Dive Review of Papua Explorers in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat

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Papua Explorers: "Ready to go back", Nov, 2016, by Blake Hottle, CA, US ( Sr. Reviewer 9 reports with 8 Helpful votes). Report 9279 has 1 Helpful vote.
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
Snorkeling
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	My wife and I chose this resort for the following reasons. 1. Located in the heart of Raja Ampat 2. Top rated on Trip Advisor 3. Their website suggested that they were a thoughtful, eco oriented operation with quality management and standards. We did an 11 night package. 2 dives in the morning, one in the afternoon, and an occasional night dive. Most of the staff is local, from the nearby village, and they are excellent. Our most frequent guide for the week was Manu, and while he spoke very little English, his dive skills, unflappability, and situational awareness were amazing. We had really strong currents at times, and the way he was able to assist my wife was very much appreciated. The guest to guide ratio was never more than 4 to one, and was usually 2 to one, which was fantastic. I won't waste too much time here to talk about the quality of the diving in Raja, because that has been well covered. It's all true. What I will say is that these people really know the area well, and I feel like we got many great experiences because of the thoughtful planning. The heads of the dive staff, Arno and Hakim, really listened to what people wanted and while safety was always number one, they were flexible and fun. Our cabin on the water (#9) was spacious and beautiful, with steps leading directly into the water, if you wanted to do that. No air conditioning. This would not be practical with the native construction of the bungalows. There was a ceiling fan, and a smaller beside fan, which we used on a couple of steamy nights. I'll say this about the lack air conditioning: This might be an advantage, because a resort like this tends to attract people who don't mind roughing it a bit, and those people, in my experience, tend to be more fun and less maintenance. There were Germans, French, English, and Americans while we were there, and everybody was on the same page. Many friendships were made, both among guests and staff. The dive briefings were almost always done at the dock before departure, with a white board and good drawings. The dives are expertly planned according to the tide. Tides move the water. The water moves the food. The fish are where the tides push against the reef, and the briefings were always accurate. We came away completely charmed by the authenticity and grace of these people. Ready to go back.
Websites	Papua Explorers
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	251-500 dives
Where else diving	Bay Islands Honduras, Bonaire, Hawaii, Virgin Islands, Belize, Oregon, Washington, southern California
Closest Airport	Sarong	Getting There	via Jakarta or Denpasar
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny, windy, rainy	Seas	calm, choppy, currents, no currents
Water Temp	78-85°F / 26-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	40-90 Ft/ 12-27 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	60 Minutes maximum. No Deco diving. Guide at all times because of currents.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	Squadrons
Dolphins	Schools	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics	N/A
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities
UW Photo Comments	The typical daily dive boats hold 6 divers max, which is great. But I am glad that I brought my own portable cooler bag for rinsing my camera, as there is nothing provided on board. Personally, this is my preference, anyway, because I don't like my camera banging around with other diver's rigs between dives. There is a dedicated photo rinse tank at the dock, and there is a wonderful photo prep and storage room with individual lighting at the dock as well. Sometimes the fresh water rinse is a bit salty as the fresh water well for the resort gets a saltier at high tide.

Report currently has 1 Helpful vote

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Dive Review of Papua Explorers in Indonesia/Raja Ampat

Papua Explorers: "Ready to go back", Nov, 2016,

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