Dive Review of Papua Explorers in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat

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Papua Explorers: "bucket list diving", Apr, 2019, by John E. Keith, UT, US ( Top Contributor 32 reports with 9 Helpful votes). Report 10928.
No photos available at this time
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Once again, my wife and I called on Nina at Dive Adventures in Australia to set up a trip to Raja Ampat, which was at the top of our bucket list. She did so in style. First on our "tour" was Papua Explorers, where we stayed for 7 days. Exploreres is on the Lampier Straits, which has a reputation for strong currents and big fish. My wife is not a fan of strong current diving, so I was a little concerned that we would not have a lot of other opportunity, but I was dead wrong. The resort has access to every kind of diving you would want - walls, muck, manta stations, etc., etc. (plus the strong current locations). And the diving is spectacular. The corals are in very good condition, except for the few places where "blast" fishing has taken place, and the the National Park designation has stopped that practice. We saw huge schools of various kinds of fish, lots of barracuda, sharks, mantas, a large group of Devil rays (20+), little critters everywhere, and much more. As their website states, because of the location, visibility is not always "crystal" but the bonus is the great abundance of sea life. The resort and its staff are really great. They are ready to respond to any request. Diving operations are well organized and planned for small groups (max 6 divers with 2 guides), depending on their preferences. Dive guides are good at finding the unusual fish or beastie, and will respond to your preferences about what you want to see. An afternoon and sunset dive is offered every day and night dives are offered every day but Sunday. If I had to be pickey, I would say that the food was good, but not great, indonesian/western fusion buffet. The lack of air conditioning in the over-the-water bungalos makes for some uncomfortable early nights (the temps cool off a bit after midnight and the big ceiling fans help). Also, a camera bucket on board the dive boats would be nice. But this is small stuff compared to the wonderful diving and great staff. All in all, Papua Explorers was indeed a bucket list stop.
Websites	Papua Explorers
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Egypt, Florida, California, Caribbean, Mexico, Hawaii, Australia, Maldives, Indonesia
Closest Airport	Sorong	Getting There	Long flight from Utah through Tokyo, Singapore and Jakarta
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy, rainy, cloudy	Seas	calm, currents, no currents
Water Temp	82-84°F / 28-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness
Water Visibility	25-40 Ft/ 8-12 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	yes
Enforced diving restrictions	Preferred group come up together, but not necessary.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	1 or 2
Dolphins	None	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	None	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	There was a camera bucket on the deck at the dive shop, and a well equipped camera center in the resort.

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Dive Review of Papua Explorers in Indonesia/Raja Ampat

Papua Explorers: "bucket list diving", Apr, 2019,

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Papua Explorers in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat