Snorkeling the Banda Islands!
The Banda Islands (also known as the Spice Islands) are a tiny cluster of ten volcanic islands located about 150 km south of the island of Ceram in the Banda Sea. Though once prized for their nutmeg, they are now admired for their pristine coral reefs and high diversity of reef fishes including many of the big predators such as large groupers, snappers, trevally, sharks, and Napoleon wrasses! Join our small group of adventurous snorkelers on board our luxurious 5-star motor yacht for this incredible journey to the world’s epicenter for marine biodiversity!
Itinerary
Each departure is unique and hand-crafted to expose you to a diversity of marine habitats and the incredible snorkeling sites that can be found there. There are ten islands in the Banda archipelago, and we will snorkel around all of them! Seaward reefs of Hatta and Banda Besar, the super-fishy reefs of Pulau Run, Nailakka, and Ai, Pulau Pisang and Manukang for the reef geology, Keraka (lighthouse) for shallow critter-hunting, Lava Flow on Banda Api to see one of the most amazing reefs in the world, and in Banda Neira we’ll look for some of the largest mandarinfish we have ever seen!
Our land adventures include a visit to a nutmeg plantation and some of the historical sites such as Fort Belgica, bringing us back to a time when sailing ships ruled seas in search of discovery and trade. We will also visit the seaward reefs od the Lease Islands en-route to the Banda Islands. The usual disclaimer about weather and tides affecting the itinerary are only a bonus for us, since we use them to ensure we visit each site at the best times possible! Our snorkeling tour begins and ends in Jakarta with one roundtrip internal flight (Jakarta - Sorong).
Tour Dates and Pricing
Accommodations: Gaia Love
Length: 13 days
Arrival / Departure city: Jakarta, Indonesia
Guides: Lee Goldman, Ethan Daniels
Prices and Payment schedule:
$ USD per person, double occupancy
$ USD per person, single occupancy
Reservation deposit: $1000 USD
March 28, 2026: $ USD
June 28, 2026: $ USD / $ USD (single)
Cancellation policy:
180 – 91 days prior to departure: 50% of trip cost
90 days or less prior to departure: 100% of tour cost
Combine this with North Sulawesi to Ambon (Sept 15 - 28, 2026) for an epic snorkeling tour through the geographical center of the coral triangle!
Inclusions / Exclusions
Tour cost includes:
- Accommodations throughout tour dates
- All meals on days 2 through 12 (dinner on day 1 – breakfast on day 13)
- All internal transfers including international arrival and departure transfers
- Non-alcoholic beverages
- All snorkeling and park fees
- All gratuities
Tour cost does not include:
- Round-trip international airfare
- Additional hotel accommodations and meals as a result of travel outside of the program dates
- Visa requirements including payments
- Alcoholic beverages
- International departure taxes
- Extra / overweight baggage fees
- Trip insurance (we recommend Travel Guard or World Nomads)
- Emergency medical evacuation insurance (required). Check your medical health care plan or contact DAN or DiveAssure.
- Additional accommodations while on tour in the event of flight schedule changes or events of force majeure
- Fuel surcharges (if applicable)
Accommodations
We begin the design of our snorkeling-trips-of-a-lifetime around luxurious live-aboard motor yachts and stunning, spacious resorts, both offering the highest levels of service. For this departure we use the Gaia Love. The hotel / resort we use in Jakarta is the Sheraton Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta Airport.
What to Expect
The Banda Islands are about four degrees south of the Equator where weather year-round is hot and humid. Daily temperatures will generally be in the mid 80's F (upper 20's C) with a mix of sun and clouds and the occasional afternoon shower. Water temperatures average around 82º F (28º C).
Our visit to Fort Beligica and the nearby museum on Banda Neira will require 30-60 minutes of generally easy walking on paved surfaces and well worn, even trails. Some uphill walking on paved surface is required to visit the fort. Loose-fitting, clothing and comfortable footwear is recommended.
