I was looking for maldives but saw a reel of someone doing this Luwuk banggai private tour under $300 -
You basically swim with a whale shark lol
and interestingly this whale shark is popular in Indonesia and well accustomed to villagers there that when they call, she will just come to the exact spot!
Almost no one knows about this place which comes under Sulawesi islands and have beaches similar or even better to Maldives for 1/4th the price. I still don’t understand how are they offering this cheap. cost of living?
Will consider this trip this year since flights should not be too costly and update here with pics once I finish
I’ve never been there, but I did visit a beautiful area in Indonesia, Gili Air. It’s definitely not Bali—one of the most relaxing vacations I’ve had! And that despite losing my phone and not getting a replacement until I was back in Tawain. Actually, being off the grid made the experience even better (but unfortunately I have no photos).
I stayed on Gili Trawangan several years ago, and took day trips to Air and Menos. That island group is hardly off the grid, they have a heavily developed tourist infrastructure with thousands of visitors at any one time. One weird loophole is that you can legally partake magic mushroom shakes in otherwise draconianly anti-drug Indonesia. Huge amount of partygoers tripping down there.
Yes the Gilis islands are some of the best know. Tourist destinations in Indonesia.
What the OP mentioned though is pretty intriguing to me . I’ve wanted to visit Sulawesi for a while now, along with other islands , it’s just logistically more difficult.
True, there can be plenty of tourists. What I meant was that I was off the grid because I lost my phone while there. I mean, I didn’t even have a watch or clock (and couldn’t even get one on the island) but I learned to live by “island time” (listening for the Muslim calls to prayer), and everything wasn’t a photo op because I didn’t have a camera. I learned to relax and just enjoy the moments
yeah I can understand since Indonesia is basically a country with thousands of islands!
Your best bet would be to get a direct flight to Jakarta and from there take domestic flights like Lion air. If you want to save money can use ships but then you will lose time (days!)
The tours and activities on the island are super cheap though but the main cost will be to reach there.
The best day I had in Indonesia was when I got of the ferry to Bali in Padangbai and the internet connection was down until the next morning. I had nothing to do all day except wander around the town checking out the local scenery. No cell phone service, it was great!
Why not go to Oslob in Cebu where you can snorkle or dive with whale sharks.
I have not been there as I see whale sharks on dive trips anyway. I took this with a dive buddy seen in the photo at Moalboal which is close by. The whale shark stayed around for the whole dive. They also cruise the sardines in Moalboal but you are just lucky if you are in the water at the time time. I’ve seen whale sharks on each dive trip to Indonesia Philipppines Maldives in the last decade.
I have seen seagulls eating fish and chips out of the bins each time I went over to the coast over the last decade . Just thought I’d share since we are sharing here.
For the first couple of hours I was in a panic. I lost the phone while hiking alone on nearby Gili Trawangan and spent an hour frantically looking for it but couldn’t find it. I noticed that the sun was getting lower in the sky but had no idea what time it was, and I had to get back to port to make sure I caught the boat back to Gili Air. I had rented a bicycle as there are no motorized vehicles on the island, and I got back to the port just before the last boat was leaving.
On the boat I calmed down and took stock of the situation, and realized it could be worse if I had lost my passport or cash or credit cards. I realized that I could still enjoy my vacation, I just wouldn’t have internet or a watch or a camera.
The hardest part was when I got back to Bali a few days later, and I had to get a taxi to my B&B which was located in the middle of a field. I couldn’t even remember the name of the place, but the taxi driver let me use his Google Maps on his phone and fortunately I remembered the location of it and so I could point him in the right direction. Luckily I found an internet cafe in Ubud and could contact the place I was staying at later in Kuala Lumpur. It was an adventure I’ll never forget.
