With more than 30 dive sites, Manado and Bunaken attracts thousands of divers year round. A 4-hour direct flight from Singapore, lots of accommodation choices with many reliable dive operators, makes Manado and Bunaken a real divers' haven.

Dive sites around Manado are mainly reef and muck diving. Most reefs are covered with various species of corals, sponges and crinoids. At these reefs, you will find your usual tropical reef fishes, octopus, shrimps and crabs.
In the shallow muck sites, frogfish, mimic octopus, seahorses, gobies, dragonets, flounders are some of the usual suspects you will find. My favorite dive sites are Underwater parking area and Buluh.

A short boat ride away, you have the islands of Bunaken, Siladen, Manado Tua, Montehage and Nain. The wall dives here are breathtaking. Walls are covered with various species of corals, large sponges, gorgonian fans and teeming with fishes. Many of the walls are more than 100m deep and visibility here are generally 15 – 30 m. Some of the marine life you could see here are turtles, giant Napoleon wrasse, large humphead parrotfish, occasional sharks, triggerfishes, butterfly fishes, coral groupers, nudibranchs, longfin banner fishes, coral groupers, crinoid shrimps, sweetlips, orang utan crabs, wire coral gobies and shrimps, boxer crabs if you know where to look, giant clams, pygmy seahorses and I have been lucky enough to see eagle rays as well. Some of the more popular sites are Muka Kampung, Sachiko, Lekuan and Fukui.

The possibilities in Manado and Bunaken are endless. I have had dolphin encounters traveling between Manado and Bunaken, dive with dugongs in Manado and have during sunset and night dives seen many weird planktons, mating mandarin fishes, cuttlefish, squids, all sorts of shells, stargazers and a variety of marine life that I can't even begin to ID.

This is where you want to dive if you trying out underwater photography. There are many subjects to choose from and many of the dive guides here are great with photographers. Bunaken is great for snokeling too.

Manadonese food are generally very spicy. Some of my favorites here are seafood, satay, mee bakso, roast pork, BBQ fish with sambal and nasi kuning.

Water temp: 28 - 30C
Recommended for: All divers including young divers
Dive conditions: None to mild currents

Raja Ampat is truly a divers' paradise. It is picturesque both below and above the sea. It is not easy to get to and those that brave the journey will truly be rewarded. Most trips to Raja Ampat will start from Sorong in West Papua. The easiest way to get to Sorong is via Makassar in South Sulawesi or Jakarta. When I last traveled to Sorong in April 2013, I took a direct flight on Express Air from Jakarta at 1:10am.

To truly maximize your dive experience, I would suggest a liveaboard for at least 8 days. Raja Ampat covers nearly 50,000 kmsq and traveling from one island to the next is by sea. Misool in the South has some amazing coral life. You will find some very colorful dive sites here. Pygmy seahorses, whitetip reef sharks, trevallies, fusiliers, barracudas, jacks, glass sweepers, groupers, sweetlips, bumphead wrasses and snappers are common here. Some of my favorite dive sites are Boo Windows, Magic Mountain and Farondi Caves. Some of my most memorable dives are at Magic Mountain. When the time is right and the current picks up, you will find hunting whitetip sharks, bluefin and giant trevallies patrols the reef.

Balbulol is a great place for non-diving activities such as kayaking and speedboat tours. The limestone islands seem to be “floating” above water and there are secluded lagoons you can swim in.

To the North, some of the popular dive sites are the salt water mangroves of Yangeffo, Manta Sandy, Mioskon, Blue Magic, Cape Kri and Sardines. Blacktip reef sharks, large schools of sweetlips, fusiliers, trevallies, barracudas, jacks and turtles are common here. Some of the diving here is like diving in fish soup! So packed with fish you would not even know where to look. Wobbegongs and epaulette sharks are common in Yangeffo and Manta Sandy is a manta cleaning station. While waiting for the mantas to show up, explore the sands and you might find sea moths, upside down jellyfish and pipefish among others.

Papua has some beautiful birds of paradise. Some Raja Ampat liveaboards might offer guests an option to see them.

Water temp: 28 – 30C
Recommended for: Advanced divers
Dive conditions: Mild to strong currents
Note: Raja Ampat waters are rich with plankton that attracts fish so, visibility at some sites is not great. A reef hook is useful for many of the dives here.