I've long been fascinated by this archipelago. Just received an e-mail from AQUA EXPEDITIONS which runs small-boat cruises. They get raves on the CruiseCritidc site. (I've taken two cruises before in my life (Burma river cruise and Hawaii week-long cruise--but nothing remotely like this appear to be).

My partner does not dive and I've only done it once or twice, in Mexico and not sure I would do that again, but snorkeling would be great. Some concern about water visibility but from all reports the islands are the best snorkeling spots in the world.


Its one of the most complicated destinations to reach I've ever looked into but looks just amazing.

Has anyone here been to Raja Ampat? Would you offer comments for persons looking for a comfortable adventure?
Thinking of the cruise plus some time at a resort, where we could relax after the long trip from NYC via Jakarta.

Also, there appear to be no medical facilities nearby apart from first aid......hmmmmm!

I confess I has to look up Raja Ampat to find out where on earth it was! It does look amazing, but very difficult to access. I recall our travels in Sulawesi being quite difficult to arrange. We did plan on heading to the north of that island to do some diving but the logistics proved too involved.

The visibility , like everywhere else will vary , possibly drastically by season and weather so it would be worth checking with some of the dive shops there for their take on conditions. https://www.padi.com/diving-in/raja-ampat/ may have some info. Bear in mind that in most cases the poorer the visibility, the better the chances of seeing big fish like Mantas that are plankton feeders.

We are, or at least used to be, keen divers but have snorkelled where conditions or opportunities dictate we do snorkel but I do fee it would be a shame not to dive such an amazing location. Would your partner consider a couple of try dives or even the Padi OW qualification which only takes 3-4 days?

Apparently liveaboard dive trips do visit Raja Ampat from Komodo , otherwise, I think that cruise could be a good option. Another thought is that it may be possible form northern Australia - something I shall bear in mind for when we next visit our Aussie family.

Crellston you are such a tremendous help on these forums and Ii want to thank you for that!

I would like to try diving but I have no certification. Do you think I need to get that in advance of arrival, as in taking lessons at home--who knows where in NYC..probably the frigid Atlantic Ocean.. Maybe they can give me basic lessons for a shallow dive on the boat??? There is also a resort named Misooll but the boat sounds more fun and Misool, although its gets great reviews, is very pricey and you need to book a minimum stay.....ANd then have to pay extra to get on their boats to get to the dive spots. And mosquitos.

I think that live aboard sounds great, maybe even combine two back to back trips if financially and feasibly possible. I think October is the prime month. I'd want to break up the trip from JFK...maybe this will be my one chance to fly via Dubai. or Muscat....always wanted to fly on Emirates or other reputedly great carrier.

This would not be before 2025 so lots of time to plan.....look at some videos of Raja Ampat diving....seems a shame NOT to dive there!!

Thanks again for all your help....I have a few trips (Europe) before that but will do more reading in the meantime....thanks again!!!

I’ve not made it to Raja Ampat, but it’s long been on my list, both for marine life and tropical bird watching. In our diving days, now some 20 years ago mostly in North Sulawesi, we preferred land based resorts to live-aboards. Less claustrophobic and more options for non-marine activities.

Aqua Expeditions look spectacular though I’m sure that kind of service diesnt come cheap. SeaTrek Bali cruises on converted traditional Bugis schooners are also highly recommended by friends.

You might take a look at Papua Paradise Eco Resort in Arife. Again, I haven’t been there myself, but it seems to be well reviewed. They have a house reef for snorkeling and also offer 2 day SCUBA courses (to 12 meters). They will arrange sea transport from Sorong airport.

I think you’ll find accommodation costs high across the board in Raja. As you note, there’s a wide variation among resorts’ included versus extra costs. The cost of bringing in Western and Indonesian meal ingredients is the primary culprit. (The dietary staple of the region is sago which isn’t particularly appealing to the Western palate.)

You probably know this, but I’ll mention that it’s imperative to have evacuation insurance when traveling to remote sites in Indonesia. My son enrolls in Divers Alert Network (DAN) insurance when he visits us in Bali (though he’s thankfully never had to use it). I’m not completely clear in the options offered by DAN but I believe they offer general trip insurance as well as coverage for SCUBA related accidents.

If you were evacuated from Raja Ampat you would probably be flown from Sorong to Jakarta, Bali or Darwin. I would note that Medical care in Bali has improved enormously in the past decade, and that would be my first choice.

Lastly, said son always flies Emirates to Bali through Dubai and though it is a long long journey, the service is very good. He’s coming from Boston, but flights from NY are similar.

If you're heading to the Eastern Islands you should consider taking the nonstop from Dubai to Bali as Denpasar is a departure point for many destinations north and east in the archipelago, including Sorong.

You are welcome ekscrunchy. Clearly , marmot has way more knowledge of diving I that part of the world so I would be guided by her (makes me want to go even more!).

I would only add that in my experience, some liveaboard operators will insist on a min level of certification the PADI Open Water Cert allows depths of up to 18 m which should be fine. The course usually takes 3-4 days but much is theory and you can do that and the first parts of the practical in a swimming pool - no need for the Atlantic or the Hudson! You would then take the part certification and do your open water dives on arrival to get the full certification. From memory you need to do 4 dive, which you would want to anyway just to feel comfortable in the water on the liveaboard.

All this talk of diving is tempting me to rethink some of our plans for Mexico and perhaps swap dome of our time in the Yucatan for a side trip to Belize!

It takes a minimum of about 3 days to get a Padi basic diver certification, I would think you would rather do that at home so you could spend your time diving and not is schooling while in Raja Ampat. Hopefully motion sickness is not an issue if you want to do a liveaboard.

No, I have no trouble with motion sickness.....

It's happened yet again....so many times I am thinking about a destination new to me, and some publication comes out with a story on it!!

Raja Ampat is one of the New York Times' fifty places to visit" for 2025! (Along with Angola !!) and destinations in Japan, Taiwan, Pays Basque, Pakistan, Nigeria, Catalonia, Sweden, Norway, etc etc. (Those are just. few of the 50 that were interesting too me)

Angola? Yikes. Spouse worked 28/28 there some years ago. Hardly a garden spot.

Just shared this with him and his response was "are you shitting me?"

I bet a travel writer sold the Times a story based on a comp trip.......I was also surprised but I did read a few accounts of people going to game parks there....