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Indonesia Dive Resorts | Indonesia Liveaboards

Bali: Mimpi Resort Menjangan | Mimpi Resort Tulamben | Scuba Seraya Resort
Kalimantan: Maratua Paradise Resort | Nabucco Island Maluku: Maluku Divers

North Sulawesi, Bangka: Bangka Bungalows
Bunaken: Gangga Island Resort | Kima Bajo Resort | Minahasa Lagoon | Murex | Santika | Siladen Resort | Tasik Ria
Lembeh Strait: Black Sand Dive Retreat | Kasawari Lembeh Resort | Kungkungan Bay Resort | Lembeh Cottages | Lembeh Resort
Buyat Bay: Lembeh Resort in Combo with Buyat Bay

Raja Ampat: Kri Island Resort | Misool Eco Resort | Raja4Divers | Raja Ampat Dive Lodge | Sorido Bay Resort
Wakatobi: Wakatobi Dive Resort

North Sulawesi

If you have the desire for an exciting and unusual destination for your next dive holiday, then North Sulawesi is perfect. In this tropical paradise you can explore one of the worlds most unspoiled marine wilderness areas, fully protected from spearfishing, coral or fish collecting, the rich coral life and unbelievable sea gardens are a diver's dream come true.

Spectacular marine life yields a kaleidoscopic submarine view of endless varieties of corals and tropical fish. The area consists of several National Parks, the best known diving areas are as follows; The Bunaken National Park and Lembeh Island. What you see will blow your mind, fantastic underwater walls, cut with many crevices and caves. A collection of marine life thrives: red and orange encrusting sponges, christmas tree worms, basket and tube sponges, soft and hard corals of all colors, sea fans, anemones stoked with clown fish, red-blue-pink and brown starfish, bright colored crinoids, giant tunicates, sea-whips, nudibranch (Spanish dancer), transparent and red striped coral shrimps, lobsters, crabs, thousands of ornamental coral fish and the larger pelagics. Often seen are giant Napolean wrasse, angel fish, turtles, blue ribbon eels, stingray and eagleray, snapper, grouper, tuna and sea-snakes. You will bewitched by the unspoiled beauty, nature at her very best. This is a world yet to be discovered

Lembeh Resort

Welcome to Lembeh Resort!

North Sulawesi offers unparalleled marine biodiversity, with a wide range of dive experience options. But for divers interested in searching out encounters with bizarre and beautiful critters, Lembeh Strait, located near the port town of Bitung, hosts the best muck diving on the planet. And besides the sand, divers can take the plunge on pinnacles, walls and slopes of extravagant hard and soft coral gardens as well as a number of wrecks, some dating from WWII. Diversity is the operative word here.

Lembeh Resort offers comfortable accommodations set in beautifully landscaped tropical gardens overlooking Lembeh Strait. For a truly exceptional experience in a relaxed and professional atmosphere, Lembeh Resort is the obvious choice.

* 14 cottages with spacious verandahs overlooking the Strait, perfect for viewing glorious North Sulawesi sunsets
* Fully air-conditioned bedrooms with attached Balinese-style (open-air) bathrooms, mini bar & personal safe
* Swimming pool, restaurant & bar, library/video viewing room with satellite TV, gift shop, massage service, internet access & laundry service

Diving at Lembeh Strait

The Lembeh Resort dive team have extensive experience diving in the strait and their infectious enthusiasm will result in the best possible dives day after day. Our focus on personal attention means that we will do our utmost to ensure that our guests fulfil their dreams and see most if not all the critters on their wish lists. Unlimited diving is offered to resort guests, with the majority of the 40+ sites within the strait only minutes away by boat. So guests can rest assured that they can accomplish as much diving as they desire.

The spacious camera room and equipment washing/drying facilities are only steps from the boat. Once a guest has made his or her first dive our dive team will see that the equipment is carried, washed and stored and then be on the boat assembled and ready for further dives. Special consideration will be given to photographers, whose delicate equipment often seems the center of their universe. Our boat crews will treat camera gear with the respect it deserves. The friendly and cheerful people of North Sulawesi are as much a selling point as the diving. Our professional, courteous and attentive service will be as memorable as the critters.

NITROX will be available to qualified Lembeh Resort divers - the first time this desirable mixed gas has been made available in the strait. NITROX is simply an increased oxygen percentage in a diver's tank. Rather than the usual 21% oxygen, divers can enjoy up to 40% oxygen in their tank, though 32% is the standard mix. It is not for deep diving, but is preferred for longer mid-range or shallow dives - perfect for the style of diving called for in the strait. The user benefits of NITROX include increased allowable bottom time, shorter surface intervals, reduction of post-dive fatigue, and best of all, increased safety margins. For those who have yet to experience the benefits of NITROX, 2-day ANDI courses will be available to guests to initiate them to the world of NITROX. As well, a full range of PADI courses will be available, from Introductory to Divemaster, for those who wish to increase their diving knowledge and skills.

Lembeh Strait has already been established as the mecca of what is known as muck or critter diving. Professional photographers and film crews are regular visitors to the strait, shooting award-winning images of the extraordinary inhabitants that mesmerize divers dive after dive. Pygmy seahorses, mimic octopus, flamboyant cuttlefish, mandarinfish, hairy frogfish, ghost pipefish, rhinopias, pegasus seamoths, banggai cardinalfish, stargazers, bobbit worms, harlequin shrimp, candy crabs, bobtail squid, devilfish, snake eels, etc. The list seems endless, with every dive an opportunity to discover a species new to science. The array of nudibranchs and crustaceans is astounding. The number of cephalopod species on display amazing. The assortment of eels and venomous fish species limitless. "Going macro" will open an entire new world to divers who follow the maxim "go slow and look down". Different months offer a variety of highlights, so repeat guests can always look forward to something new and exciting on subsequent visits.

But there is more. Though it is the black sand inhabitants that have made the area famous, there are sites that showcase the biodiversity that North Sulawesi is renowned for. With approximately 300 types of coral and 3000 species of fish to be found along the coasts of the region, there are plenty of sites which offer divers a more traditional diving experience with hard and soft coral gardens hosting schooling fish in abundance, sea snakes, turtles, as well as passing pelagics such as barracuda, trevally and mackerel species. Mantas and whales also make seasonal appearances in the strait. There are walls, slopes, sand flats with bommies, boulder-strewn areas and even pinnacles to provide a variety of underwater landscapes. To round out the superlative adventure there are even 5 wrecks to dive, 2 of which were sunk during WWII action.

Diving Lembeh Strait can be accomplished year-round owing to the sheltering influence of Lembeh Island. No matter what inclement weather system may be passing, or how strong the currents may be, there will be numerous sites with calm conditions suitable for easy for diving. The water temperature varies, but is usually 26-29 degrees Celcius. This is a usually a bit cooler than Bunaken, so a 5 mm full wetsuit is recommended. Visibility also varies, between sites as well as time of the year. It fluctuates between 5-30 meters, lower at the muck sites compared to the more open northern sites, but usually rests in the 12-15 meter range at most of the more popular central sites.

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Indonesia Dive Resorts | Indonesia Liveaboards