The Banda Sea is a large, semi-circular body of water that lies northeast of Alor and runs up to the Seram Islands just south of Raja Ampat’s Misool. The western part of the Banda Sea is open to the Flores Sea. At the same time, the eastern border of the Banda Sea is fringed by an arching chain of islands, atolls, and numerous semi-active volcanoes, commonly referred to as the Forgotten Islands. It is this chain of volcanic islands that gives the Banda Sea one of its more popular monikers, The Ring of Fire. The Banda Sea is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting bodies of water in all of Indonesia. As you can see from the map, many different seas border the Banda Sea, like the Ceram Sea, Maluku, Flores, Timor, Arafuru, and the Aru Sea, all of which flow into the Banda Sea and deliver an abundance of nutrients that feed not only the corals but also the marine life, big and small. As a result, you can find more species of coral in the Banda Sea than you can see in Raja Ampat. Wakatobi, for example, in the western Banda Sea, has an estimated 750 coral species. Raja Ampat’s coral count is estimated at around 550. A quick teaser video from our last snorkel tour through the Banda Sea and Alor with the Mermaid II liveaboard Another aspect that makes the Banda Sea so special is its remarkable remoteness. Only a handful of tiny villages can be found on its islands, and with the exception of Wakatobi, which has had to build its own airstrip to comfortably and conveniently service its luxury resort, there aren’t any resorts in the area. The inaccessibility of the Banda Sea’s Islands has almost entirely spared the area from
The Banda Sea is a large, semi-circular body of water that lies northeast of Alor and runs up to the Seram Islands just south of Raja Ampat’s Misool. The western part of the Banda Sea is open to the Flores Sea. At the same time, the eastern border of the Banda Sea is fringed by
This trip is a story with two different chapters: Triton Bay in Kaimana, followed by Papua Explorers Resort in Raja Ampat. I was lucky enough to have taken this exact trip in 2025, so I arrived knowing exactly what was coming. I’m not sure that made me calmer, and if anything, I was probably more excited than the other lucky snorkelers. We were heading into the heart of the Coral Triangle, home to over 75% of the world’s coral species and more reef fish species than anywhere else on the planet. And yes, mantas, wobbegongs, and whale sharks were all on the cards, but I don’t want to get ahead of myself. Triton Bay - West Papua The journey is not short. A group dinner in Jakarta, a night flight to Sorong, followed by a quick transfer to Kaimana, and breakfast at a hotel while waiting for the boat. Then the final transfer across calm water toward a thin line of jungle that slowly becomes your home. The arrival at Triton Bay feels cinematic, landing on a small private beach with eight rooms, a restaurant, and a snorkel center, all surrounded by lush green foliage. Limestone islands rise out of still water in every direction. It is everything you hope for when arriving at a remote beach resort. Day Zero is technically for settling in with lunch, orientation, and unpacking. We lasted about an hour before someone asked, “Can we get in?” The house reef was the obvious answer. For those who had never snorkeled in Indonesia before, that first drop is a special moment. Hard corals stacked in layers hosted anemonefish tucked into their homes. A tight school of jacks spinning like a slow underwater tornado right off the beach. Butterflyfish and angelfish were everywhere we looked. Bluespotted rays
This trip is a story with two different chapters: Triton Bay in Kaimana, followed by Papua Explorers Resort in Raja Ampat. I was lucky enough to have taken this exact trip in 2025, so I arrived knowing exactly what was coming. I’m not sure that made me calmer, and if anything, I was probably more
Up until a couple of years ago, I was under the impression that the only behavior that sea stars visibly exhibited was the one where they just stick themselves to the reef, like a gecko on glass. In all my time spent snorkeling and diving all over the world, this is all I’d ever seen them do. Then, I saw this amazing photo of a sea star arched up on all five of its legs, with what looked like white smoke being released from its body. It was a completely new way to see a sea star, extremely photogenic, and interesting; I hoped I’d be able to observe this behavior at some point. I didn’t have to wait long; I think it was on my very next trip in Indonesia where the group and I saw not only one, but at least a dozen sea stars in a small area, all exhibiting this unique behavior! And then a few trips later, we experienced the exact same thing, dozens of sea stars all arched up like this, releasing this ‘smoke’! Now, we’re seeing this behavior more and more, every third trip or so, because we now know what to look for and when to look for it. Here’s how you can start to spot this, also! Like a lot of marine life species, sea stars tend to time all their reproductive business when the tides are at their strongest, which is generally full or new moon. This was exactly when I would encounter all these sea stars standing up, allowing the stronger water movement to carry their gametes further abroad. I’ve since learned that the male and female stars often synchronize their spawning events, and quite often cluster together during this time. As the female blue sea stars release their eggs,
Up until a couple of years ago, I was under the impression that the only behavior that sea stars visibly exhibited was the one where they just stick themselves to the reef, like a gecko on glass. In all my time spent snorkeling and diving all over the world, this is all I’d ever seen
Coral Eye is the new sister resort to Siladen Island Resort, and is located just around the corner from Siladen, relatively speaking, on Bangka Island, just off the tip of northern Sulawesi. The buzz around this new boutique resort in the snorkeling community has been huge, and had it not been for my busy schedule, I would have paid Coral Eye a visit much sooner. After waiting the better part of a year for my opportune moment to jump on a plane and jet off to Manado, I have now finally been able to see what all the chatter that I'd been inundated with was really all about. As many of you have already visited Siladen as part of one of our snorkeling safaris that stops in North Sulawesi, I don't think I need to elaborate too much on what this means in terms of service, the food, the accommodation, and, of course, the snorkeling at Coral Eye. If you haven't had the pleasure of visiting Siladen yet, you will have no doubt heard of this award-winning resort's outstanding reputation. As one of Indonesia's oldest and most well-regarded resorts, Siladen sets the tone for other resorts to follow. Now, with over twenty years of experience behind the Siladen/Coral Eye team, this new resort could very well be the resort that raises the bar a notch higher when it comes to the entire experience. Coal Eye is on the southwestern edge of a little island called Banka, just thirty minutes from the mainland of Sulawesi. We access the resort via a one-hour drive from the Manado Airport, followed by a thirty-minute boat ride in one of the resort's comfortable boats. Alternatively, as Siladen is just 'around the corner' from Coral Eye, we can also access it via a boat ride from Siladen
Coral Eye is the new sister resort to Siladen Island Resort, and is located just around the corner from Siladen, relatively speaking, on Bangka Island, just off the tip of northern Sulawesi. The buzz around this new boutique resort in the snorkeling community has been huge, and had it not been for my busy schedule, I
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
We use cookies to optimise our website and our service.
Functional Always active
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.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
We use cookies to optimise our website and our service.
Functional Always active
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.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
