Diving Banda in the Spice Islands and Lucipara Atoll

Banda and Lucipara scuba diving features

MARINE LIFE:
Corals
Colman's shrimp
Moray eels
Bumphead parrotfish

BANDA'S TOP DIVE SITE:
The Jetty at Banda Neira

DESTINATION OVERVIEW

The Banda Seas have gone in and out of favour as a tourist destination due to localised political unrest. Yet this region is historically one of the world's most important – the location of the famed Spice Islands. The islands in the Banda group, along with neighbouring Ambon, were the sources of cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg, once the most valuable commodities on the planet.

Scuba diving in this region quite an experience. To reach Banda, there is really no option but to join a liveaboard. Routes vary but many start in Ambon then sail overnight to Lucipara Atoll. This exposed atoll is utterly pristine with virtually no damage and no evidence of destructive fishing. What the atoll does have is possibly the best soft corals in Indonesia. Walls are lush with brightly coloured fans, corals and sponges, all mobbed by schooling fish. Sometimes the view across the reefs is obliterated by enormous numbers of schooling fish.

Back at the tiny Banda Islands, the diving includes a variety of styles from fabulous, up-tempo muck right below Banda Neira pier to the newest of new coral slopes – thick staghorn and table corals have covered the scar created by Gunung Api’s last explosion. Nearby, Batu Kapal has got to be one of the most impressive deep dives anyone is likely to see with fan corals that have grown to over five metres high.

Seasons
Year round
Visibility:
10 – 40 metres
Water temperature:
23 – 29º C.
Deco chambers:
Manado

Flight to Manado then 1.5-2 hours transfer

Accommodation
The island of Banda has no diving resorts although there are a few small local hotels. The region is seen from a liveaboard.

PROS AND CONS
When Ambon became less popular with divers due to civil unrest, Banda lost what little tourism it had. As ever, it's diving liveabaords that are bringing people back to this truly fascinating island group. The history is captivating and the local peole are incredibly friendly. This is not the easiest part of Indonesia to reach but it is worth it.

SCUBA DIVING
Visibility – stunning, currents – very few, rough water – only on the crossing to Lucipara. Big stuff, little stuff. Fantastic corals. As a comparison to better known Irian Jaya, there are perhaps slightly fewer species (although who will know that until the same levels of research are done?) and the topography isn't as varied, however, the conditions of the reefs are excellent and the muck diving is definitely superior.

OPINION
It had long been an ambition to dive the Spice Islands as the mystique of these far flung, historically important islands captivated us. Plans to dive the area had been aborted due to the civil war in the late 1990’s but we finally made it in 2007. We dived from the delightful Archipelago Adventurer, the only vessel to consistently ply this route.