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Dive Review of Sebayur Diving Center/Komodo Resort and Diving Club in
Indonesia/Komodo National Park

Sebayur Diving Center/Komodo Resort and Diving Club: "Wonderful Diving, Great Resort", Apr, 2017,

by Ken New, MN, US (Contributor Contributor 18 reports with 11 Helpful votes). Report 9559 has 3 Helpful votes.

No photos available at this time

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

Accommodations 5 stars Food 5 stars
Service and Attitude 5 stars Environmental Sensitivity 4 stars
Dive Operation 5 stars Shore Diving N/A
Snorkeling 5 stars
Value for $$ 5 stars
Beginners 3 stars
Advanced 5 stars
Comments We loved this resort! It is on a private island just outside the marine park, so our boat rides were much, much shorter than for those coming from Labuan Bajo (most were 20-45 minutes). The diving was everything Komodo is famous for: lots of Mantas, countless turtles; sharks, big fish schools; a great variety of nudibranchs, frogfish, & other macro. Also strong currents -- and expert guides to help you navigate them. But you can dive well in Komodo without currents, too: I had been sick (and am 69 years old) & was not up to strength on this trip; they arranged for us to have most of our dives in calm waters, even providing a private boat on one dive, and the dives were still fabulous. I can't wait to return when I'm healthy!

Specific notes:

I dove with a 3 mil but next time will at least bring a core warmer, maybe a 5 mil; the water is much colder than advertised.

I gave a 5-star rating for snorkeling based on the experience of another couple who do not dive, but travel the world for great snorkeling experiences; this was their second trip to Komodo. There is snorkeling right in front of the resort, and also what they said were wonderful sites from boats.

I gave 4 stars for environmental sensitivity for one reason: at a site for both diving and snorkeling, there was a group of 5-8 snorkelers STANDING on the underwater coral. They weren't from our resort; but still, no one on our boat spoke to them or to their boat staff, & I would have liked to see that. On the other hand, while we were diving & I bumped the coral on one occasion, our dive guide motioned me upwards -- I really liked that!

The resort was exactly our style. While it appears a bit rustic, it has all the amenities except hair dryers and TVs (to us, the no-TV is good!). Lots of space in the bungalows, beautiful view from our porch -- I could have sat there all day. Only 16 rooms, lots of peace & quiet. Super-comfy beds and pillows, plenty of hot water. Considering how remote it is, we thought the food was great. Breakfast is buffet-style with the usual egg station; lunch and dinner are from the menu. Some repeating items but always something new, & nightly specials often. Lunch is more heavily Indonesian, dinner more Italian (the two owners are Italian). We really enjoyed the bar -- right on the water, tables in the sand -- staff (both local & European) and guests all tended to gather there in the evening, lots of friendly conversation. The staff were very attentive. Dive staff spoke to everyone individually each evening about the following day's dives, grouped people according to their interests (& as said before, even customized for us). It rained the afternoon we had all our gear outdoors to dry, & before we could get to our bungalow staff was already there carrying our things up to our covered porch. By the end of our week, we were really wishing we could stay another one.
Websites Sebayur Diving Center   Komodo Resort and Diving Club

Reporter and Travel

Dive Experience 501-1000 dives
Where else diving Most of the Caribbean, Galapagos, Hawaii, Micronesia, Indonesia
Closest Airport Labuan Bajo, Flores Getting There We flew US-Narita-Bali-Labuan Bajo; it appears you have to fly from Bali.

Dive Conditions

Weather sunny, cloudy Seas calm, choppy, currents
Water Temp -°F / -°C Wetsuit Thickness 3
Water Visibility 40-100 Ft/ 12-30 M

Dive Policy

Dive own profile yes
Enforced diving restrictions Dives were generally for one hour; if there was something interesting the guides would stay down longer. If someone ran low on air & it was safe for the guide to take them up, the rest could stay down & continue diving.
Liveaboard? no Nitrox Available? yes

What I Saw

Sharks Lots Mantas Squadrons
Dolphins 1 or 2 Whale Sharks None
Turtles > 2 Whales None
Corals 4 stars Tropical Fish 5 stars
Small Critters 5 stars Large Fish 4 stars
Large Pelagics 4 stars

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

Subject Matter 5 stars Boat Facilities 4 stars
Overall rating for UWP's 2 stars Shore Facilities N/A
UW Photo Comments Boats had roomy freshwater containers for cameras; boat staff would hand your camera to you in the water if you wished. There are no dedicated on-land camera facilities, no on-land rinse tank or dryer hose. There is ample space in your room, and the office will give you multiple international plugs to recharge if asked. I discussed this with the owner; he says he has no space for a dedicated camera room, but he seemed to like the idea of a rinse tank & table with air hose for drying camera equipment, said he thought he could provide that.
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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.

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