Indonesia > Bali
General
The Republic of Indonesia consists of 17.000 islands and Bali is one of them. Bali, also called Island of the Gods, with its varied landscape of hills and mountains, rugged coastlines and sandy beaches, lush rice terraces, and volcanic hillsides all providing a picturesque backdrop to its colorful, deeply spiritual, and unique culture stakes a serious claim to be paradise on earth.
What about underwater life?
Bali is located in the middle of „Coral Trianggle”, thanks to that can offer one of the best underwater diversity life in the world. The temperature of the water is usually between 26oC and 29oC. However sometime during special periods of the year on Nusa Penida and near Lombok we can meet water with 19oC. Bali can offer beautiful coral reefs, wrecks, Drop off, underwater canyons and caves, were we would see diversity of life from small snails and shrimps till sharks and mantas, during the time when water drops till 19oC we can meet Mola Mola (3 tons sunfish).
The visibility depends on the period in which you are diving. During the wet season (November – April) mostly is between 10 and 15 meters. During the dry season that is 20 – 30 meters, in the North part of Bali, in Menjangan park the visibility is even till 50 meters.
Visited Place
Candidasa Area
In that area we do have several different diving spots, with wariouse level of difficulty. The sites in this area are one of the interesting and diverse sites in Bali. All dive sport are reached by boat within max 15 minuts from parking in Candidasa.
On the dive spots you will see rich and dense coral reef where you will see Leaf scorpiofish, cuttlefish, anglefish, and viriety of nudibranchs. For more advanced divers there is a secret shark cave, where you can see black and white – tip reef sharks.
The landscape and wild beauty of this area are what makes it so spectacular for divers and keeps them coming back to every year.
Candidasa’s Dive Locations
Amuk Bay, on Bali’s east coast, is approx 6km wide.
The bay is marked by the small town of Candidasa on the north, and the ferry port/village of Padangbai on the south. Just north of Padangbai is the Blue Lagoon area, a treasure of marine life. Two islands, Tepekong and Mimpang are just outside the bay. A little to the north is Biaha. These dive sites offers some of the most breath-taking diving in Bali.
Padangbai and Candidasa Conditions
Due to conditions Tepekong, Mimpang and Biaha need to be treated with great care. The currents coming from the Lombok can create unpredictable water movements that can result in a washing machine effect.
Blue Lagoon area is usually calm and easy. That is the perfect place to start your experience with diving as well as your first dive after a break.
Candidasa Dive Sites General Overview
Location
5 sites located off Bali’s east coast
Depth
5 – 40 metres
Visibility
15 – 30 metres
Current
None (Blue Lagoon) to strong and unpredictable
Min. Level
Introductory (Blue Lagoon) Intermediate (elsewhere)
Dive Types
Boat dive (Jukung) Reef, wall and drift diving
Conditions
Blue Lagoon: An easy dive site, gentle white sand slope, excellent marine life. Mimpang, Tepekong, Biaha: Currents can be tricky (up and down currents meeting horizontal currents); on other days it can be as calm as a pond; sometimes thermoclines around 20m.
Highlights
Sharks are often sighted around Mimpang, Tepekong, and Biaha. Tepekong’s Canyon and Wall usually offer many big pelagics. Blue Lagoon offers smaller marinelife like cuttlefish, Leaf scorpionfish, crocodilefish, frogfish and makes a wonderful night dive.
Amed Area
The Amed dive sites actually stretch along the coast from Amed village (muck site) to Jemeluk, Bunutan, and beyond to Lipah Bay (“Japanese Wreck” site), all together 8 km coastline and 7 different villages.
Amed, the village, is located on the north east coast of Bali.
Amed Geography
At both Jemeluk and Bunutan there is a grey/black sand beach, a gentle version of its nearby neighbour, the rocky Tulamben Bay.
At Lipah Bay the shore is rocky, similar to the Tulamben area. There are a variety of sites in the neberhood of Amed from the reefs of Jemeluk and Garden Eel Point at Bunutan, to the more mucky Amed Ghost Bay.
Access to the various Amed dive sites is either from the shore or by jukung (local boat).
Water Conditions
Conditions at Jemeluk and Lipah Bay are generally calm. At Bunutan currents can be strong depending on the tide, however this provides the opportunity to sight a wider range of reef.
Gili Selang, on the eastern tip of Bali, can have strong currents. The temperatures can vary as the sites are subject to thermoclines and (on the whole) visibility ranges from 14-22m. That site offers both very sheltered diving as well as joyful dives for more experienced divers.
Amed Dive Sites General Overview
Location
Quiet fishing village on the north east coast; south from Tulamben
Depth
3 – 40 metres (average depth 18 metres)
Visibility
15 – 25 metres
Current
Jemeluk and Japanese Wreck: None to mild; Bunutan and Gili Selang: can be strong (tide dependent).
Min. Level
Beginner
Dive Types
Shore and jukung diving (local boats). Reef, wall, wreck diving, macro diving, muck diving
Conditions
Black sand beach sloping into the water, warm temperatures and mild currents. When using jukungs for a boat dive, equipment is put on and taken off in the water, ladders are provided.
Highlights
Diversity of sites from muck to reef, and amazing coral formations. Excellent sites for snorkellers as there is a lot to see just below the surface.
Tulamben
Tulamben Bay is situated in the world’s richest marine bio-geographic zone: The Indo-Pacific.
Some of these Tulamben Area dive sites are popular areas for macro (muck) diving discovering many small critters in easy-to-photograph environments. The best known is Seraya Slope.
The diving at other sites is best below 18m and therefore offers the possibility to see Manta and Eagle rays, some sharks – mainly reef sharks and the occasional Mola-Mola (Ocean sunfish).
What You Can See in Tulamben
The sites offer a variety of conditions and types of diving, for muck divers and macro photographers as well as divers interested in sharks, rays and barrel sponges.
Tulamben is also a place where you can have a wreck dive which is one of the easiest (and best!) site in the world. That is a definite MUST DO dive site.
Popular Sites in the Tulamben
Tulamben Area dive sites include Seraya for muck-diving and Batu Kelebit, Palung-Palung, Kubu, and Emerald for other marinelife including reef sharks, Napoleon and Bumphead parrotfish.
Tulamben Dive Sites General Overview
Location
Area surrounding Tulamben Bay, north east coast of Bali
Depth
3 – 40 metres
Visibility
12 – 25 metres
Current
None to mild
Min. Level
Snorkellers, Discover Scuba Diving: suitable for every level/interest!
Dive Types
Shore or jukung (local boat) dive Wall, reef and muck diving
Conditions
Some of these sites are less protected than Tulamben Bay therefore both visibility and the water temperatures can vary.
Highlights
Popular areas for macro (muck) diving revealing many small critter species in an easy to photograph environment as well as opportunities to view pelagics in Batu Kelebit. 120m USAT Liberty Shipwreck. Extraordinary diversity of marine life, huge school of Big-eyed trevally. Full Moon Night Dive. Great photographic opportunities and colour contrast with the black sand. Great snorkelling site.
Mejangan Area
Part of West Bali National Park, Menjangan Island was Bali’s first internationally known diving location.
Famous for wall-diving with easy conditions, Menjangan Island is 30 minutes by local boat from mainland Bali and offers warm waters with stunning visibility that can reach 50m+. The island’s white sand beaches provide good, and well-protected, snorkelling opportunities.
Menjangan Island’s Dive Sites
Approximately thirty five years ago, Menjangan Island became Bali’s first internationally recognised dive location, famous for its wall-diving with great visibility (even 50m). Menjangan’s walls generally start at 10m and descend to varying depths (the shallowest being 26m, the deepest 60m+).
Menjangan Island’s Dive Sites
They are flooded with sunlight; full of small nooks and crannies, overhangs, and bigger cavelettes, crevasses, etc; covered with soft corals, sponges and offer the greatest diversity of gorgonian fans in Bali and even humble wreck.
Menjangan Dive Sites General Overview
Location
Island off the tip of north west Bali, part of West Bali National Park
Depth
5 – 60+ metres
Visibility
15 – 50 metres
Current
Zero to mild currents
Min. Level
Beginner and snorkellers; all levels
Dive Types
Boat dive (Pos II left+right can be shore diving from Menjangan Island) Wall, wreck, reef and drift diving
Conditions
30 min. boat from mainland Bali. Beautiful vertical walls, warm water, white sand. Being wall-diving, Menjangan dive sites have the highest rate of DCS of any Bali dive location. Be a SAFE Diver (Slowly Ascend From Every dive) and do your safety stops.
Highlights
Coral-clad walls, white sand, grottos; possibility of turtles. Anker Wreck at 40m.
Nusa Penida & Lembongan Diving
Nusa Penida is the largest (17km long) of 3 islands; the others being Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan that lie the other side of the Bandung Strait from Bali’s east coast.
The water here is fairly cold, due to a cold upwelling from a deep ocean through south of Bali, however it is often startlingly clear, with gorgeous corals, prolific fish and some turtles, Grey reef and Silver-tip sharks, as well as Manta rays. In July to mid-November Mola-Mola, the weird and wonderful Ocean sunfish, is being seen in that place. The diving here is actually great – both in terms of corals and marinelife.
The majority of diving at Nusa Penida is drift diving and, as the currents are not always predictable.
Nusa Penida’s Currents
The current is always less fierce the closer you are to the reef so don’t get distracted and drift out into the blue.
There is an upwelling from the deep ocean south of Bali meaning the diving at Nusa Penida can be really rather cold! But that does mean the water is usually crystal-clear, bar the thermoclines.
Popular Nusa Penida Dive Sites
Sites that are popular here include Sental, PED, SD, Toyapakeh, Blue Corner, Crystal Bay, Malibu Point, Gamat Bay, Manta Point I & II, and Vertigo Point.
Nusa Penida Dive Sites General Overview
Location
3 Islands lying off the east coast of Bali
Depth
6 – 40 metres (average depth 18 metres)
Visibility
15 – 40 metres
Current
Mild to strong and unpredictable.
Min. Level
Intermediate
Dive Types
Boat dive Drift, deep diving
Conditions
The water can get pretty cold at times. Being mostly drift diving, it is not easy to take photographs here. Prone to currents.
Highlights
Year round Manta rays, Mola-Mola (Ocean sunfish) from July–mid November, rays, occasionally turtles, larger pelagics.