Outdoors

Considered by many the diving destination of a lifetime, the mystical and inspiring Komodo Islands National Park is approximately 340 nautical miles east of the beautiful island of Bali, Indonesia. The national park is in the center of the Indonesian archipelago, between Sumbawa and Flores Islands, and is most easily reached by Liveaboard Komodo diving from Bali or Labuanbajo on Flores. An area of legend from the time of Dutch sailors in the seventeenth century to the present day, Komodo was declared a World Heritage Site by Unesco in 1986. Initially, the main purpose of the park was to conserve the habitat of the magnificent Komodo dragon, but efforts have now been expanded to include the entire biosphere, marine and terrestrial. It is finally understood that this small area of the Indonesian Archipelago is one of the most biologically rich environments on the planet, both above and below the water. Komodo dive sites contain over 1,000 species of fish and 250 species of coral, and great efforts are being made to preserve them.

 

Komodo Liveaboards diving is not new by any stretch of the imagination, but it is only recently that the biological importance of the area has come to the attention of experienced divers and established Komodo as a world class diving destination. The challenging diving conditions of the area and the proliferation of marine life rivals the planets top dive destinations and truly elevates the Komodo Islands National park to another level. Geologically, the Komodo and Rinca Islands are part of Flores Island, separated from Sumbawa to the west by the Sape Strait. The dark blue water in the middle of the strait only reaches a maximum of 300 meters. It is these relatively shallow seas and the obstruction of the many small islands between Flores and the west coast of Komodo that often create raging currents during tidal changes when the higher tidal waters of the Pacific Ocean in the north flow through to the Indian Ocean in the south. In addition, the upwelling’s from the deep surrounding seas bring nutrients and plankton to keep the Komodo waters rich and exploding with life. It is this combination of conditions that has created a diving environment that is spectacular and at times overwhelming.

 

Komodo offers experienced divers just about every type of tropical diving imaginable, from calm and colorful shallow reefs teeming with thousands of colorful fish and unusual invertebrates, to current swept deep water sea mounts, walls, and  massive pinnacles patrolled by sharks, tuna and other big pelagic’s.There are few places left on the earth where divers can experience such a bounty of aquatic life and such extraordinary diving conditions. Whale sharks, sunfish,  giant mantas, eagle rays, pygmy seahorses, ornate ghost pipefish, clown frogfish, nudibranchs, and the blue-ringed octopus are all at home here among a never ending range of dazzling sponges, sea squirts, tunicates, and corals. The Komodo Islands has been praised by many to be a macro enthusiast’s paradise found.

One of the highlights of every Indonesia Liveaboards safari to the Komodo Islands is the rare opportunity to walk with the imposing Komodo dragon. An alert and agile hunter these awesome animals can reach 2.5 meters in length and weigh and an astonishing 125 kilos.  Known to the locals as ‘Ora’ there are about eleven hundred of the world’s largest lizard living on Komodo Island and another five hundred on nearby Rinca Island.  Hiking through the bush of Komodo is an experience that should not be taken lightly and will not soon be forgotten. World Class Diving and a rendezvous with one of the world’s last surviving dinosaur descendants all on one amazing dive safari, what more can you ask for?

 

When should you dive the Komodo Islands? The Komodo Liveaboard diving season is year round, with the best diving conditions from April thru December. It is during these months that the seas are most calm, the visibility is incredible, and there are massive congregations of large pelagic’s. Diving Komodo is best accomplished on a world class Komodo Liveaboard from beautiful Bali or Flores Islands. Be one of only a few to explore this mystical and thrilling dive destination. Macro to massive there are no better scuba adventures anywhere in the world, Komodo has it all.