Manado to Ambon Sep 2026 snorkeling trip report

Date: September 15 – 27, 2026

Water Temp: 26 – 27.5 C / 79 – 81.5 F

Seas: Moderate winds from SSE, but generally calm on all our sites

NORTH SULAWESI

Manado

We began our snorkeling tour (journey, really) in Bunaken National Marine Park, one of Indonesia’s oldest and most famous national parks. Without a doubt, it lives up to its reputation! We snorkeled along walls packed with coral and teeming with fish, and in the blue, saw dozens of turtles and sharks. Though the water was a bit chilly, it was clear which added to the number of amazing marine life we got to see. Did I say we saw turtles? Dozens for sure! This was an epic way to begin our tour, and it just kept getting better…

Lembeh

Lembeh Strait is equally as famous as Bunaken, but for different reasons. Coral reefs and clear water may not be the highlights, but we sought bizarre and rare critters and, of course, we were not disappointed! Ambon scorpionfishes (two of them), check! Harlequin ghost pipefish, check! Two species of carry crabs, check! Seahorses, check! Long arm and Coconut octopuses, check. The list can go on and on. And we never had to look into water deeper than two meters, often less than that. It was one of the most productive snorkels in terms of rare critters we’ve had since, well, the last time we were in Lembeh!

Maju Island

Halfway between North Sulawesi and Halmahera lies Maju Island. This was a necessary stop on our way to Tidore, Halmahera which is about 150 miles from Lembeh. We snorkeled reefs that consisted of large coral bommies, made up mostly of species of massive Porites coral colonies. The narrow channels and coral-encrusted reef tops captured our interest for hours. In the afternoon, we continued along the reef towards the village where we were accompanied by dozens of children who may not have ever had the chance to see snorkelers from the west visit their island!

HALMAHERA

Tidore and Makian Islands

Our first stop along the western Halmahera coast was the series of volcanic islands around Ternate, Tidore, and Makian. Between Tidore and Halmahera lie two sand cays that developed because of relatively shallow volcanic substrate creating platforms where coral can grow. As these substrates sink, coral grows around the sand islands that form the perimeter of the reef. The development is atoll-like, but without the center volcanic cone. Reefs around the island are packed with mostly Acropora branching and table corals, and there is a healthy population and diversity of reef fishes. One of the highlights was an ‘anemonefish city’ with hundreds of resident red and black anemonefishes occupying what looked like hundreds of bulb-tipped anemones crammed into spaces between coral colonies. 

In the afternoon, we visited Makian island for some black sand habitats and did a night dive where we had one of the stranger experiences at night. We found ourselves amid an enormous school of silversides, and they freaked out with our lights! Thousands of fish seemed to be in a frenzy and were bouncing off our lights and us. On more than one occasion, I had so many fish around me that they wiggled into the foot pocket of my fin. Scorpionfishes, several species of nudibranchs, and decorator crabs were also found in the mixed coral and black sand habitat.

Goraci Islands

To the south lies a series of low limestone islands, each surrounded with healthy stands of mangroves. After seeing what looked like the wing tips of a manta breaking the surface, I flew my drone to scout it out for us. I spotted one near the western edge of the submerged reef in the middle of the channel, which was enough for us to choose mantas over reef for an hour or so. As I was coming back, I found the party and had no less than 15 mantas in one frame. If one of them caused excitement among our group, you could imagine how everyone felt when I told them there appear to be over a dozen! We snorkeled with them for about an hour (some of our guests, much longer!) and then explored the network of reefs nearby.

Bacan Islands

The islands of Proco, Saleh, and Sali Kecil have wonderful reefs with healthy coral and plenty of fish. Along with super fishy snorkels, this day offered us the chance to see several fish that, as snorkelers, we often don’t get to see, as well as fish behaviors that all marine enthusiasts hope to encounter. Fish like Lamarck’s angelfish in less than 3 meters of water, flasher wrasses also at the same shallow depth, and the Halmahera walking shark (Epaulette shark). Behaviors like jawfishes and cardinalfishes carrying eggs in their mouths (a behavior called mouthbrooding), and swarming silversides being corralled and attacked by needlefish and lagoon mackerel. After two long snorkel sessions and a night snorkel, we all agreed this area would be worthy of several days of exploration.

Damar Islands

Damar Island offered a new set of habitats for us to explore; mangroves! Reefs that fronted mangroves began right from shore, giving us the feeling like we were in Yangeffo in Raja Ampat. Healthy soft and hard corals grew under the canopy of red mangroves, and much like Yangeffo, colonized roots that stabilized the trees above. Fields of Acropora staghorn corals supported huge schools of damselfishes, and we had several sharks and an eagle ray during our time in the water. Personally, I was not a big fan of Damar Island that last time we visited (2024), but I am a true believer now! Rather than a necessary stop on our journey to Ambon, it is now an absolute destination on any tour we do in the area.

Boano Islands, West Seram

This was a new area for us and it was stunning. Massive limestone islands that are reminiscent of the cliffs of El Nido, Philippines or Ha Long Bay in Vietnam dominated the scenery and smaller satellite islands each possessed picture-perfect beaches. The narrow channel between the large main island and Boano Kecil created a unique habitat where nutrient-rich water supported healthy coral gardens, but also a variety of large sponges including barrel and elephant ear varieties. Of course, sponges and tunicates mean nudibranchs, and we had several throughout or time there. 

Ambon

If there is any area in the world that can hold its own against Lembeh in terms of the number of rare and unusual critters that can be seen on a given snorkel session, it’s Ambon. Blue ribbon eels, banded snake eels, two different species of frogfishes, dozens of nudibranchs, ghost pipefishes, several species of juvenile fishes including sweetlips, balloonfish, and wrasse. Oh, and a blue ring octopus! 

Overall Impression of Manado to Ambon

We will return! Manado, Lembeh, Halmahera, and Ambon are world-class destinations on their own and by combining them, we had the best of all worlds. Check out the full portfolio of photos here and we cannot wait to revisit many of these areas in 2027.