Bali Dive Operators

If you google scuba diving in Bali you will be quickly overwhelmed with the multitude of dive operators in Bali - there are a lot!

In my opinion these operators can be classified in to three groups - firstly there are the bigger operators based in the tourist triangle of Kuta, Sanur & Nusa Dua in the south of the island. They typicaly offer "safari" type tours to various locations around the island, which involves moving accommodation on an almost daily basis.

Secondly there are the dive shops based in a specific location who concentrate on the dive sites in that area, but also offer diving in other locations and third are the resorts that are based at, or very near to, a prime dive location.

Most of my early trips to Bali were only for a few days at a time so I concentrated on specific locations and used resorts for both my diving & accommodation.

I have stayed at the Mimpi Resorts (http://www.mimpi.com./index.html) in both Tulamben & Menjangen and found them to be both good, although rather expensive... They are both aimed at the top end of the market and charge accordingly, but I would definitely use them again if a little bit of luxury was on the agenda!

I spent a week at Scuba Seraya (http://www.scubaseraya.com) over Xmas in 2006 and really enjoyed it. Since then I understand the ownership of the resort has changed and they appear to have upgraded the facilities and added a new restaurant amongst other things. I would certainly stay there again.

Having checked out some of the resorts, for my last two trips to Bali I decided to try the dive safari option and was favorably impressed. The key is to pick a good operator & allow enough time so you are not trying to change sites every day, as tempting as that may appear on paper. I personnally prefer to spend two days at each location, so I can spend the first day exploring and then go back to the best spots the next day, often with a different lens on my camera to get an alternative perspective.

I have organized these trips through AquaMarine Diving (www.aquamarinediving.com) who I have found to be very professional & highly organized and would thoroughly recommend them.

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