Intermediate Indonesia
Sulawesi (Bunaken and Lembeh)
Vertical walls and black sand bottoms two hours apart, in the same province
Two hours of road separate one of Indonesia's cleanest vertical walls from the world's most famous black sand bottoms. It's probably the most efficient combination of contrasts that exists in diving.
In this profile you'll find how the two zones of North Sulawesi combine into a single trip, what each one offers, when to go, how conditions and gear change between them, and how to organize the days to make the most of both.
It's the destination that best illustrates that wide-angle and macro are different disciplines, and the most practical one for anyone who wants both without two flights.
Geography and access
The northern tip of Sulawesi island has two diving zones very close to each other and completely opposite, joined by about two hours of road.
To the west, facing the main city, a marine national park protects a group of islands surrounded by vertical walls that drop from very shallow depth, with clear water and very high coral cover.
To the east, a protected strait with black volcanic sand bottoms concentrates the cryptic fauna that has made that zone the world reference for macro. That zone has its own entry in this encyclopedia.
Both share an airport and can be combined in a single trip without domestic flights, which is exactly what most divers who come here do.
Access is an international flight to Jakarta or Singapore and a domestic flight to the city in North Sulawesi.
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