Sea Snakes & Spices
Through the Banda Sea

This 11-night cruise is a highlight of our schedule, taking us across a reasonably long distance from Maumere on the island of Flores through the Banda Sea to the island of Ambon in the central Moluccas.

We will leave Maumere eastbound, travelling and diving along an endless stretch of islands to our first stopover destination in Alor. The vessel will go an anchorage, and we will navigate with our zodiacs to some of the best dive sites in Eastern Indonesia. We will spend 2-3 days here before embarking on our overnight trip to the mysterious Merapi (or fire mountain) island in the middle of the Banda Sea. Here, an out-of-this-world scenery awaits you, as the waters around the uninhabited island are teeming with sea snakes. Our next overnight leg will take as to the uninhabited Maisel and Penyu (or turtle) archipelago with lots of pelagic action. From here, we will set sails to the Banda islands, for centuries the epicenter of (at the time) priceless spices. At Banda, more big pelagics and pristine reefs await you, as well as a lava flow from a more recent eruption that is already covered with lush soft and hard corals. We will anchor 2-3 days in the protected lagoon, exploring the area, prior to departing for Ambon.

Both Maumere and Ambon are well connected with domestic flights. And for those with a little more time to spare, both make excellent bases for further exploration, too.