Yes beginners can dive here and even take beginner courses.

However, to make the most and best of your journey, we do recommend people to have at least some diving experience. Especially drift dives. Buoyancy control should be good = neutral buoyancy. Not only to have an easier dive, but also not to harm marine life and corals by kicking them.

After all this is said, yes, beginners can dive here. But keep the above in mind.

Mantas are in highest numbers between December to March, when the water is the most nutrient rich. However, you can see them a couple of months on either side of the season – as this is the wild.

Great! We can offer you courses from entry level to technical dives. 

Contact us for further details. 

The prices for PADI OPEN WATER courses roughly start at €285 and takes 3-4 days. 

The 3 day course will let you study via e-learning before you get here, which is smart if you want to be better prepared and spend your holiday time diving and relaxing instead of studying.  

The 4 day course is the most popular and you start your studying once you get here. 

The prices are almost identical.

Please book courses at the time of booking the whole trip.

We highly recommend booking most of the dives in order to save a space for you on the dive boats.

You will most likely be able to join the dive boats on the days where you haven’t booked anything, but to be certain of having a space, you should pre-book. It is up to you if you will see how you feel when you get there. 

The dive centers can take costumers in from surrounding homestays, so just because you stay at the homestay, doesn’t guarantee you a space. 

The same goes for dive courses – you should book those in advance when you make your booking with Pilgrim Adventure.

Don’t expect to find cupboards or wardrobes, though your room may have some simple shelving. If you want to ensure that you can hang things up, then it is suggested that you pack a line to travel with. 

There is no provision for secure luggage storage in any of the homestays, so either leave your valuables at home or you may prefer to keep them with you. 

Loss through theft is not heard of in the homestays and the highest risk posed is by unscrupulous other travellers.

If an ensuite bathroom is a luxury that you cannot live without, then ensure that you book the “VIP” homestay experience. If you do not, then expect to share the toilet and bathroom facilities with other guests. They are usually housed in timber-framed palm-thatched huts which have floors of sand, timber, crushed limestone or occasionally concrete.

Bathing is almost always achieved by bucket and ladle in a style of bathrooms referred to as “dip mandi” bathrooms. Very few homestays have real showers, but many have piped fresh water  to replenish the large container from which you bath. Waste water, however, is not plumbed but channelled away to seep into the ground. It is for this reason you are asked to only use environmentally safe, biodegradable soaps and shampoos.

One note regarding bathing water is that it is predominantly fresh ground water, but on some of the smaller islands the water is brackish due to the proximity to the ocean. If you do not enjoy bathing in slightly salty water, then
it is best that you avoid these islands.

Toilet facilities are either western pedestal or squat style toilets that are flushed by hand using a bucket and ladle. The toilets are connected to septic tanks and toilet paper is usually provided. Due to the remote location of many homestays the toilet paper supply may be low, so it is suggested that you have some with you if you can’t go without it.

You will spend most surface intervals on some tropical piece of paradise. The boats can easily reach small villages and jetties for a comfortable surface interval. Usually the boats won’t return between the two morning dives.

The dive centers have all the dive equipment you will need. To see the rental prices see the individual accommodation menus.  

Of course it is nice to bring your own dive gear if you can. 

As a minimum we would recommend to bring your own dive mask – for a good fit of course and best possible comfort under water. Bring a reef hook if you can.

All dive places in Indonesia use the “International” Yoke connection for the regulators 1st stage. 

If you have a DIN 1st stage you can buy a DIN to Intl. Yoke converter – which might come in handy every time you dive in South East Asia anyway!

You would have to go all the way to Waisai, which is a 40-90 minutes away by boat. 

This is another good reason to prepay the dive packages.

If you pay for your dives at the dive center, the dive centers accept Indonesian Rupiah in cash at no extra charge. They accept Euros and US Dollars in cash with a 3% charge.

The nearby resort – Meridian – has a credit card machine and can take online bank transfers for 3% extra. Guests usually use TransferWise to transfer the money, which are easy and convenient. The dive centers also ask 3% extra for those transactions, and recommend that you set up your TransferWise account and do a test transfer of a very small sum while you are still in your home country in order to avoid any identity verification issues while making the transfer in Raja Ampat.

Again, it is much easier to book and pay the dives ahead of time.

Internet Access: The only internet connection available out in the islands is via Telkomsel’s cell phone service as above, but connections are unreliable and speeds vary widely, depending on tower location, network load and weather conditions.

Internet capable devices will work over the cell phone network (signal strength and connection plan permitting). Free WiFi is available at many cafes and hotels in Sorong and Waisai, but is extremely rare out in the islands.

SIMS are available almost everywhere in Indonesia. Airports, convenience stores, roadside stalls and any place that sells phones or accessories all have them. They are available in Waisai too. If you can not find them being sold at shops at the airport, then just ask your taxi driver. The vendor of the SIM can usually register it for you.

Here’s a link to Telkomsel’s FAQ page for its Flash network packet service. (Page loads in Bahasa Indonesia but can be switched to English.)

Telephone: For a remote archipelago of scattered islands, Raja Ampat has fairly good mobile phone coverage.

Telkomsel is currently the only network provider in Raja Ampat, so if you want to use the mobile network without roaming charges, you’ll need a Telkomsel SIM for your phone. Telkomsel markets a variety of SIMs, but the most common prepaid ones are branded SIMPATI and HALO. HALO is data only. Signal strength is excellent in the areas around Sorong and Waisai. As a general rule, if you’re near a village you should be able to receive some kind of signal, but there are wide areas with no coverage at all.

Cell phone towers in Raja Ampat regularly go offline. Sometimes service will be restored in an hour or two, sometimes it can take weeks or even months. There’s one tower that we know of on Gam that hasn’t worked in over two years!

If 24/7 guaranteed telephone and internet connectivity in all areas is a must for you, then your only option is to travel with a satellite phone.

Electricity: Electricity supply grids don’t exist outside Sorong and Waisai. Accommodation places and villages with an electrical supply have their own generators.

As elsewhere in Indonesia, electricity is 220-240Volt 50Hertz, using type C (CEE 7/16&17 Euro 2 pin) and F (CEE 7/4 “Schuko”) plugs and sockets.

You’ll need an adaptor if your devices don’t have one of these plug styles, and a step-down transformer if your devices will only handle a 110-120V US style supply.

Electricity in Raja Ampat’s island villages and at homestays is  supplied by generator and in many places is only available from sunset until around midnight to conserve fuel. Some homestays have backup solar lighting available.

Charging batteries and mobile devices: If you’re staying in a village or at a homestay with a generator, you’ll be able to charge batteries and equipment at night while the generator is running. If you’re at accommodation without a suitable power source you’ll need to arrange an evening visit to the nearest village or ask your host to take your equipment for charging and return the next morning.

There is a hospital in Waisai that can provide first aid, but for anything serious you would probably need to go to Sorong. Especially if urgently requiring treatment on a weekend.

Rumah Sakit Angkatan Laut naval hospital does not provide western standard facilities, but operates a 24 hour emergency care facility and is probably the best option for initial treatment of serious illness or injury.

Despite what some sources (and many local people) will tell you, malaria is present in the islands.

That said though, the risk at homestays on Mansuar, Kri, Gam and Arborek is relatively low due to the absence of large numbers of human carriers and (in most place we’ve stayed at) surprisingly low mosquito populations.

Although malaria transmission rates are currently low in the Raja Ampat islands, wearing repellant and appropriate clothing to avoid bites is a must and anti-malarial medications are recommended.

Doxycycline is often recommended as a good antimalarial and has the advantage of also providing protection against certain other bacterial infections, but you should definitely consult a professional for current recommendations before making a decision about malaria prophylaxis.

Insect bites: There are a lot of insects in Raja Ampat that can give irritating bites, but sand flies are the worst in our opinion. They are virtually invisible, exceedingly tiny, black flies that are common in many beachside locations. They most commonly attack at dusk, usually (but not always) on your lower legs and arms. The bites take several hours to appear, are incredibly itchy, and last for days. Because of the delayed reaction, many guests wake up at night and assume they’ve been bitten by bedbugs. We’ve never known of a single proven infestation of bedbugs in homestay accommodation. It’s much more likely that sandflies were the culprits. It’s good practice to liberally apply an insect repellant late in the afternoon after your last swim!

Gastrointestinal diseases: We’ve been lucky and have never contracted any, but again make sure you have some rehydration salts and basic medicines on hand. (Consult your doctor regarding appropriate medicines before you go.) Anti-diarrhoea medicines like Imodium are best taken only if you have to travel – they only treat symptoms, not causes. Drinking only boiled or otherwise purified water will greatly reduce your chances of stomach troubles. You can read more about drinking water here.

Skin and wound infections: You should clean and treat even small wounds immediately with an antiseptic, and then examine them regularly for signs of infection. Especially if they are coral scrapes, which are notorious for going septic. Keeping wounds dry until healed is also good practice, but it’s a big ask when you’re on a short stay in the islands. Fungal infections love a tropical environment too, so you might want to consider having some antifungal medicine in your first aid kit.

Ear infections: Spending a lot of time with water in your ears in the tropics raises the risk of ear infections, so if you’re concerned pack an appropriate medicine.

Japanese Encephalitis and Dengue Fever: These mosquito-borne diseases have been reported from Raja Ampat. You might want to consider vaccination for Japanese Encephalitis. Avoiding mosquito bites is the only protection available against Dengue Fever.

Tropical diseases: All tropical environments harbour parasites and pathogens not found elsewhere. You’re extremely unlikely to come into contact with any of those during a short holiday in Raja Ampat, but if you suffer any persistent or recurrent symptoms that can’t be diagnosed or aren’t relieved by standard medical treatment – even if those symptoms appear months after your visit – you should consult a tropical diseases specialist.

See our “About” page to know more about prevention of moscuito bites.  

For further reading on health: https://www.iamat.org/country/indonesia