Dive Review of Gaia Love in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat

Other Indonesia reports
Subscriber Content Preview
Active subscribers go here

Gaia Love: "Outstanding Odyssey to Raja Ampat", Nov, 2023, by Lee Fenner, OH, US ( Contributor 14 reports with 7 Helpful votes). Report 12803.
Photos Submitted with this Report Click on an image to see an enlarged version and captions
Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Accommodations		Food
Service and Attitude		Environmental Sensitivity
Dive Operation		Shore Diving	N/A
Snorkeling	N/A
Overall Rating
Value for $$
Beginners
Advanced
Comments	Seasick Productions/Haas Photography organized group trip. Clockwork perfection. Highly recommend Singapore Airlines business class for the long legs. We were premium economy from JFK to Singapore, 18+30 hours. Seats reclined and were great for that class, but being able to lay flat in business worth the extra money. We confirmed that in business class on the way back. Singapore Airlines, $2,800 round trip JFK to Jakarta; premium economy there, business back. Business all the way would have added $1,200 to RT price. Recommend Garuda Indonesia for flights within Indonesia. Gaia Love is simply outstanding in all respects!!! Highlights include but are certainly not limited to: exceptional food and beverages, first-rate coffee, immense dive deck with roomy individual stations with personal camera rinse tanks, top-notch concierge dive and personal service (crew always there to help--really), roomy purpose-built skiffs, four shower heads with hot water to rinse off after dives, and wet suits rinsed and dried after every dive. Our ten-day/nine-night itinerary included south, north, and central Raja Ampat in that order. 29 total dives offered: 6 days of four dives (including a night dive), 1 day of three dives, and the final day of two dives. Highlights of diving. Soft and hard corals best we have ever seen, mantas at three sites (8 or 9 on one dive site - Magic Mountain), sharks (included multiple sightings of wobbegong, epaulette, blacktip and gray reef), large schools of bumphead wrasse, trevally, barracuda, and other medium/small tropical fish. Other unique sightings for us: candycane sea cucumber, ghost pipefish, spiny waspfish, signal goby, barramundi, estuarine stonefish, and girdled and yellow-mask angelfish. Numerous wonderfully camouflaged scorpionfish, too. While some dive sites were very calm, quite a few had current. The dive guides planned and conducted the dives to minimize swimming against the current. But you must be prepared and possess the fitness and skills for challenging dive conditions. This was our first trip to Raja Ampat and we plan to come back to the Gaia Love for different itineraries in the future. While expensive (about $11,000 each), we received an exceptional value and a superb memorable experience for our investment; three years in the planning. Manta Video: [youtube.com link]
Websites	Gaia Love
Reporter and Travel
Dive Experience	501-1000 dives
Where else diving	Great Lakes, Alaska & BC, Oahu, Kona, Kauai, Galapagos, Fl keys, Bahamas, Bonaire, Cozumel, Roatan, Saba, Philippines, Red Sea, Truk, Kosrae, Little and Grand Cayman, and Indonesia
Closest Airport	Sorong, Indonesia	Getting There	Cleveland - JFK - Singapore - Jakarta - Sorong. Delta to JFK. Singapore Airlines: JFK to Jakarta, Garuda Indonesia: Jakarta to Sorong
Dive Conditions
Weather	sunny	Seas	calm
Water Temp	80-84°F / 27-29°C	Wetsuit Thickness	3
Water Visibility	20-100 Ft/ 6-30 M
Dive Policy
Dive own profile	no
Enforced diving restrictions	dive computer, stay with guide, notify at 1500 and 500 psi, no deco. dives mostly lasted at least 60 minutes.
Liveaboard?	no	Nitrox Available?	yes
What I Saw
Sharks	Lots	Mantas	Squadrons
Dolphins	1 or 2	Whale Sharks	None
Turtles	> 2	Whales	None
Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):
Corals		Tropical Fish
Small Critters		Large Fish
Large Pelagics
Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):
Subject Matter		Boat Facilities
Overall rating for UWP's		Shore Facilities	N/A
UW Photo Comments	individual camera rinse tanks across from dive station. crew took your camera rig from the individual rinse tank to your skiff in a sturdy towel-protected tub and back at the end of the dive. spacious camera setup area directly off dining and gathering area.

Leave a comment (Subscribers only -- 200 words max)
Subscribers can comment here

Subscribers can post comments, ask the reviewer questions, as well as getting immediate and complete access to ALL 1528 dive reviews of Indonesia and all other dive destinations. Complete access to all issues and Chapbooks is also included.

All Indonesia Dive Reviews and Reports
Diving Guide to Indonesia
Diving Reviews for All Dive Destinations

Want to assemble your own collection of Indonesia reports in one place?
Use the Mini Chapbook Facility to create your personalized collection.

Note: The information here was reported by the author above, but has NOT been reviewed nor edited by Undercurrent prior to posting on our website. Please report any major problems by writing to us and referencing the report number above.

Undercurrent Home

Page computed and displayed in 0.7 seconds

Get more dive info like these and other important scuba updates sent monthly to your email. And a FREE Recent Issue of Undercurrent
Get a free monthly email and a sample issue!

Dive Review of Gaia Love in Indonesia/Raja Ampat

Gaia Love: "Outstanding Odyssey to Raja Ampat", Nov, 2023,

Photos Submitted with this Report

Ratings and Overall Comments 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Overall Rating

Reporter and Travel

Dive Conditions

Dive Policy

What I Saw

Ratings 1(worst) - 5 (best):

Underwater Photography 1 (worst) - 5 (best):

Dive Review of Gaia Love in
Indonesia/Raja Ampat