We start our adventure in Ambon Bay. Ambon is a world-class muck diving destination. Inside the bay, there are numerous dive sites full of critters galore! The holy grail of fish Rhinopias can be seen here along with Frogfish, Ghost Pipefish, Nudibranchs, Leaf Fish, Zebra crabs, cuttlefish, all sorts of Pipefish, Mandarin Fish, Ribbon Eels, all sort of Eels and cute juveniles like the Barramundi Cod, Batfish and Harlequin Sweetlips. Our eagle-eyed dive guides will be looking out for different types of shrimps such as Bumblebee Shrimp, Harlequin Shrimp, Tiger Shrimp, and Coleman shrimps. In the octopus family, we might see the very special Wunderpus or Mimic and at night the Coconut, Starry Night, White-V, and Long Arm Octopus come out to hunt. An excellent way to finish a trip!
Next, we head out to the Banda Islands, also known as the Spice Islands, the land excursion is fascinating. Visit the museum, an old Dutch Fort, and a nutmeg plantation to learn about the incredible history of these remote islands. The diving here includes the typical deep walls of the Banda Sea, as well as seamounts and drift dive along fish-packed reefs. At Batu Kapal the whole pinnacle is covered in schooling Pyramid Butterfly Fish and Red-tooth Triggerfish which mix in with hundreds of fusiliers, creating a myriad of colour. Hammerhead sharks have to been known to visit some of the reefs here, as well as turtles, Bumphead parrotfish, eagle rays, and napoleon wrasse.
The Forgotten Islands are an arc of islands that are part of a very remote archipelago in the east of the Banda Sea. These islands are accessible only by liveaboard and offer a truly exciting adventure! The Banda Sea is famous for its deep walls, healthy reefs, giant sponges all in crystal clear blue water. This area is also now known for the chance to see schooling Hammerhead Sharks!
Forgotten Island trips are not just about the ‘big stuff. If you want to look for macro critters we can find things like Leaf Fish, Moray Eels, lots of different Nudibranchs, Ribbon Eels, Mantis Shrimps, as well the very special Dragon Shrimps and Leopard Shrimps.
Our first stop in the Forgotten Islands is Manuk. This is the most easterly volcano in Indonesia and is home to lots of sea snakes. They are very curious and divers will be approached by many snakes during the dives. But don’t worry they won’t bite, they just take a look and keep on swimming! The dramatic rocky dive sites here can be very fishy and there is a chance to spot hammerhead sharks. Above the water frigate birds and brown boobies sour over the volcano.
Close to the island of Nila are the seamounts of Dusborgh and Nil Desparandum. They are surrounded by very deep water so there is a chance to see large pelagics. Here we will look out for the now-famous Banda Sea schooling hammerhead sharks. Absolutely massive barrel sponges and expanses of hard corals make these reefs very impressive.
North and South Terbang there are dramatic walls with large overhangs dripping with soft corals. Damar is close by and has a great hard coral garden perfect for an afternoon and night dive.
Our final Forgotten Island is Dawera. You can dive just about anywhere around this island to find a fantastic dive site! At one point there are so many soft corals we are reminded of the glorious reefs of Raja Ampat. A huge school of Barracuda hangs out on one point of the island. There is a hidden pinnacle out from the island where the reef really is untouched. The village of Dawera does not fish here because there are so many fish around their island, they have plenty to eat! At the pinnacle, the reef is a profusion of colour and each and every rock is covered in every type of coral! Big schools of jacks and batfish, schooling pyramid fish and triggerfish, and hundreds of fusiliers all try to avoid hunting reef sharks and jacks.
On the last full day onboard we will do two dives close to Saumlaki and enjoy our goodbye dinner inside the harbour.
The last dive will be on the penultimate day of the trip at around 4 pm. Divers are recommended to wait for 24hours before flying after the last dive.
Please note that the itineraries are examples only, We reserve the right to change the itinerary or specific agreed services, if force majeure, unforeseen or unavoidable circumstances require us to do so.
