ALOR – WOW!

by Per Lagerberg

Diving trip to Alor in Indonesia

Getting to come to a place you've read and heard about for over 20 years but haven't had enough time to. Having prioritized other things. Hopefully a dream that will be as good as hoped is almost difficult to achieve. After reading articles, watching videos and pictures from Alor in Indonesia for so many years, it's finally time for my diving trip to Alor in Indonesia.

Getting here is not difficult, first a few nice days in Bali and then a flight to Alor. Alor can be reached with different solutions depending on the day of the week and the domestic flight schedule. With everything from non-stop flights to two stops on the way and an overnight stay in Kupang on Timor. For me a bonus to see something else fun and for others a bit of a pain. But finally we arrive at our Tripst.

We have arrived

The beach is long, white sand, completely untouched, the grass grows tall and it gives a feeling of real nature. Not a fancy all inclusive Tripst that many are looking for. This is genuine and real travel. We are guided to our simple but functional bungalows and we start unpacking diving equipment and personal belongings. Spreading us out like you do when you have to be in one place for two weeks.

Something to drink after a lovely dinner in the simple lounge/dining room and a little briefing about the diving that awaits, it's quite nice to sleep for a few hours. The next day I get up early, really early, have decided to walk for an hour every day. Takes me out through "my" walk through the grass and onto the beach. The sun has just risen and the light is magical.

Children enjoying beach and snorkeling at tropical island paradise, perfect for scuba diving adventures.

Vibrant nudibranch sea slug with bright orange, purple, and blue colors on coral reef.

Colorful scorpionfish camouflaged among coral during scuba diving adventure.

Boat anchored in clear tropical waters for scuba diving adventures.

Sunset over a calm lake with boats and mountain backdrop, ideal for scuba diving and travel adventures.

Bright yellow spotted nudibranch marine creature on the ocean floor.

Walk along the beach

I start walking and right now it's high tide so I don't get past some big rocks on either side of the beach so there will be a few turns back and forth before the hour is up.
Take some pictures and enjoy the experience. It's not often these days that you can have your own almost chalk-white sandy beach to yourself and feel a bit like Robinson Crusoe.

Time for breakfast, finally. A few others have also gone out on the beach and soon we go to the dining room where breakfast is served buffet style and the coffee is good and fresh fruit is like balm for the soul.

Now we're going to dive

It starts to suck in the diving gut and finally we go out. A long journey and many years of waiting is over.
We jump in and it's actually kind of COLD…..brrrr what's going on???. 23 degrees and a 3 mm wetsuit is not quite optimal but just to bite the bullet. Then find out that it's a little colder than normal this year, but what's the matter, We're running now! The waters in the strait between Alor and Pantar, which is the name of the island we live on, are known for fresh flowing water. Pretty much anything can happen here as far as marine life is concerned. Even hammerhead sharks, blue whales and killer whales have been seen here on occasion.

This week's diving is absolutely wonderful and the whole gang has fun together on the way to the dive sites.
The reefs are amazing, the variety of corals is huge. The first few days I see more species of coral that I have not seen before, the diversity of fish is great and here it is teeming with macro life and larger fish.

Very varied

The dive sites are very varied, current dives are common but there are places where you avoid current completely. Walls, flat bottoms with muck diving or reef slopes, octopuses of every imaginable variety, crustaceans showing off their amazing colors and shapes, anemones, kelp forests, nudibranchs that I have never seen before.

We even get to see mola mola on the surface from the boat, dolphins, we dive with rays and hammerhead sharks, nurse sharks, reef sharks and quite a few large shoals of fish. However, I think the most powerful thing is the variety of corals, how healthy they look and the amount of different funny little animals.

It's not hard to get here, but it takes some time. Domestic flights in Indonesia are not always reliable and there are only a few days a week where there are non-stop flights from Bali. It is not certain that they will continue, but via other airports it is possible to get there pretty much daily. Take the chance to experience Alor before this paradise is further exploited. There are still only a few Tripsts here. But more and more liveaboarders make it here for a few days, so the winds of change are blowing here too. But it really is a very different and exciting place for those of you who want to experience a bit of everything and get away from it all.

Photogenic

Every day we do 2 to 3 dives depending on current conditions and all dives have their charm and variety. Some places we visit again because they are so incredibly good. Other places are more for the experience of doing real current dives rather than photography because you barely walk in the water eddies but the experience is incredible.

The beach walks in the morning get longer and longer as the tide gets lower and lower each day. Soon I can walk the entire 2 km long beach and back. The trees and mangroves that grow along the shore are old and/or dead but the formations are bold and make a picture.

If you like to take pictures on land, it's just an experience here. Not to mention all the people and children I meet on the beach and who live in the village about 2 km away. Several groups of children pose willingly and it certainly appears that they have been photographed before. They love to see themselves in pictures.

Alor is not for you who are looking for luxury and flair. It is not here, the luxury is to be here. Close to nature and have nature close to you, i.e. lizards, spiders, ants and other insects are always there. Crabs in the room some day, birds singing. One day we discover that there are lots of ant lions that help us kill a couple of hours.

Afternoons and evenings are spent in the lounge and we talk about one thing or another. The internet doesn't work that well here yet, although it will and will get better. But it's quite nice and relaxing to have the luxury of not being reachable and connected. To just travel and really enjoy it.
The food is consistently very good, the staff is super nice. And that said, great diving with a diversity and pretty much consistently healthy corals everywhere.

Want to come here again

I know that many have gone here again, I know that many who have been here want to come here again. I want to go here again, someone said this is probably the strangest and most amazing place they've been to. If you want to go on a diving trip to Alor in Indonesia, you should contact Scuba Travel. They have experience in Indonesia and solutions to your trip that could otherwise turn into problems.

Alor is a destination for those looking for nature and to get away. For those of you who are willing to travel a little further to experience something that is almost beyond what is possible today. The corals in this part of the world are probably among the best and healthiest available. For those who are looking for something unique and extremely good with close to nature, a diving trip to Alor in Indonesia is probably a must at some point.

Take the chance to experience Alor before this paradise is further exploited. There are still only a few Tripsts here, but more and more liveaboarders are coming here for a few days, so the winds of change are blowing here too. It really is a very different and exciting place for those of you who want to experience a bit of everything and get away from it all.

Photo: Per Lagerberg