Potential Schedule for 8 days / 7 nights in Raja Ampat Islands.

Day One: Sorong

When you arrive at Sorong Airport our crew will be waiting for you in the arrival hall, after collecting your luggage we will escort you to the harbour where our tender boats will take you out to the Pearl of Papua where our friendly crew will greet you with a cold refreshing towel and drink. This will be followed by cabin allocation and boat orientation. When all guests are on board the Cruise Director will give you a presentation about the Pearl of Papua and diving recommendations. Depending on departure time they maybe an opportunity to have a check dive just outside Sorong Harbour. Lunch and dinner will be served during the sail out to Raja Ampat (08hrs)

Day Two: Dampier Strait

The guests’ first dive is a check dive, Mioskon Island is a great place to do this and still be a world class dive. Here the guests can get comfortable with their equipment, buoyancy and refresh some basic skills. The Dampier Strait area has some of the most action packed diving in Raja Ampat and guests can see fish, fish and more fish but it is also the area where the saying ‘No Current = No Fish’ originated from. There are many dive sites to choose from but Cape Kri, Chicken + Sardine Reef, Mikes Point and Mioskon are definitely on the schedule.

Day Three: Penemu Islands

Fantastic examples of Raja Ampats diversity. The Penemu Islands are presently a new Marine Protected Area (WWF). We shall dive at Reef Bayanggan, Melissa’s Garden which has probably the best complete coral coverage you will ever see and Kerunemo Adik. After your third dive we will take you on a tour of The Hidden Bay (includes a trek up Penemu Hill for the amazing views of The Hidden Bay)

Day Four: Kawe Islands and Aljui Bay

After your tour of The Hidden Bay we set of for a 12hr drive up to the north of Raja Ampat and dive around the Kawe Islands and Aljui Bay. The entire Aljui Bay has been leased out by Atlas Sea Pearls and the dive sites include White Arrow, Tear Drop Corner and the infamous Cendana Pearl Farm Jetty. It is also possible to tour the pearl farm

Day Five: Yanggefo

After a 12hr drive back down to the south / middle of Raja Ampat we will dive at Yanggefo. Here we will dive Mayhem, Citrus Ridge and Gam Ridge followed by some snorkelling in the mangroves looking for the Archer Fish and seeing the unique corals that grow in front of the mangroves (normally corals grow 100m plus away from the mangroves), followed by a night dive at either of the ridges, we will overnight in the mangroves

Day Six: Arborek

Our morning dives are at Manta Sandy where there is a manta ray cleaning station and we see both Black / White and the all Black Manta Rays come to be cleaned. This famous site now has a line of dead coral where guests line up and watch the show. Third dive is a beautiful coral / fish dive close to Arborek Island where guests can also have a sun set walk on the beach before the fourth / night dive at the village jetty

Day Seven: Dampier Strait

Finishing off your great trip with two shallow dives around Sardine and Chicken Reef before returning to Sorong

Day Eight: Sorong

After breakfast the Cruise Director will escort the guests to either the airport / hotel and will assist with checking in. Sorry to say that your Pearl of Papua Raja Ampat trip has come to an end and we look forward to welcoming you onboard again.

Potential Schedule for 8 days/7 nights in Raja Ampat Islands

Day One: Sorong

When you arrive at Sorong Airport our crew will be waiting for you in the arrival hall, after collecting your luggage we will escort you to the harbour where our tender boats will take you out to the Pearl of Papua and our friendly crew will greet you with a cold refreshing towel and drink. This will be followed by cabin allocation and boat orientation. When all guests are on board the Cruise Director will give you a presentation about the Pearl of Papua and diving recommendations. Depending on departure time there may be an opportunity to have a check dive just outside Sorong Harbour. Lunch and dinner will be served during the sail out to South Raja Ampat (12hrs)

Day Two, Three, Four, (Misool Islands)

One of the many fascinating diversities of Raja Ampat, with some of the most amazing land scapes imaginable, deep mangroves to ravines and canyons, the Misool Islands have been shaped by the powerful forces of nature, underwater the vibrant variety of colour of the hard corals / soft corals / fish species is wonderful. Diving at the Boo Windows, Nudi Rock, Goa Farundi and Magic Mountain (Reef Bayangan) are just some of the awesome sites you can see

Day Five: Penemu Islands

More great examples of Raja Ampats diversity. The Penemu Islands very recently became an Marine Protected Area and we spend most of our time here in the M.P.A. Melissa’s Garden has probably the best complete coral coverage you will ever see and no visit to these islands is complete without seeing the Hidden Bay

Day Six: Arborek

The morning dives are at Manta Sandy where we regularly see the Black / White and the all Black Manta Rays come to cleaned. This famous site now has a line of dead coral where guests line up and watch the show. Third dive is a beautiful coral / fish dive close to Arborek Island where guests can also have a sun set walk on the beach before the fourth / night dive at the village jetty

Day Seven: Dampier Strait

Finishing off your great trip with two shallow dives in the Dampier Strait which has some great action packed fish dives, like Cape Kri and Blue Magic. After your busy diving schedule has come to a sad end we will have a lazy afternoon on Pulau Pasir (Sand Island) before returning to Sorong

Day Eight: Sorong

After breakfast the Cruise Director will escort the guests to either the airport / hotel and will assist with checking in. Sorry to say that your Pearl of Papua Raja Ampat trip has come to an end and we look forward to welcoming you on board again.

Potential Schedule for 9 Days/8 Nights Raja Ampat (South – North Raja Ampat)

Day One: Sorong

Arrive at Sorong Airport. Our crew will be waiting outside the arrival hall, they will escort you to the Pearl of Papua. After a 15 minute ride you will be onboard the vessel, cabin allocation and ship orientation wil l take place before departure, take this time to familiarize yourself with the facilities and make yourself comfortable. Lunch and dinner will be served while heading towards Raja Ampat National Park. Sorong to Misool is roughly a twelve hour journey.

Check Dive at Pulau Matan, time permitting .

Days Two, Three, Four and Five: Misool

Misool is one of the most fascinating areas of Raja Ampat. It contains some of the most amazing underwater seascapes imaginable – deep ravines and canyons give way to unsurpassed coral coverage and unrivaled color. Don’t be surprised if you encounter Gorgonian Sea Fans exceeding 3 meters in diameter! That said, while the reefs are tru ly breathtaking down in Misool, remember to check the blue every now and again as it is quite common to encounter oceanic manta rays, reaching up to seven meters in length, on many dives. Brace yourself, the diving is about to get incredible .

One of the dives, Magic Mountain, is a fairly reliable cleaning station for oceanic manta rays. Because of this we will dive the site twice in order to afford you the best opportunity to encounter these gentle giants.

Day Two: Daram – Misool

Dive 1: The Candy Store
Dive 2: Andiamo
Dive 3: Andy’s Ultimate
Dive 4: Daram

Day Three: Boo – Misool

Dive 1: Magic Mountain
Dive 2: Magic Mountain
Dive 3: Boo Rocks
Dive 4: Boo Window

Day Four: Fiabacet – Misool

Dive 1: Tank Rock
Dive 2: Nudi Rock
Dive 3: Whale Rock
Dive 4: Yelit Kecil

Day Five: Farondi – Misool

Dive 1: Anchovies Dive 2: Goa Farondi

Upon completing our second dive of the day, we will begin the long journey from Misool to Penemu (fourteen hours).

Day Six: Penemu to Arborek

Spread over nearly 700 square kilom eters of ocean, just above the midway point on Raja Ampat’s north -south axis, Penemu ’s vivid coral gardens revel in the nutrient rich water brought forth from the Dampier Straits .

After having fun drifting with current at My Reef and Melissa Garden, you will climb Penemu. It is a mere 318 wooden -steps to the breathtaking view of Raja Ampat’s limestone karsts.

From here Pearl of Papua will head towards Arborek where you will complete your final dive of the day and have the opportunity to explore an authentic village and interact with locals.

Dive 1: My Reef
Dive 2: Melissa’s Garden
Climb Penemu
Dive 3: Mayhem
Village Walk

Day Seven: Dampier Straits

The Dampier Straits contain some of Raja Ampat’s most action packed dives.

There are a number of wonderful si tes in the area, many of which are exposed to and best -dived when the current is running . Encounters with various sharks, Bumphead Parrotfish, schools of barracuda, Oceanic Triggerfish, and Big -Eyed Trevally are quite common. The sheer number of fish is li terally astounding. At times shoals are so thick the sunlight is practically blocked out.

Finally, what better way to end your diving expedition than to have a barbeque on an uninhabited island? The crew will prepare a wonderful meal for you to enjoy as you watch thousands of fruit bats begin their journey to neighboring islands in search of food .

Dive 1: Blue Magic
Dive 2: Cape Kri
Dive 3: Mike’s Point
Barbeque at Mioskon

Day Eight: Dampier Straits

We can’t get enough of Dampier Straits ! Today you will dive at Chicken Reef and Sardine Reef, these dive spots offer an unforgettable diving experience where you may spot huge schools of fishes being stalked by barracuda and trevally . And if you’re lucky even a few manta rays!

After completing your second dive of the day, the Pearl of Papua will begin her return voyage to Sorong. It is roughly a seven hour journey. Upon arriving in Sorong you will have the opportunity to purchase some souvenirs for your family and friends.

Dive 1: Chicken Reef Dive 2: Sardine Reef

Day Nine: Sorong

After breakfast, prepare for disembarkation. Official check out time is 10 AM . From here you will be transferred to your next destination . Your diving journey has ended and we certainly look forward to welcoming you onboard again .

Potential Schedule for 11 days/10 nights in Raja Ampat Islands

Day One: Sorong

When you arrive at Sorong Airport our crew will be waiting for you in the arrival hall, after collecting your luggage we will escort you to the harbour where our tender boats will take you out to the Pearl of Papua and our friendly crew will greet you with a cold refreshing towel and drink. This will be followed by cabin allocation and boat orientation. When all guests are on board the Cruise Director will give you a presentation about the Pearl of Papua and diving recommendations. Depending on departure time they maybe an opportunity to have a check dive just outside Sorong Harbour. Lunch and dinner will be served during the sail out to South Raja Ampat (12hrs)

Day Two, Three, Four, Five: Misool

One of the many fascinating diversities of Raja Ampat, with some of the most amazing land scapes imaginable, deep mangroves to ravines and canyons, the Misool Islands have been shaped by the powerful forces of nature, underwater the vibrant variety of colour of the hard corals / soft corals / fish species is wonderful. Diving at the Boo Windows, Nudi Rock, Goa Farundi and Magic Mountain (Reef Bayangan) are just some of the awesome sites you can see

Day Six: Fam and Penemu

More great examples of Raja Ampats diversity. The Penemu Islands very recently became an Marine Protected Area and we spend most of our time here in the M.P.A. Melissa’s Garden has probably the best complete coral coverage you will ever see and no visit to these islands is complete without seeing the Hidden Bay

Day Seven: Wayag (Northern Hemisphere)

After your tour of The Hidden Bay we set of for a 12hr drive up to the north of Raja Ampat and dive around the Kawe Islands and Aljui Bay. The entire Aljui Bay has been leased out by Atlas Sea Pearls and the dive sites include White Arrow, Tear Drop Corner and the infamous Cendana Pearl Farm Jetty. It is also possible to tour the pearl farm

Day Eight: Yanggefo

After a 12hr drive back down to the south / middle of Raja Ampat we will dive at Yanggefo. Here we will dive Mayhem, Citrus Ridge and Gam Ridge followed by some snorkelling in the mangroves looking for the Archer Fish and seeing the unique corals that grow in front of the mangroves (normally corals grow 100m plus away from the mangroves), followed by a night dive at either of the ridges, we will overnight in the mangroves

Day Nine: Arborek

The morning dives are at Manta Sandy where we regularly see the Black / White and the all Black Manta Rays come to cleaned. This famous site now has a line of dead coral where guests line up and watch the show. Third dive is a beautiful coral / fish dive close to Arborek Island where guests can also have a sun set walk on the beach before the fourth / night dive at the village jetty

Day Ten: Dampier Strait

Finishing off your great trip with two shallow dives in the Dampier Strait which has some great action packed fish dives, like Cape Kri and Blue Magic. After your busy diving schedule has come to a sad end we will have a lazy afternoon on Pulau Pasir (Sand Island) before returning to Sorong

Day Eleven: Sorong

After breakfast the Cruise Director will escort the guests to either the airport / hotel and will assist with checking in. Sorry to say that your Pearl of Papua Raja Ampat trip has come to an end and we look forward to welcoming you onboard again.

Taman Nasional Cenderawasih Bay Marine National Park consists of 20 habitable Islands and many more uninhabitable smaller islands. The Park is 14,000 sq. kilometres and consists of about 1⁄4 of the Cenderawasih Bay.

Day One: Manokwari

When you arrive at Manokwari (Rendani Airport) our Cruise Director / Dive Manager will be waiting for you outside the arrival hall, after collecting your luggage we will escort you to the harbour where our tender boats will take you out to the Pearl of Papua and our friendly crew will greet you with a cold refreshing drink. This will be followed by cabin allocation and boat orientation. When all guests are on board the Cruise Director will give you a presentation about the Pearl of Papua and diving recommendations. After Lunch you will have your check dive at Pulau Mansinam immediately after the dive we will depart to Pulau Roon and dinner will be served on route.

Day Two: Pulau Roon

Tanjung Ayami is a sloping reef with huge slabs of rock and Pulau Auri is a cluster of small islands with a similar topography but Groovy Passage is a sloping reef but has no slabs of rock.

Dive 1. Tanjung Ayami ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (huge blocks of rock & hard / soft corals)
Dive 2. Pulau Auri ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (huge blocks of rock & hard / soft corals)
Dive 3. Groovy Passage ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (fan corals, soft corals, sponges, turtles, Cenderawasih endemic Caitlin’s dottyback / Pictichromis caitlinae)
Dive 4. Groovy Passage ‘MACRO’

Day Three: Mangguar

Tanjung Mangguar is a cape on the main island of Papua. There are several small islands formed from volcanic rock making interesting dives, with slopes, walls, small caves, cut backs and overhangs.

Dive 1. Tanjung Mangguar ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (soft corals, whip corals, fusiliers, snappers, reef sharks, rays)
Dive 2. Rock’n’Roll ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (soft corals, whip corals, fusiliers, snappers, reef sharks, rays)
Dive 3. Kwatisore ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (whale sharks)
Dive 4. Lemon Slope ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (Cenderawasih endemic Epaulette Shark / Hemicyllium galei)

Day Four: Kwatisore

Welcome to Kwatisore, the high light of diving in Cenderawasih. This is where you shall see whale sharks , normally they are seen on their own when they are feeding and when they are not
feeding they live ut here we see them together (adults and juveniles) below the bagans (fishing platforms). Originally when the locals brought up their nets in the early morning catching millions ikan puri (small bait fish) the whale sharks followed the nets and were seen sucking on the nets. This is strange behaviour for the world’s largest fish which normally only eats plankton is truly unique to Kwatisore, it is believed that they get nutrients and oils from the bait fish. So now liveaboards buy the bait fish from the bagan fishermen and then we ask them to slowly throw them back in (on top of the whale sharks), then the whale sharks swim around taking the bait fish in their mouths but the bait fish come back out again via their gills. The whale sharks stay within 10m of the surface so it is really easy to snorkel with them.

Dive 1. Bagan ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (whale sharks)
Dive 2. Bagan ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (whale sharks)
Dive 3. Lemon Slope ‘MACRO / WIDE ANGLE’ / (Cenderawasih endemic Epaulette Shark / Hemicyllium galei)

Day Five: Tridacna Atoll

Small caves, cut backs, overhangs, this area is where we can find some of the best hard corals in the Cenderawasih Bay National Park.

Dive 1. Tridacna Wall ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (hard corals, sponges, fan corals, endemic fusiliers) Dive 2. Spag Point ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (hard corals, barrel sponges, vase corals, jacks, barracuda,
surgeon fish)
Dive 3. Boomerang Atoll ‘WIDE ANGLE / MACRO’ (hard corals) Dive 4. Boomerang Atoll ‘MACRO / WIDE ANGLE’

Day Six: Pulau Purup

A group of small islands / islets close to mainland Papua.
Dive 1. PP1 ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (hard corals, fusiliers, snappers, Cenderawasih endemic Damsel Fish / Chysiptera pricei)

Dive 2. PP2 ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (hard corals fusiliers, snappers, red tooth trigger fish, reef sharks)
Dive 3. PP3 ‘WIDE ANGLE’ (elephant ear sponges, fan corals, whip corals, fusiliers, Cenderawasih
endemic flasher wrasse / Paracheilinus walton)

Day Seven: Sungai Omi

Black quartz sand beach mixed with small stones and here there is a small river that enters the sea creating different bottom marine life.
Dive 1. Tanjung Mupi ‘MACRO’ (Cenderawasih endemic mantis shrimps / Odontodactylus) Dive 2. Sungai Omi ‘MACRO’ (nudibranchs, estuarine sea horse)
(Rhincodon typus)
in more than 1,200 meters below the surface of the water. B

Day Eight: Manokwari

After breakfast the Cruise Director will escort the guests to either the airport / hotel and will assist with checking in. Sorry to say that your Pearl of Papua trip has come to an end and we look forward to welcoming you on board again.