I’d like to tell you about a trip to two of the most iconic Indonesian snorkeling destinations: Alor and Komodo. Both delivered unforgettable ocean encounters, sparkling, jaw-dropping reefs, and unmatched relaxation. As with many of our trips, we started off in Jakarta, in my home away from home, the FM7 Hotel (which I recently found out stands for “Fond Memories”!). I met my group for our welcome dinner in the hotel’s restaurant and instantly felt at ease as we all bonded over tales of snorkeling. A sense of shared excitement and anticipation for what was to come filled the room. That night/morning, we flew across the chain of islands that borders the southern end of the Indonesian archipelago and finally made it to our first resort of the two-week trip, Alami Alor. Alami Alor As we pulled into Alami Resort, we were greeted by the wonderful Alami staff, who showed us around and made us feel at home. Alami is a small resort, nestled in a remote Indonesian village. At Alami, you really feel like you have arrived somewhere special! Meandering garden paths, shaded by palm trees, lead each of us to our beautiful bungalows with stunning waterfront views. From here, it is not rare to spot baby reef sharks cruising over shallow coral and dolphins flipping in the distance before even leaving your room. That first afternoon, we wasted no time jumping into Alami’s house reef, home to moray eels, octopus, baby batfish, and thriving coral, to name a few. That evening, we all met in the lounge to watch the sunset with a cocktail in hand, feast on our first delicious dinner, and settle into what was already proving to be snorkeling bliss. Alor is definitely one of my absolute favorite places to explore. The variety of sites
I’d like to tell you about a trip to two of the most iconic Indonesian snorkeling destinations: Alor and Komodo. Both delivered unforgettable ocean encounters, sparkling, jaw-dropping reefs, and unmatched relaxation. As with many of our trips, we started off in Jakarta, in my home away from home, the FM7 Hotel (which I recently found
We'll be kicking off our first episode of the Snorkel Venture Podcast with snorkeling legend, Marcus Blake. Snorkel Venture Podcast Host, Alex Lindbloom, chats with Marcus about all things snorkeling related, from his recent trip through Raja Ampat, Indonesia, the new issue of the Snorkel Venture Magazine, his experience swimming with whale sharks in Triton Bay, and much more. There's even an impromptu call-in from one of the other Snorkel Venture guides who relives one of his most profound Marcus moments while on tour.
We’ll be kicking off our first episode of the Snorkel Venture Podcast with snorkeling legend, Marcus Blake. Snorkel Venture Podcast Host, Alex Lindbloom, chats with Marcus about all things snorkeling related, from his recent trip through Raja Ampat, Indonesia, the new issue of the Snorkel Venture Magazine, his experience swimming with whale sharks in Triton
Octopuses are easily one of our most asked-about creatures during our snorkeling safaris. Everyone who's never seen one is desperate to get a glimpse of these alien-like creatures. Similarly, everyone who's seen one is still chomping at the bit to find another. An encounter with an octopus that's on the move is basically one of the most incredible things you could ever see in the ocean. That is a verifiable fact. They change colors, shapes, sizes, and textures. They can propel themselves through the water like a torpedo one minute, only to turn their eight webbed tentacles into an impenetrable tent trapping the small fish they were hunting inside. If you find an active octopus on a snorkel, it basically means that you will be watching it for the duration of the snorkel, and here are a few reasons why you'll be hard-pressed to swim away from an octopus. Octopuses or Octopi or…? The three plurals for octopus come from the different ways the English language adopts plurals. Octopi is the oldest plural of octopus, coming from the belief that words of Latin origin should have Latin endings. Octopuses was the next plural, giving the word an English ending to match its adoption as an English word. Lastly, octopodes stemmed from the belief that because octopus is originally Greek, it should have a Greek ending. 3 Hearts Octopuses have three hearts, two to pump blood past the gills to gain oxygen, and a third one to move that now oxygen-rich blood to all the organs and muscles. The strange thing is though, when an octopus swims or propels itself through the water, that third heart stops beating. It is very likely that this is the reason why octopuses prefer crawling across the reef, instead of swimming, as it's far less exhausting. Clever Octopuses are
Octopuses are easily one of our most asked-about creatures during our snorkeling safaris. Everyone who’s never seen one is desperate to get a glimpse of these alien-like creatures. Similarly, everyone who’s seen one is still chomping at the bit to find another. An encounter with an octopus that’s on the move is basically one of
Our West Komodo & Alor Snorkel Safari, with Kalimaya and Alami, is one of our newer resort-based snorkel safaris, and we just wrapped our first few tours through these incredible and remote locations. Here’s a little look at how they went. More specifically, here's how the West Komodo/Kalimaya portion of the trip went! https://youtu.be/_Hxw3jiUlQE Kalimaya Kalimaya is a hidden gem, tucked away in a small bay in eastern Sumbawa. We were lucky in that our group had the whole resort to themselves. Not that additional guests would have been an inconvenience at all, as the resort takes a maximum of twenty guests, and our group was fifteen. Arrival Day Upon arrival at the resort around 2 pm, we were treated to a delicious butterfly pea flower tea as our welcome drink, which was a welcome refreshment after our two-hour car ride from the Bima Airport. We were then served a delicious chef-prepared lunch, before which, the chef comes to the table and introduced each dish about to be served. Post lunch, we settled into our beachfront bungalows, got a tour of the lush grounds, and then settled into the comfortable loungers set around the beachside pool. We had intended to jump in on the house reef, but the winds at the time were quite high and the waves stirred up the sand, making a house reef snorkel session quite a bumpy one, not to mention a very murky one. We weren’t bothered, though, we had cold drinks and an incredible view of the ocean. Day to Day Each day started with a breakfast served at 7 am, followed by our boat ride to the different snorkeling sites departing at 8 am. The travel time to the different islands ranged from forty minutes to one hour. We had two dedicated speedboats
Our West Komodo & Alor Snorkel Safari, with Kalimaya and Alami, is one of our newer resort-based snorkel safaris, and we just wrapped our first few tours through these incredible and remote locations. Here’s a little look at how they went. More specifically, here’s how the West Komodo/Kalimaya portion of the trip went! Kalimaya Kalimaya
With over 17,000 islands, Indonesia has a ton of great snorkeling destinations and sites. As snorkeling professionals, we have spent a significant amount of time exploring this vast archipelago and we've decided to come up with our own list of the country's best snorkeling sites. Of course, this list is completely subject to seasons, marine life behavior, personal preferences, currents, visibility and so much more. You could snorkel what many people might consider as "the best site in Indonesia", only to find that the marine life is scarce, the visibility is poor, and the coral doesn't appear very vibrant on account of the cloud cover at that given moment leaving you a bit confused about what people are talking about. Please note that when talking about snorkeling sites in such a subjective way we also need to take into account the unpredictable element of nature as well. Please note that these sites aren't ranked or presented in a sort of order, we simply think these are some of the best snorkeling sites in Indonesia. Tatawa Kecil | Komodo Tatawa Kecil is not a site we are able to visit often as it's a small rock in the middle of a very current-prone channel in Komodo. However, when the currents are amendable we can explore this small rock island and enjoy the surreal beauty beneath its rugged topside. This site is all about large hard coral formations, big fish, potential for manta rays, and all-around excitement. Current: Mild to none (when we snorkel it) Visibility: Typically very good Reef: Mostly made up of hard corals with some sponges and soft corals mixed in. Marine Life: Anthias, Fusileers, Bluefin Trevally, Giant Trevally, Napoleon Wrass, Giant Sweetlips, Many different types of butterfly fish and angel fish, Scorpionfish, Hawksbill Sea turtles, Whitetip
With over 17,000 islands, Indonesia has a ton of great snorkeling destinations and sites. As snorkeling professionals, we have spent a significant amount of time exploring this vast archipelago and we’ve decided to come up with our own list of the country’s best snorkeling sites. Of course, this list is completely subject to seasons, marine
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The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
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