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
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
A fantastic look at what one of our conservation partners, Manta Trust, is working on here in Indonesia with great results so far. Mobula rays are a genus of species that includes manta rays and devil rays. We are lucky to have such an abundance of them in Indonesia, not to mention the world's largest manta sanctuary in Raja Ampat, but it doesn't mean everything is hunkydory. Mobulas of all species are threatened with extinction as a result of bycatch and the fact that they are still hunted for their gill rakers which are used in Chinese medicine. Manta Trust is one of the leaders in the field of manta conservation and their global campaigns have been very successful at curbing activities like illegal manta fishing and shining a spotlight to this important species. We are extremely pleased to be able to assist them in their mighty manta mission with our Every Trip Program. We try to help in every way possible when it comes to preserving the ocean and its inhabitants. However, since we are travel specialists and not marine biologists, the best thing we can do is support those who are experts in this field. With our Every Trip campaign, $100 from each booking made through us goes to one of our conservation partners, like Mata Trust.
A fantastic look at what one of our conservation partners, Manta Trust, is working on here in Indonesia with great results so far. Mobula rays are a genus of species that includes manta rays and devil rays. We are lucky to have such an abundance of them in Indonesia, not to mention the world’s largest
Recently I was lucky enough to lead our first West side Komodo trip. Having worked in Komodo for some years, I spent nearly all my time in the main park area. It goes without saying I was excited to go and see the west side and what it had to offer. That side of Komodo is very remote and untouched. No day boats from the busy town of Labuan Bajo are able to cover that distance. Making this area very quiet with only a handful of liveaboards stopping there. So having mind blowing reefs to ourselves became normal. Staying on the island of Sumbawa at the resort Kalimaya. A beautiful small boutique resort situated on the seafront facing Komodo. Surrounded by beautiful scenery and local villages dotted on the coast. With a 1.5 hour car journey over the mountains to reach here, you really get the feel of being remote and in the wild. Arriving at the resort we were greeted by such smiling faces and showed to our beachfront bungalows. With A\C, hot water and a ridiculously comfortable bed overlooking the ocean. What more could you want?? Great food and great snorkeling? That's exactly what was delivered. With a wide variety of snorkeling sites available all over the Sumbawa, Komodo channel we were ready to go and explore. Setting off from the resort after a tasty breakfast in our private speedboat. We started to explore as much as we could. With a big highlight being the island of Gilli Banta. Full of beautiful pristine reefs inside stunning white sand bays. Was a real picture of a tropical paradise. Not forgetting a very active manta cleaning station. With great guidance from our guides we were dropped on the money every time. We could observe and watch the Mantas go about
Recently I was lucky enough to lead our first West side Komodo trip. Having worked in Komodo for some years, I spent nearly all my time in the main park area. It goes without saying I was excited to go and see the west side and what it had to offer. That side of Komodo
Those of you who have been to Misool Resort in the last couple of years will have surely noticed a little stilted platform standing in the tranquil waters off of South Beach. Now, you might think that this is just a nice little structure the resort installed for resting snorkelers, paddleboarders, or kayakers. Or, maybe it’s a place to have a special dinner with your loved one! Nope, none of those ideas are correct. All wrong. “Then what is it, Alex!?” I'll tell you, that beautiful little structure is a fancy sea pen for a very special type of shark! Many many years ago leopard sharks used to cruise in the waters of Raja Ampat, from the very north and beyond, all the way down to the south in Misool. They were abundant. As they are a very docile species of shark that tends to spend the majority of their time resting on the bottom and doesn’t shy away from humans, their populations were decimated as a result of unregulated shark fishing and bycatch. Now, with the different MPAs (marine protected areas) in place and strictly enforced around Raja Ampat thanks in part to the Misool Foundation and other marine conservation agencies, these sharks stand a chance at recovering. However, as the leopard shark population was essentially wiped out in this region, there is just not enough of them to naturally repopulate. For example, prior to working for Snorkel Venture, I worked as an underwater videographer on a liveaboard for five years. I would average about three-hundred dives a year all around Raja Ampat. Not once did I, or any of the thousands of guests we took diving ever catch a glimps of a leopard single shark. So, since there is very little hope for the leopard sharks at repopulating
Those of you who have been to Misool Resort in the last couple of years will have surely noticed a little stilted platform standing in the tranquil waters off of South Beach. Now, you might think that this is just a nice little structure the resort installed for resting snorkelers, paddleboarders, or kayakers. Or, maybe
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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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