WEH ISLAND THE HIDDEN EDEN

Weh Island or Pulau Weh is a volcanic island located in northwest of Sumatra for about 15 kilometeres (9mi) and belong to Aceh province. This island is small at only 156.3 square kilometres (60.3 sq mi).

The island's coral diversity relatively low, but fish species variation is rich. This island is densely populated with marine life such as scorpionfish, lionfish, leaffish, blue spotted rays, black spotted and honeycomb morays, sharks and barracuda, napoleon wrasse , Weh also offers you caves, arches, walls and canyons.

Apart from underwater ecosystem, Weh island is the only habitat of one threatened species of toad, named Bufo valhallae (genus Bufo). The species is only known from the holotype from the island. Due to heavily degraded forestation on the island, the population of the species is uncertain.

Dive in crowds of fish, not in crowds of divers. Still being an insiders’ secret, and off the beaten track, Pulau Weh offers unspoiled and uncrowded dive sites.

Best time to visit: February-October.

Get There

From Banda Aceh, you can take a ferry in the morning in Ulee Lheue Sea Port and arrive in Gapang Beach. The trip will only take a couple of hours, or 45 minutes if you decide to ride a speedboat. Or if you're from Medan, you can go to Banda Aceh first by bus or plane. Traveling from abroad? Several airlines can be used as well to reach Banda Aceh. Please refer to Banda Aceh to see ‘how to get there’ by click on www.indonesia.travel.com.

To Stay

You will be able to swing it, no matter how tight your budget is. Various accommodations are available and you just choose one that fits. Try basic wooden hut if you want to experience the simple life. Perhaps a pricey bungalow is your option for more comfortable surroundings.

Iboih Beach is famous among backpackers, world travelers, and divers. Iboih Beach presents simple life with horizon of fisherman villages. Live like them and use facilities they use. New businesses are opening such as bungalows and dive centers. Open air cafes are irresistible. Everything here is affordable.

Some of the guesthouses along the beach is O’ong Guesthouse, Yulia Guesthouse, Erick Guesthouse, Ayub Guesthouse, Anna Bungalow, Fina Bungalow, Fatimah Bungalow, and Mamamia Bungalow.

Gapang Beach is another resort in the vicinity of Rubiah Sea Garden. This beach is nothing strange to divers. Among the available accommodations are: Gapang Jaya and Ramadila

Get Around

Minibuses are available, motorcycles and three-wheeled pedicab or becak are there to explore this island. For a more comfortable journey, you can also rent a car.

To explore Sabang and the beaches, nothing is more enjoyable than walking on foot, although taxis are also available.

To Eat

You can have your fill of sea food dishes in the restaurants throughout the island. Try to visit Bungong Sakura at Ujong Kareung, Mama’s Jungle, Dang Dang Na, Naguna, and Coco’s Café at Gapang, or Olala, 7 Bungalows, and Chill Out at Iboih.

BUNAKEN THE TROPICAL MARINE ECOSYSTEMS

Bunaken is an island of 8 km², part of the Bunaken National Marine Park. Bunaken is located at the north of the island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. Bunaken represented The Indonesian tropical marine ecosystems includes mangrove forest ecosystem, coral reef, and coastal ecosystem.

The waters of Bunaken National Marine Park are up to 1,566 m deep in Manado Bay, with temperatures ranging between 27 to 29 °C. It has a high diversity of - corals, fish, echinoderms or sponges. Notably, 7 of the 8 species of giant clams that occur in the world, occur in Bunaken.

Oceanic currents may explain, in part, why Bunaken National Marine Park has such a high level of biodiversity. Northeasternly currents generally sweep through the park but abundant counter currents and gyros related to lunar cyclesare believed to be a trap for free swimming larvae. This is particularly true on the south side of the crescent-shaped Bunaken Island, lying in the heart of the park. A snorkeler or diver in the vicinity of Lekuan or Fukui may spot over 33 species of butterfly fish and numerous types of groupers, damsels, wrasses and gobies. The gobies, smallish fish with bulging eyes and modified fins that allow them to attach to hard surfaces, are the most diverse but least known group of fish in the park. Here you can find underwater great walls.

The translucent waters of the Bunaken seas enable people to clearly view numerous sea biota. There are 13 species of coral reefs in this park, dominated by edge ridges and block ridges of rocks. The most attractive view is the steep vertical sloppy coral reef that plunges down as deep as 25-50 meters.

Best time to visit between May to August. That way you can explore the Park  to its fullest.

Get There

The island of Bunaken is easily reached from Manado by motorized boat, departing from Manado harbor, Molas, Kalasey and Tasik Ria beach. Ferries from Manado to Bunaken leave daily around 2 p.m (depending on the tide), except on Sundays, when they leave from Pasar Jengki near the Manado harbor. The return journey from Bunaken to Manado usually leaves early in the morning, at around 7-8 a.m

There are also charter boats that depart in the morning and return in the late afternoon. These are usually reserved for travel packages organized by agents or hotels.

To Stay

On the island you have a choice amongst a number of homestays, with rates starting    at Rp40,000 for one person a day, including full board. Some of the dive operators on Bunaken are offering more upmarket accommodation that has running water.

You can also stay in the hotels in Manado and then book a daily package to Bunaken, usually leaving in the morning and returning in the late afternoon.

Get Around

You can also  explore the island on foot or you can take a boat to move from one dive site to the other  Just walking around the beach is already a most enjoyable experience.

To Eat

There are several restaurants and cafes throughout Manado and the islands. Try their specialties: seafood, bubur manado and food made of coconuts!

WAKATOBI THE CORAL PARADISE

Wakatobi is one of the Regencies in South-East Sulawesi with it real underwater paradise at the world's coral reef triangle The island beside as the richest site in coral reef collecenter. ction and as the most beautiful site, (Operation Wallacea 2006) Wakatobi is also situated geographically at the world's coral reef triangle center with its 942 fish species and 750 coral reef species from total 850 of world's collection comparing to the two world's famous diving center like Caribbean Sea that owes only 50 species and other 300 coral reef species in the Red Sea, Egypt.
The types of vegetation found in the national park are mangrove forest, coastal forest, lowland swamp forest, riverbank vegetation, lowland rainforest, mountain rainforest and coral reefs. The Wakatobi Archipelago has 25 groups of coral reefs including fringing reefs, barrier reefs and atolls.

 Best time to visit March and December and during July and August 

A survey conducted in 2003 identified 396 species of coral belonging to 68 genera and 15 families. These include Acropora formosa, Acropora hyacinthus, Psammocora profundasafla, Pavona cactus, Leptoseris yabei, Fungia molucensis, Lobophyllia robusta, Merulina ampliata, Platygyra versifora, Euphyllia glabrescens, Tubastraea frondes, Stylophora pistillata, Sarcophyton throchelliophorum, and Sinulariaspecies. Among the recorded species of seabird are the Brown Booby, Common Kingfisher and Malaysian Plover. Turtles in the park include the Hawksbill turtle, Loggerhead sea turtle, and Olive Ridley. The reefs for Wakatobi diving are unlike others in the region because of the dry climate and uplifted limestone or, in other words, fossilised reefs. This means there is an exceptionally clean environment due to the lack of soil erosion.
Wakatobi is not only about underwater beauty. Here we can also explore the amazing chalk hill, some old castles, old mosque and it inhabit traditional live. The land is so clean also the rivers, even while you on boat you can see river's bottom. At several time there are also Terrapin Release event there.

 GET THERE 
There are two airports operated in Wakatobi. The first one is Maranggo Airport that operated by Wakatobi Dive Resort who serves direct flight occasionally from Bali to Tomia (exclusive tourist package/air charter).
The second one is Matahora Airport. By now, there is only SusiAir who operates ten flights per week (Kendari-Wakatobi-Kendari) and it just takes about 45 minutes in one trip. So you must have flight to Kendari airport frist.

To Eat
Sea food is the specialty here, and you can never go wrong with ikan bakar or roasted fish (unless you are allergic!). Pisang epe and pisang hijau, desserts made of banana, should be sampled as well.
Cuisine here generally tastes rather spicy. You should try sinonggi, a sago porridge served with clam and fish soup. Pokea or skewered clams with peanut sauce is also tasty, served with baked sticky rice and some kind of lontong, steamed rice in banana leaves.
For souvenirs and snacks you should try bagea, cookie that predominantly taste of ginger and cashew, perfect to be had with tea or coffee.