82 replies to this topic

[Elias]

Is it too early to start posting about how excited I am for this trip?  

[poppi]

No! It's never too early!

[WreckWench]

Just spoke to Poppi and she is doing BOTH WEEKS!!!

 

Will get her signed up in the new system asap!

[WreckWench]

We have added Elias to the 2nd week and have two new members joining us the first week!  YEA!!!

[adamlaz]

Hey, I'm new here!

 

But... I'm interested in the 7 day trip, or possibly the 11 day. 

 

I'll be looking into all this a bit more over the next few days, but this trip looks amazing!  

 

 

[WreckWench]

Hey, I'm new here!

 

But... I'm interested in the 7 day trip, or possibly the 11 day. 

 

I'll be looking into all this a bit more over the next few days, but this trip looks amazing!  

 

 

 

Hey Adam we'd love to have you join us! Either trip is great...but more is better!

[Jaque]

Can you please add me to the list of interested divers for the Jan 24 to Feb 4 segment. The eleven day trip appears to fit very neatly into my three weeks off, Jan 20 to Feb 9. That is assuming I can get from Anchorage to Sorong in four days and back in five. Not as easy as it sounds. It appears you can't get to Sorong from anywhere. Sorong is where we fly into and out of, yes? Any advice on flights would be helpful. Jakarta looks like the best right now. Bali is tempting but the itinerary from there is not too good. And I am trying to minimize my time on the airlines with the most abysmal safety records (Lion Air for example). Anyway, if I can sort out the flights, I'm probably in.

[dive_sail_etc]

Can you please add me to the list of interested divers for the Jan 24 to Feb 4 segment. The eleven day trip appears to fit very neatly into my three weeks off, Jan 20 to Feb 9. That is assuming I can get from Anchorage to Sorong in four days and back in five. Not as easy as it sounds. It appears you can't get to Sorong from anywhere. Sorong is where we fly into and out of, yes? Any advice on flights would be helpful. Jakarta looks like the best right now. Bali is tempting but the itinerary from there is not too good. And I am trying to minimize my time on the airlines with the most abysmal safety records (Lion Air for example). Anyway, if I can sort out the flights, I'm probably in.

Jaque you are on the notify list for the Jan 24 - Feb 04 portion of Raj Ampat! Good luck with your flight wrangling; again, any tips from other members experienced with arranging flights in her corner of the globe (see highlighted text) would be a great !!

[Elias]

[...] any tips from other members experienced with arranging flights [...] would be a great !!

 

 

Garuda. I'll say it again, GARUDA.

 

They are slightly more expensive than other carriers but --
* They won't charge you for checking that heavy extra bag of dive gear, provided you let them know it is sports equipment.

* They have the best customer service among the Indonesian airlines, by far.

* They have the best in flight service among the Indonesian airlines. Award winning, actually.

* They have a great safety record.

* Their flights run on time, at least more so than any other Indonesian carrier I've used.

 

I've flown with every Indonesian carrier, domestic and international, multiple times, short and long haul, from economy to first class. Garuda is my go-to carrier when arranging flights around the country.


As for flights from Anchorage, I'm not sure however you'll definitely need to route through Jakarta (CGK) or Denpasar / Bali (DPS), at least until the Sorong (SOQ) airport upgrade is completed and they start accepting regional international flights on larger aircraft. (This may not actually be a Good Thing [TM] for the area, but ... Progress!) Last time I checked the most viable current route to SOQ was via Makassar (UPG), but all of the itineraries had unfortunate layovers and flight times. C'est la vie.

 

Personally, I'd opt for an international itinerary through Bali as it offers a better option for an extended layover to ensure your luggage arrives safely, etc. Spending a few days in Jakarta would definitely not be as enjoyable.

Edited by Elias, 13 September 2015 - 08:31 AM.

[Elias]

My mistake, it is also possible to reach Sorong via Manado, in North Sulawesi. Manado is currently served by regional international flights from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. That said, I'd still recommend planning on reaching Sorong via Bali for the reasons mentioned above.  

 

Edited by Elias, 13 September 2015 - 08:29 AM.

[ScubaTex]

see corrected post below

Edited by ScubaTex, 14 September 2015 - 06:05 PM.

[ScubaTex]

Can you please add me to the list of interested divers for the Jan 24 to Feb 4 segment. The eleven day trip appears to fit very neatly into my three weeks off, Jan 20 to Feb 9. That is assuming I can get from Anchorage to Sorong in four days and back in five. Not as easy as it sounds. It appears you can't get to Sorong from anywhere. Sorong is where we fly into and out of, yes? Any advice on flights would be helpful. Jakarta looks like the best right now. Bali is tempting but the itinerary from there is not too good. And I am trying to minimize my time on the airlines with the most abysmal safety records (Lion Air for example). Anyway, if I can sort out the flights, I'm probably in.

 

 

 

[...] any tips from other members experienced with arranging flights [...] would be a great !!

 

 

Garuda. I'll say it again, GARUDA.

 

They are slightly more expensive than other carriers but --
* They won't charge you for checking that heavy extra bag of dive gear, provided you let them know it is sports equipment.

* They have the best customer service among the Indonesian airlines, by far.

* They have the best in flight service among the Indonesian airlines. Award winning, actually.

* They have a great safety record.

* Their flights run on time, at least more so than any other Indonesian carrier I've used.

 

I've flown with every Indonesian carrier, domestic and international, multiple times, short and long haul, from economy to first class. Garuda is my go-to carrier when arranging flights around the country.

Personally, I'd opt for an international itinerary through Bali as it offers a better option for an extended layover to ensure your luggage arrives safely, etc. Spending a few days in Jakarta would definitely not be as enjoyable.

 

 

Please let me make some observations concerning domestic Indonesian air travel, I've made 2 trips to Raja Ampat, in Oct. 2008 & Feb/March 2013.

 

Jaque - I don't have any experience on flights from Anchorage. Don't know if you could make a connection through Honolulu. My daughter joined me on the 2013 trip, the US majors all wanted to route her back to LAX or SFO [she lives in Maui, the poor thing], then onto Asia. She ended up taking a Korean Air flight from Honolulu to Seoul, overnite, then onto Jakarta the next day.

 

First, let's start with international points of entry - as Elias posted - Jakarta [CGK], Denpasar Bali [DPS], & Manado [MDC]. The domestic Indo flights you take will be dependent upon which point of entry you choose.

 

Second, while there are numerous domestic Indo airlines, not all fly to Sorong [SOQ]. For both of my trips I did extensive research for flight schedules for most of the airlines. Flights can be scheduled for different days of the week and different departure times. Once you find the flights you want, the airlines only accept payment by credit card issued by an Indo bank!!! When you're doing flight research, also remember you want to be on a 737 or Airbus 320, DO NOT fly w/a smaller turbo prop [even more weight restrictions].

 

Third, [as of my last trip] Garuda doesn't fly to Sorong. On my 2008 trip I flew Garuda to Makassar [UPG], but then was required to stay over night & fly another airline to Sorong. The 2013 trip I only had to fly out from Sorong, the inbound portion was done by liveaboard. But on that trip I made arrangements for my daughter, who was flying through Jakarta. She took a red-eye on Sriwijaya Air with a short stopover in Makassar, arriving in Sorong at 8am. She & I returned on Sriwijaya, SOQ>>UPG>>CGK, with a 5 hour stop before flying out to Korea.

 

Fourth, since I don't have a credit card issued by an Indo bank, for both of my trips, I contacted Jeremy Barnes of Monada Safari Tours, who made all the arrangements, for Indo domestic air. For the 2008 trip, the airline quit flying from Manado to Sorong a month prior to my trip. Jeremy re-routed me on different airlines, changing stopover cities, and had a representative meet me at the Makassar airport with the necessary travel vouchers.

 

Fifth, for some reason the airlines in Sorong are not as lenient with baggage weight allowances. Hopefully a representative with the Damai will accompany you to the airport and aid you paying the least amount possible. But, be prepared, the only acceptable payment for excess baggage is RUPIAH!!!

 

You're about to embark on a 'bucket list' trip, have fun, take pictures leave bubbles!!!

 

Bill

[Elias]

ScubaTex, on 14 Sept 2015 - 5:09 PM, said:

 

[Indonesian] airlines only accept payment by credit card issued by an Indo bank!!!

 

[...]When you're doing flight research, also remember you want to be on a 737 or Airbus 320, DO NOT fly w/a smaller turbo prop [even more weight restrictions].

 

[...] Garuda doesn't fly to Sorong. On my 2008 trip I flew Garuda to Makassar [UPG], but then was required to stay over night & fly another airline to Sorong. [...]

 

[...] be prepared, the only acceptable payment for excess baggage is RUPIAH!!!

 

 

 

I've had great luck booking flights with Indonesian carriers through tiket2.com, although there is a bit of back and forth email exchange to complete the transaction as there is a human operator in the loop to make the actual booking and charge your credit card. If you think of them as your personal concierge it may make you feel kind of special ...  
 

Garuda currently flies to Sorong (SOQ) from Makassar (UPG; South Sulawesi), Manado (MDC; North Sulawesi), Timika (TIM; Central Papua), and Jayapura (DJJ; NE Papua). Unfortunately the itineraries are all rather offensive and will play hell with your jet lag on the inbound portion of the trip. Choose your poison, I suppose, but Garuda remains my recommended carrier for a variety of reasons.

Regarding potential luggage issues -- I flew Garuda between Denpasar and Sorong this past April, flying out via UPG and returning via TIM, and had no issue with my (slightly heavier than average at 17kg) dive luggage, even though Garuda uses both Boeing 737-800NGs and Bombardier CRJ-1000NGs to service the route. I told them it was my dive gear and after weighing it and confirming that I was not transporting pressurized tanks they did not charge me for checking the extra bag.

 

Your point about being required to pay for excess baggage in Rupiah is spot on ... Plenty of people have found this can make for a stressful checkin experience at Indonesian airports, especially if the closest ATM is broken or out of cash!  

Edited by Elias, 17 September 2015 - 08:29 AM.

[ScubaTex]

 

I've had great luck booking flights with Indonesian carriers through tiket2.com, although there is a bit of back and forth email exchange to complete the transaction as there is a human operator in the loop to make the actual booking and charge your credit card. If you think of them as your personal concierge it may make you feel kind of special ...  
 

Garuda currently flies to Sorong (SOQ) from Makassar (UPG; South Sulawesi), Manado (MDC; North Sulawesi), Timika (TIM; Central Papua), and Jayapura (DJJ; NE Papua). Unfortunately the itineraries are all rather offensive and will play hell with your jet lag on the inbound portion of the trip. Choose your poison, I suppose, but Garuda remains my recommended carrier for a variety of reasons.

Regarding potential luggage issues -- I flew Garuda between Denpasar and Sorong this past April, flying out via UPG and returning via TIM, and had no issue with my (slightly heavier than average at 17kg) dive luggage, even though Garuda uses both Boeing 737-800NGs and Bombardier CRJ-1000NGs to service the route. I told them it was my dive gear and after weighing it and confirming that I was not transporting pressurized tanks they did not charge me for checking the extra bag.

 

Your point about being required to pay for excess baggage in Rupiah is spot on ... Plenty of people have found this can make for a stressful checkin experience at Indonesian airports, especially if the closest ATM is broken or out of cash!  

 

Glad to see Garuda is finally offering service to Sorong. It can be difficult to make connections from port of entry cities, and intermediate stops can result in waiting over night for a connection. 

 

Yall have fun!!!  Bill

[poppi]

Is anyone planning on arriving in Bali a few days early for the Jan 24 - Feb 4 trip? It would be nice to know that so we can arrange the same hotel.

 

Thoughts?