Located within the lesser Sunda Islands which feature Padar, Rinca and Komodo as well as 26 other small islands, the Komodo National Park features diving sites that are fairly spread out. Therefore, the park is a great area for experienced divers to explore by liveaboards. If you meet the different experience levels required at different sites, you should be able to dive at most of the sites you will visit on day trips from Labuanbajo on a liveaboard. The liveaboard trip is an experience that is worth your money.
Why should you dive Komodo National park using a liveaboard?
Diving Komodo on a liveaboard is possible on a wide variety of budget. However, before booking anything make sure that you do extensive research and read reviews on the boats. Here are a few reasons why diving Komodo National Park using a liveaboard can be the best thing:
- A liveaboard allows you to be among the first few at the dive sites before the other divers reach there on their slow boats.
- Liveaboards allow you to go for night dives. Keep in mind that the aquatic life at Komodo National Park is different at night thus diving at night at far off sites can be mind-blowing.
- Since diving is dictated by tides and currents most of the times, being the first one at the dive sites may not get you in the water but allow you to wake up at the dive site and enjoy the water before it gets crowded.
- Touring on a liveaboard is amazing, you get to live on a boat for a few days while moving from some of best dive site in the world to the next doing something you love, diving.
Liveaboard sites around Komodo National Park
Below are some of the best liveaboard Komodo diving sites.
Padar Wreck
Located in Padar Island, the Padar wreck is a 12-meter wooden long boat that sunk near a small island known as Batubilah in 2016. The wreck which lies on a slope at 18 to 14-meter depth is bursting with marine life including thousands of shrimp residing in all crevices as well as batfish, and barracuda. The wreck is also an amazing place to go diving at night. However, watch out for Flying Gurnards, zebra crabs sitting inside fire urchins and cuttlefish.
Pilaarsteen
Nestled on the shore of a small island located on the east of PadarBesar, Pilaarsteenis a pinnacle rock featuring plenty of swim-throughs and caves at different depths. For professional divers, this liveaboard dive site is especially good between 30 to 40 meters. Since the slope is covered by diverse leather and soft corals, it is home to large schools of fusiliers. Because of its interesting landscape, you are bound to run into the odd turtles or sharks.
Cannibal Rock
Renowned for its invertebrate life, the Cannibal Rock has little current thus a very easy dive. This small seamount is located between Nusa Kode and Rinca islands in LohDasami. Here, you can find a large variety invertebrate species as well as frogfish and pigmy seahorse. You can also find schools of surgeon fishes, bohar snappers as well as several species of scorpion fishes.
There is an abundance of sea apples as well as other holothurians species together with an excellent soft coral life.
Three Sisters
This liveaboard diving site which is located north of pillarstien features three huge submerged rocks located within swimming distance with each rock being only 10 meters apart. While the Three Sisters sit on the sand at about 20 meters of water and only rise to 3 to 5 meters above the surface. This dive site quite pristine, boasts of rich fish life and is covered in coral growth. While the site is often affected by strong currents, it is still usually diveable.
One of the interesting things you can do while on a liveaboard diving trip around Komodo National Park is snorkeling. This way, you get to see the interesting aquatic life while diving.
