There are areas in the world that are so beautiful that you want to press them to your heart……

….. And that’s exactly how we went on the island of Bangka. Bangka Island is about 10km from the northern tip of Sulawesi. The Sea Souls Dive Resort, with its 4 bungalows, is quiet and familiar and is really idyllic.

 

Arrival

We found it relatively relaxed for such a distant destination. After all, we’re talking about 12,000 miles. As with all our other trips, we are here from Frankfurt am Main. It is a possibility to fly with Singapore Airlines as it is possible to fly only once and without checking in and out directly to Manado. Frankfurt to Singapore 13 hours and from there 3 hours to Manado. From Manado It is a little over an hour to Likupang (on the coast of North Sulawesi). From here, it is almost half an hour by boat directly to sea souls. So we come to a pure time of about 18 hours without a stay, with you are at almost 22 hours

 

 

Facilities

The resort currently has 4 bungalows, all of the same category and all with beautiful sea views. Which also means that if the resort is fully booked and you would assume that there are 2 people in each bungalow, there are a maximum of 8 divers in the resort. Each of the bungalows has a spacious terrace with two chairs and a small table. The interior is rather spartan but quite adequate. Small cupboard large bed, with optimal view outside, as well as night cabinet. All pieces of furniture are made of sustainable bamboo wood, which is also reflected in the philosophy of the resort. Each of the bungalows is equipped with a fan. The bathroom has a shower, European toilet and sink with small storage.  When we were on site in May 2017, there was still no hot water. 

The open main house consists of a bar, restaurant, kitchen and cosy sitting area. There is also free Wi-Fi if the weather conditions allow it on the mainland. Water, coffee and tea are also available free of charge from morning until late at night. The bar is well stocked, with local beer, non-alcoholic drinks and various spirits. All at very moderate prices.

 

 

Food/Service

The food is typical of the country and is served in the restaurant as a buffet for all guests who sit together on a large table. A great compliment to the chef, who repeatedly managed to offer extremely tasty local cuisine. For breakfast, bread, toast, jam, sausage and egg were freshly prepared in all variations. For lunch and dinner there were always two main dishes (one vegetarian) with rice and fried all sorts (egg-vegetable mixture-extremely tasty), soup and fresh fruit for dessert. Everything was very familiar and the staff always cheerful and accommodating. You also had the possibility to go to the kitchen at any time, to look over the shoulders of the cook and even to cook. On arrival we were asked directly if there were any allergies, here we really were taken into consideration.

In the evening, they sat in the main house at the bar and had a cocktail or beer to finish off the evening. Once a week, the most talented musicians of the village visited the hotel and played together a few local and well-known songs. We don’t want to anticipate more, just so much, it’s definitely worth it. 

 

 

Diving

The dive centre is based on PADI standard up to the rescue diver. I myself have made the rescue diver together with Carolin during our stay.  The whole course was conducted by Steve highly professional. Caro and I had to plough hard, but in the end it was really worth it. At this telle also a heartfelt thank you to our victim Amang.

It is dipped with 11 litres of aluminium bottles, there is only compressed air. In the morning you go to two dives to more distant dive sites, Max. Duration 35min.  And then come back to the resort for lunch. In the afternoon there is also a dive at a closer dive site and an optional night dive in the evening. The dive groups usually consist of 2-3 divers plus a guide, and often we were only travelling for two. 

The dive sites were all beautiful and varied without exception. Almost all dive sites are suitable for beginners. Unfortunately, we could not dive the two caves, because at that time there were strong currents in front of the caves and the immersion was not possible. Security is the top priority. Our guide was excellent, he also really found the smallest of the little ones. A Frogfisch baby in the size of a Sandkorns, incredible.

 

 

Conclusion

Although the resort consists of only 4 bungalows and therefore has a maximum of 8 guests and is located very remote on the island of Bangka, Dolfye, Carolin and Steve create a dreamlike ambiance in which one feels at ease immediately. The dive sites around Bangka are beautiful and offer something for all divers, from dreamy coral gardens to fascinating rock formations to everything you would want on animals underwater. 

 

Click here to see our picture gallery about Sea Souls Dive Resort.