A Unique Destination: Wakatobi Dive Resort is situated at the epicenter of marine biodiversity. When you arrive, you'll find an intimate, tranquil, relaxing and remote resort with all the modern comforts and none of the modern stress. Their resort has easy access to superb diving on miles and miles of pristine reefs, including unlimited shore diving on the "world's best house reef", just 20m/60ft off their white sand beach. Add it all up and you've got the perfect dive vacation!
Getting There: Many airlines operate regular flights to the island of Bali, Indonesia, the international hub for Wakatobi Dive Resort. At the airport in Bali, Wakatobi's VIP greeting service will meet you at the plane and escort you through customs and visa application. They can also arrange ground transportation for you at the airport.
Guests should plan to stay overnight in Bali prior to continuing on to the Pelagian at Wakatobi.
At the airport on your way to the resort, the resort's personalized VIP check-in and access to the Bali's fully serviced airport lounge is a prelude to the friendly service you'll enjoy aboard the private air service en route to Wakatobi's own private airport. In just over two hours, you will fly across the isles of central Indonesia to the remote Wakatobi archipelago. Located in the Banda Sea southeast of Sulawesi, these islands are 6 degrees south of the equator and 1020 km (640 miles) northeast of Bali. Keep your camera ready - you'll be flying over the majestic Rinjani volcano on Lombok, and across the bejeweled seas of the Wakatobi Islands. While you may have very strict baggage limitations on your international flights to Bali, there are no luggage or weight restrictions on their private air service.
The Resort: Wakatobi offers four levels of bungalow-style accommodation: garden, beach, premium, cliff villa. Each is comfortable, spacious and well-appointed, featuring ensuite bathrooms and air conditioning (and the option of being cooled by ocean breezes).
The maximum capacity of the resort is 48 guests. Wakatobi has a 3 to 1 staff to diver ratio. At Wakatobi you will enjoy a level of service unheard of anywhere else in the diving world. Enough staff to cater for your every whim or desire.
The resort is powered by their own generators. Electricity is 220V/50Hz. They have an ample supply of adapters and power converters.
Plenty of fresh drinkable water is supplied by their large capacity reverse osmosis water purification system.
Air temperature is usually around 30° C (86° F) during the day (sometimes warmer, sometimes cooler) and pleasantly cooler in the evening. Year around, the air temperature ranges 24-33° C (75-91° F), water temperature is 26-28° C (79-82° F).
Due to the ocean breezes and lack of standing water, you don't have to worry about bugs or mosquitoes.
Time is GMT +8.
Staying Connected: While you may be far from home, you can always feel connected to the outside world at Wakatobi. Guest rooms are equipped with LAN ports, the resort's main areas have WiFi coverage, and their business center provides satellite telephones, fax and PC's with multi-standard memory card readers, CD burners and Internet connection. Internet is FREE in Wakatobi
Cuisine: Wakatobi's team of top Balinese chefs prepares delicious meals with generous portions, complimented by fresh fruits and vegetables flown in from Bali and overseas. Typical fare includes loads of day-fresh tuna sashimi, excellent soups, barbecued fish, fresh fruits, steaks and oriental specialties. Be sure to save room for one of the decadent desserts made fresh every day by their pastry chef.
Meals are generally served buffet or family-style in the resort's new restaurant. They'll also host a beach barbeque or two during your stay. Almost any special dietary need can be met if you let them know in advance. In the lounge, they supply complimentary coffee, tea and cookies around the clock.
What to Wear: Dress is very casual. While the days are warm and sunny, the nights can sometimes be cool and breezy. They recommend packing a sweatshirt or windbreaker. The resort is near the equator so be sure to pack a hat, sunglasses, and sun block.
Photo and video: The resort's photo and video center features a complete digital image editing studio along with E6 processing. Clean fresh water is available on boats and at the resort for cameras. The dive support staff will look after your camera and video equipment as if it were their first born.
Sustainable Diving: From day one, Wakatobi Dive Resort lived the belief that protecting the reefs was going to be an integral part of running a sustainable dive operation. They felt so strongly about this, they started the Wakatobi Collaborative Reef Conservation Program, a privately-funded reef conservation, education, and community improvement program. This unique program is designed to align the interests of the locals and the diving community through a series of mutual agreements and investments. As part of the program, local fishing communities obtain a fair share of the income generated by dive tourism in exchange for adopting more sustainable practices - such as leaving large stretches of reef completely untouched. The surrounding villages also receive financial incentives to improve their infrastructure. Other contributions go towards education and strengthening local support for protecting the precious marine life in the Wakatobi region.
Currently, the cooperative conservation program protects over 22 miles of coral reefs in the Wakatobi region. In addition, Wakatobi's community programs bring electricity to the 700-person village on the island, encourage environmentally-conscious waste management, and sponsor reef patrols, schools, sporting events, and public moorings to reduce anchor damage.
Wakatobi Dive Resort has spent years developing, improving and refining these conservation agreements. Their efforts have been based on a commitment to understand the local needs and to treat the local communities as fully consenting peers, so there's no need to preach or apply pressure. In turn, the local communities have become defenders of these precious underwater properties, a valued resource for them.
You, the diver, can join with Wakatobi with a good conscience, knowing that your visit is helping to preserve these incredible reefs not only for today, but for generations to come.
Diving Program: Wakatobi's underwater environment is an extraordinary and diverse seascape of vibrant tropical coral reefs, a rich sea-grass habitat, dramatic slopes and walls, lush sea mounts, caverns and pristine reef tops. It is an excellent opportunity for drift diving, critter encounters and fascinating reef exploration. The resort's unique marine conservation and community integration programs ensure that these underwater surroundings remain exclusive and unspoiled.
The dive center is located only a few steps from the water. Their diving program includes
An early morning beach dive before breakfast
A two-tank boat dive trip before lunch
Afternoon taxi boat dives on the world's best house reef (or a third boat dive)
Night beach dives before and after dinner
An evening boat night dive may be scheduled when conditions allow
Beach dives and taxi boat dives on their 8 km / 5 mile house reef feature multiple dive sites and are accompanied by guides upon availability. Boat dives are always escorted by guides. Dive buddies are required on all dives unless cleared with the resort manager.
If you have the energy, you can easily make 5 to 7 dives a day. Most guests relax a little and make 3 to 4 dives a day.
The resort recommends that all their guests bring their own dive equipment so they are completely familiar and comfortable with its operation. The basic diving equipment recommended is
a regulator
depth and pressure gauge
watch or dive computer
buoyancy compensation device
mask
booties
fins
snorkel
dive light
However, they do have dive equipment available for rental.
They resort recommends you bring a 5 mm (1/4") full-body wetsuit but some guests are comfortable in only 3mm (3/16") shorties.
Seasons: Climate and diving conditions are consistently very pleasant throughout the long season (March to December). Peak visibility is in April to June and September to November. July and August have higher reef activity as more plankton is in the water (and potentially more big stuff). June and July feature a little more wind, making for nice sea breezes. Visibility ranges from 15m - 80m (45 -240 feet). The resort is as of this year open year-round. All weather is approximate and subject to the whims of Mother Nature.
Surface Intervals: Onemobaa Island, on which Wakatobi Dive Resort is located, is roughly 8 square kilometers (3 square miles). The island trails allow for nice walks (or jogs / runs). Behind the resort, one can find shallow sink holes that can be explored with snorkeling equipment and a dive light. Ping-pong, volleyball and badminton is also offered.
They also have more leisurely pursuits such as board games, a selection of movies and a fairly extensive reading library. A big-screen projector with DVD and VHS players is located in the Longhouse lounge area, along with a CD / cassette stereo system. Of course, the resort's beach offers world-class snorkeling or just a relaxing view.
Wakatobi's Boutique: A selection of resort wear (including a stylish range of Wakatobi signature clothing item), sundries, and local crafts are available in the resort boutique. They accept US Dollars, Rupiah (local currency), Euro and Visa or MasterCard
Safety and Medical: Wakatobi is situated in a remote location in a stable environment with a very friendly and peaceful population. Nevertheless, the resort features on-site security, and a wide range alert network. The resort observes the highest standards for your safety above and below the water. Since the inception of Wakatobi Dive Resort over 10 years ago, they have not had any safety issues.
They have a good stock of medical gear and medication (with pretty much everything from band-aids to defibrillators). Should that not be enough, there is a small hospital on the neighboring island sufficiently equipped for basic treatments.
Insurance: Every effort is made to ensure you are kept safe and carefree during your holiday. However, they do recommend you purchase trip cancellation/interruption insurance in the event of unexpected changes in your travel plans or if your baggage is misplaced along the way.
In case of a serious medical incident, the resort has established procedures and protocols with International SOS, the world's leading provider of international medical assistance and evacuation. http://www.internationalsos.com
The resort strongly recommends you purchase supplemental dive insurance, offered by many firms such as Divers Alert Network (DAN), PADI, and Dive Assure. These companies offer specific dive-related policies that often include travel, gear, and dive accident/ evacuation coverage all in one comprehensive policy.
Documentation: Your passport will need to be valid for at least 6 months after your entry into Indonesia with at least one totally empty page for the visa. Check with your airline or travel agent for Visa requirements. Remember to bring your dive certification card.
Cultural: Always keep in mind that you are a guest in another country. Customs, dress, mannerisms will likely be very different from your home country. Please be respectful and courteous. As part of the Wakatobi experience, you will have a chance to visit a local village. If you are so inclined, your gifts of school supplies (paper, pencils, erasers, notebooks, maps, crayons, etc...) would be welcome.
Waste management: As a general rule, the resort tries to minimize plastics on the island as waste disposal is troublesome in such a remote location. They suggest you bring rechargeable batteries as they cannot dispose or recycle ordinary batteries. Otherwise, be prepared to take the spent ones home with you.
Basic Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia): One of the main uniting forces in Indonesia is its common language. Despite having millions of people who live on many thousands of islands, each with its own local language or dialect, Indonesians are able to communicate effectively using the national language, Bahasa Indonesia. As a traveler, if you are able to speak a few words of Indonesian, it will certainly endear you to the local people you meet.
Yes - Ya Excuse me - Permisi
No - Tidak Good morning - Selamat Pagi
Thank you - Terima kasih Good afternoon - Selamat Siang
How are you? - Apa Kabar? Good evening - Selamat Sore
I am fine - Kabar Baik Good night - Selamat Malam
What is your name? - Siapa nama anda? Goodbye (if you are leaving) - Selamat Tinggal
My name is... - Nama saya... Selamat Jalan" (Goodbye, when the other party is leaving)
