →

Scuba Equipment For Komodo

Diving Komodo in Indonesia can be exhilarating and challenging. Here’s a round up of the extra safety items you need in your kitbag before a scuba diving trip to Komodo

Read the full article →

Scuba Diving in Komodo and Bali

Bali is the gateway to the island of Komodo, famous for its Komodo Dragons but also one of Indonesia’s best dive destinations underwater too. Bali itself has a wealth of world class dive sites as well, making a visit to the region a double divers delight.

Read the full article →

Birds Head, Indonesia – Greatest Marine Biodiversity In The World?

It’s long been known that Indonesia has the greatest number of marine species living within its waters than anywhere else in the world – and now scientists reckon they’ve identified the specific place which is home to the most species.

Read the full article →

Lombok, Indonesia – The Next Bali

Indonesia may be the last country you’d consider diving in after the recent tsunami and previous earthquake this year, but it is a huge country with spectacular diving that doesn’t deserve to be ignored

Read the full article →

Flamboyant Cuttlefish, Bunaken, Indonesia

Bunaken National Park in Indonesia is famed for the spectacular diversity of its underwater life – and this picture of a flamboyant cuttlefish shows why it’s a haven for photographers too.

Read the full article →

Indonesia Quake Appeal

Three days after the earthquake hit Java in Indonesia, the death toll keeps rising – CNN currently says it’s at 5000, and sadly it will probably become much higher. Indonesia is blessed with some of the world’s best scuba diving due to the rich marine biodiversity around its reefs – with over 18000 islands scattered [...]

Read the full article →

Dreaming Of Diving: Tulamben, Bali

The Liberty Shipwreck is one of the most famous dive sites in South East Asia. It’s just one of many great dives in Tulamben, Bali

Read the full article →