Getting there

Divespots

Diving on a liveaboard

Ultimate Indonesia 2010

Photo & adventure expeditions

The Togean Islands

The Togean Islands are situated in Indonesia in the gulf of Tomini, which seperates Central-Sulawesi from North-Sulawesi. The archipel consists of many small islands, most of them covered by dense jungle. An active vulcano, Una Una, also belongs to this stretch of islands. The dark green of the islands and the cristal clear water is a perfect setting and has attracted many travellers during the last years. Quite a number of homestays and bungalows on the islands offer basic facilities for the foreigners.

During the rainy season there is a high risk of malaria tropica on all the islands.

Getting there

From the south via the Trans Sulawesi Highway to Poso and from there to Ampana. Since May 2000 there have been constant riots and killings in the Poso region. You will travel through burnt down villages, in which only the mosques and houses of muslim inhabitants have remained intact. In other districts only the churches and christian houses are still standing, everything else has been burnt. In August 2000 the situation calmed down, but already in June 2001 the fighting broke out again. On August 8th, 2002 an Italian tourist was killed when a public bus coming from Rantepao was attacked by gunmen near Poso. On October 21st, 2002 - only a few days after the Bali bombings - a spokesman of the fundamentalist militia group Laskar Jihad announced their withdrawal from the Poso region. All 200 (?) members would leave the area until the end of November. So there may be a chance for peace in the area now. A very detailed analysis of the Poso-crisis may be found on the Human Rights Watch homepage.

There is a regular bus between Palu and Ampana. However you will have to find out if it is really running.

I really recommend to ckeck already in Makassar the security situation in the area.

An alternative, more secure route leads from Makassar via Palu to Luwuk by plane. From there you can reach Ampana by bus or chartered car in about 5 h.

The crossing by public ferry from Ampana to the Togean islands takes between 4 and 6 h depending on your destination there.

From the north you will have to pass through Gorontalo. From there you can cross Tomini Bay with the regular ferry to Pagimana and continue your trip to Ampana. There is also a new twice weekly ferry from Gorontalo to Wakai (Togeans). In Marissa near Gorontalo it is also possible to cross by chartered boat in about 5 hs.

In Ampana I recommand the Oasis Hotel, Jalan R.A. Kartini No. 5. It is situated near the harbour and is owned by the owner of the Kadidiri Paradise Bungalows on Kadidiri. The next day you can take the regular ferry to Wakai on the island of Batu Daka. From there boats take you to the different resorts.

On Kadidiri two resorts share the beach. We were satisfied with our bungalow at Kadidiri Paradise. The better bungalows are directly near the beach. During our visit in summer 2002 there was a lot of upgrading going on. All bungalows have toilets and mandi. Meals are excellent. One bungalow, meals included costs 4 US $/pp.
To the resort also belongs Taipi Cottages on Pulau Taipi, a small island in front of Kadidiri. This is the ideal place for people who want to be on their own.

Next door is Black Marlin Dive Centre with more or less the same standard as Kadidiri Paradise. I also receive emails from guests who stayed at Black Marlin dive Centre and where very satisfied with the diving there.

Diving

Though we were quite spoiled from the diving in Wakatobi before we enjoyed the dives around Kadidiri very much. Especially because water temperatures around 28° C were much more comfortable than in Wakatobi. Gonzaque and Paul, the two padi divemasters had a clean dive shop with old but regularly checked dive gear and they knew the area very well. Gonzague has been living there for many years and has discovered together with Paul most of the best dive sites in the area including the wreck of the B-24-Bomber.
In the meantime both dive guides have left the Togean Islands and the dive guides at Kadidiri keep on changing all the time. So you better check first before deciding with which of the two resorts you want to go diving.

Most dive sites are in easy reach and are situated at Taipi or Kota Reef in the north of Kadidiri. It takes about one hour to reach the B-24 wreck. Una Una, the active vulcano, is a destination for a full day-trip.

Prices

Dive Spots

B-24 Liberator

The bomber lies in a depth of 16 - 22 m and can be reached after one hour by boat.

On Mai 3rd, 1945 this four engine plane was on the way back from Ujung Pandang. After an attack by Japanese planes it had to go down on the Togean islands. The pilot still had time to inform his base on Morotai Island before he brought the plane down in a perfect water landing. A short time later the crew was rescued by a water plane.

The wreck lies on muddy ground not far away from a mangrove forest, so visibility is not excellent. However with a group of good buoyanced divers this is one of the best dives you can do in the area. The wreck is covered with soft coral and hosts many shrimps, nudibranchs, lots of lion fish and also a huge school of jackfish.

The Gap

A Coral Slope with a good variety of coral and many school of fish. This is often a drift dive. You may see eagle rays, tunas and barracudas.

The Crack

You swim across the Mini Canyon - also a dive site on its own - to a large rock which is split in the middle. The dive continues through the rock and ends in 51 m. This is a good place to watch sharks in the deep. This is no dive for beginners.

Dominique Rock

The dive leads between rocks in front of Taipi wall to the huge Dominique Rock. Under an overhang in about 40 m you usually meet a school of big jacks. The top of the rock is covered with whip coral and gorgonian fans. Also a rather deep dive for experienced divers.

Labyrinth

A labyrinth of rocks on a sandy bottom provides a beautiful underwater scenery. The dive ends on a coral garden. This is an easy dive.

Further recommended dives:

Deep Wall, Caroline Rock, Kota Wall, all the dives off Una Una (day trips) Fish o´mania and Turtle Point.

Contact

Diving with M/V Paisabatu

Since May 2002 it is also possible to visit the Togean Islands on board of a comfortable liveaboard. Yani and Jerôme, the owners of Maleo Cottages in Luwuk, have realised their dream and offer diving trips to the Togean and Banggai Islands throughout the year. Their ship Paisabatu is a fully renovated 22 m long diveboat with 4 double cabins for a maximum of 10 divers.
The compressor and all the dive gear is stored on a 14 m long second boat, so that the guests are not disturbed by the compressor´s noise.
As the Paisabatu has a relatively flat bottom it is not really suitable for very rough seas. However, on the Togeans this is no real handicap as the distances between the divespots are short and there is always a safe anchor place close by.

The cabins, two showers and two toilets are all on the lower deck, while kitchen, dining area and a big shaded area for relaxing are all on the upper deck. The french-indonesian meals on board are really excellent.

Between May and October the Paisabatu is based in Pagimana, from where the 8-day-trips to the Togeans start. However in the meantime there are also a lot of trips which start in Bitung, Manado´s harbour. If not, the guests either fly with Merpati from Manado (Tues, Thurs, Sun) or Palu (Mon, Tues, Fri) to Luwuk. All trips start on Sundays or Thursdays in order to catch the Merpati flights. It is also possible to extend the holidays in Luwuk and stay at Maleo Cottages.

The Diving

The itinerary of the Paisabatu covers the best dive spots on the Togean Islands. There are stops at all the dive spots mentioned above and others in remoter areas in the east and west of the archipel. The itinerary may be changed due to weather conditions, but also when guests want to stay longer in a certain area. There is always an experienced diveguide on board who knows the area very well.

On our trip in summer 2002 we could convince ourselves from the good service on board and the quality of the dive sites. The highlights of our trip where beside the B-24 bomber wreck especially the dives on Una Una. We saw huge schools of fish there, many turtles and even a manta ray. Also the dives in the west near Bomba were very interesting indeed. We found steep walls with swim-throughs and caves. Visibility was also excellent and reached sometimes 30 m.

Yani and Jerôme Doucet offer with their boat Paisabatu a real alternative for visiting the Togean islands. For all those who like it more comfortable and more relaxed this is the way to visit these islands. It has become very easy to combine a trip to the Togeans with a diving holiday on Bunaken or in Donggala.

Contact

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