Diving Bali

[Atomic081]

My fiance and I are going to Bali for our honeymoon and Im trying to pick a area of the island to stay. Im definitely going to be diving at least 3 or 4 days. Has anyone been there that could help answer some questions. Im always a little nervous about going new places and the language barrier doesnt help.
Thanks
Ross

 

[ace_92101]

Ive been to Bali several times. English is widely spoken in the areas that you'll be in, so no worries there. 3 to 4 days isn't a long time. I'd definitely visit Ubud, which is in the middle of the island. It's the cultural center and a very special place. As far as beaches go, I'd avoid Kuta. If you tell me what you're looking for, I could make some recommendations. Oh, by the way, are planning to dive?

 

[r-balljunkie]

i was in Bali last year.

the diving is spectacular, comparable to the Philippines.

i prefer Thailand (both diving and land touristy stuff) over Bali, but thats another conversation.

There's lots of stuff to do while on land, site seeing wise...temple tours, zoo, parks etc.

We particularly enjoyed going to Bali Safari & Marine Park. might want to put it on the list.

i dove with Nautilus Diving Bali. they were very accommodating in providing transportation, equipment and divemasters.

i did Nusa Penida and another site i cannot recall.

as far as places to stay, Kuta is the most developed area, i.e. sidewalks on both sides (laugh now, see later), tons of bars, restaurants and loud aussies.

Ubud is more centrally located, not near the water and can become very quiet at night time, i.e. no to little nightlife.

i stayed in Seminyak which is an up and coming area. it was close to a beach and you had to do quite a bit of walking.

hope this helps.

<a href="http://photobucket.com/" target="_blank"><img src="http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r158/cchavis/August%20SE%20Asia%20vaca%20rr/04AugustDivingBali066_zpsf0c5365e.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo 04AugustDivingBali066_zpsf0c5365e.jpg"/></a>

 

[ace_92101]

r-balljunkie, Thai diving over Bali? Interesting. Ross, if you're diver, you're going to love Bali. Nusa Penida can have some very strong currents, but is excellent. Tulamben/liberty wreck is one of the worlds better wreck dives. Menjangen Island is also excellent, but it's a long drive to get there.

 

[burnah]

ive been to bali 3 times, diving in:

pemuteran and the marine national park next to it, diving was perfect. werner lau dive center was ok, but pricey.

nusa lembongan, for the mantas!. world diving was an excellent dive center, good price and the service uncompared so far. manta guaranteed, mola molas and nice reefs. only downside is the accomodation around there if you are not looking for budget staying, and as youre from the us, you might have other standards.

tulamben and uss liberty was quite good, tauchterminal was the base. they have good rooms, good diving but not exceptional. the wreck is ok.

if you go to bali for the diving, you might consider taking cheaper accomodation with lower standards closer to the divespots rather going to a resort and having to drive/ride a boat to the divesites. language is usually no problem.

greetings martin

 

[r-balljunkie]

r-balljunkie, Thai diving over Bali?

Ace,

For me, it was "better" since there's more color and soft corals in Thailand.

I dive pretty much every weekend here, and the reefs are SPS dominant ....very few soft corals.

To see the soft corals in the Andaman Sea was a treat....I guess a matter of preference.

 

[snorvich]

The "better" than location X discussions are always difficult. It depends what you want to see, what your experience level is, whether you are doing a live aboard or land based, and so forth. All of the areas of the South Pacific have their winning points and their disadvantages as well.

 

[Atomic081]

Thanks for the info everyone! To clarify, ill be in bali for around 14 days. I expect to dive at least 4 days.

The reason I have chosen bali is because I want to see things that I have in my tank! Ive dove all over the Caribbean and maybe only seen a dozen corals that I have in my tanks. My fiance also is fine with bali cause she likes the beaches and the history of the area.

 

[breederforlife]

If you can go to the gili islands ( few hours by boat from bali ) its really worth it, i went there about three weeks ago to do some diving and snorkelling to see the fish that end up in our tanks. Its really awesome,we saw emperor angels, clownfish, triggers you name it.

The gili islands are really worth it if you can spare the time.

 

[Atomic081]

We have really considered the gili islands. Is it a day trip or will I need to stay over night. What accommodations are there.

 

[ace_92101]

+1 on the Gili Islands. Granted I was there years ago before a lot of the development. I don't know if you can visit, but you might want to contact some of the wholesalers.

 

[breederforlife]

The gili islands are really worth it. We stayed on the gili islands for three days and it was really nice.
From bali i think its best if you can stay a few days because otherwise your day is going to be boat ride after boat ride.
There are three islands so you can choose which one to go to and there is quite a lot of different accomodations so real theres no real problem ( from simple cabins to beach from holtels ).
The fish and turtles are plentiful, its just one very nice spot with crystal blue water and coral reefs very close to the beach.

heres an awesome picture we took at the gili islands three weeks ago of a fish we commonly see in the aquarium trade.

 

[Atomic081]

This might be a stupid question but how much better is bali than the best of the Caribbean. Ive been to roatan and it was amazing. I saw the same thing I've seen everywhere else in the Caribbean except it was everywhere!

 

[ace_92101]

For diving or for a vacation? For diving, it's not even close. Indonesia is part of the coral triangle, which has the most coral and fish species on earth. If you thought Roatan was amazing, just wait! Indonesia has some world class diving. For a vacation, I'd say Bali wins again. It's a big island with lots of diversity and options. Ubud is one of those very special cultural places. When people think of Balinese culture/art, they're thinking of Ubud. There 're some very nice beach options around the island, including the north.

 

[Atomic081]

For diving or for a vacation? For diving, it's not even close. Indonesia is part of the coral triangle, which has the most coral and fish species on earth. If you thought Roatan was amazing, just wait! Indonesia has some world class diving. For a vacation, I'd say Bali wins again. It's a big island with lots of diversity and options. Ubud is one of those very special cultural places. When people think of Balinese culture/art, they're thinking of Ubud. There 're some very nice beach options around the island, including the north.

You have convinced me (it didn't take much). Bali it is!

 

[snorvich]

For diving or for a vacation? For diving, it's not even close. Indonesia is part of the coral triangle, which has the most coral and fish species on earth. If you thought Roatan was amazing, just wait! Indonesia has some world class diving. For a vacation, I'd say Bali wins again. It's a big island with lots of diversity and options. Ubud is one of those very special cultural places. When people think of Balinese culture/art, they're thinking of Ubud. There 're some very nice beach options around the island, including the north.

For sure. Food is not bad too! (I love the food!!)