Komodo National Park Highlight

This weeks trip through the Komodo National Park onboard Mermaid II delivered all the highlights and more!

On route we had encounters with Banded sea kraits, Dogtooth Tuna and hunting lionfish in the waters of Sumbawa.

Upon arriving into the national park, an early morning dive in the Shotgun was a sure way to wake everybody up and raise the level of excitement further. After passing through the fast channel we shallowed up around beautiful hard coral gardens bathed in the warm morning light.

The dive guides skilfully coordinated the dives to get the best from the currents so that we could experience the rich marine life without being swept away. Amongst the schools of fish circling Castle and Crystal Rock we spotted White Tip, Black Tip and Grey reef sharks and even a passing Eagle Ray.

A morning trek around part of Komodo Island found the famous dragons sunbathing on the beach. After the warm start to the day we headed south for cooler waters and had many a close encounter with Manta rays as they circled around our heads playing in the bubbles.

As we sailed back North we stopped for a drift dive along Siaba Kecil where there were Turtles everywhere and some were lucky enough to encounter a swim past from a Dugong!

Muck diving in Volcanic black sands full of small critters and sea fans full of pygmy seahorses a sizeable Blue Dragon Nudibranch was the highlight of the day.

Barry Neal

MV Mermaid II
Jun 24 – Jul 1, 2023

More information about Komodo National Park https://www.mermaid-liveaboards.com/destinations/komodo/