Reef
down to 24 m
Manta Sandy
A manta cleaning station at about 16 m where reef, oceanic and black mantas are frequently spotted.
- Open Water
- Manta rays
Raja Ampat
Diving in Indonesia
13 documented dive sites, 2 of them for Open Water divers. Known for manta rays, grey reef sharks and reef sharks.
- Best months
- Oct–Apr
- Water
- 26–30 °C
- Levels
- Open Water, Advanced, Experienced
- Diving from
- Liveaboards, Dive resorts
- Nearest airport
- SOQ
When to go
Pick a month: the diving season, from published sources, and the typical weather.
Pick a month
- Best
- Good
- Possible
- Closed
- Not documented yet
Raja Ampat in October
Best season- Sea
- 30 °C
- at the surface
- Air
- 30 °C
- 25 °C at night
- Rain
- 300 mm
- average for the year
- Wind
- 7 km/h
- on average
The warmest water of the year.
Typical weather, not a forecast: averages for 2021–2025 (air, rain, wind) and 2023–2025 (sea), data from Open-Meteo (ERA5 / Copernicus, Météo-France). Covers an area of roughly 10 to 25 km around the destination.
Main liveaboard season Oct–Apr; May–Sep wetter with fewer departures. Most diving is by liveaboard.
Dive sites in Raja Ampat
From the easiest to the most demanding. Levels with a dashed outline are estimates we are still verifying.
Open Water friendly
usual dive down to 18 m2 sitesFor Advanced divers
usual dive down to 30 m10 sitesDrift
down to 40 m
Cape Kri
Drift dive with record fish diversity: 374 species counted on this single site, plus chevron barracuda and reef sharks.
- Advanced
- Reef sharks
Pinnacle
down to 40 m
Magic Mountain
A Misool pinnacle rising to about 6 m, exposed to oceanic currents, where both oceanic and reef mantas visit cleaning stations.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Macro
down to 18 m
Arborek Jetty
A day or night jetty dive beside Arborek village, max around 18 m, with frogfish, pygmy seahorses and the occasional passing manta.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Pinnacle
down to 30 m
Blue Magic
A submerged pinnacle topping out around 7 m where reef and oceanic mantas, grey reef sharks and dogtooth tuna pass.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Reef
down to 40 m
Manta Ridge
Divers reef-hook onto a ridge between 6 and 17 m to watch mantas feeding and being cleaned.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Boo Windows
- Advanced
- Wall
- Wobbegong sharks
Drift
down to 30 m
Chicken Reef
- Advanced
- Reef sharks
Drift
down to 35 m
Fiabacet
A Misool reef wall from 5 m to 20-35 m swept by currents, where schools of snappers and jacks are always around.
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Reef
down to 30 m
Sardines Reef
- Advanced
- Manta rays
Drift
The Passage
- Advanced
- Wobbegong sharks
For experienced divers
usual dive down to 40 m1 siteMarine life
When the big encounters happen, month by month.
| Species | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manta raysSource: misool.info | ||||||||||||
| Grey reef sharksSource: lagaligoliveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Reef sharksSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Whitetip reef sharksSource: liveaboard.com | ||||||||||||
| Mobula raysSource: misool.info |
- Peak season
- Seen
Manta rays: All year. Grey reef sharks: All year. Reef sharks: All year. Whitetip reef sharks: All year. Mobula rays: Sep–Dec
Also reported here, season not documented yet:
- Walking sharks
- Turtles
- Tuna
- Barracuda
- Silversides
- Trevally
- Mandarinfish
- Nudibranchs
- Pygmy seahorses
- Batfish
- Bumphead parrotfish
- Napoleon wrasse
- Hammerhead sharks
- Wobbegong sharks
- Dolphins
Where is Raja Ampat?
- Nearest airport
- SOQ
- How people dive here
- Liveaboards, Dive resorts
Raja Ampat: frequently asked questions
- When is the best time to dive Raja Ampat?
- The best months to dive Raja Ampat are Oct–Apr. Main liveaboard season Oct–Apr; May–Sep wetter with fewer departures. Most diving is by liveaboard.
- Is Raja Ampat good for beginner divers?
- Yes, partly: 2 of the 13 dive sites we document are suited to Open Water divers, including Manta Sandy and Melissa's Garden. The others need more experience or a higher certification.
- What is the water temperature in Raja Ampat?
- The water is usually between 26 °C and 30 °C over the year.
- What marine life can you see in Raja Ampat?
- Divers regularly see manta rays (all year), grey reef sharks (all year), reef sharks (all year), walking sharks, whitetip reef sharks (all year) and turtles.
- How do you dive Raja Ampat?
- The nearest airport is SOQ. Ways to dive here: liveaboards and dive resorts.
About this page
Seasons and marine life come from the sources below. Site levels and depths marked as estimated come from our original catalogue and are being checked one by one. Conditions change: always confirm with a local dive centre.
Your next dive is somewhere out there.
Find my next dive tripPhoto credits
- Karst islands of Piaynemo in turquoise water, Raja Ampat, peter harris, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Boo Windows dive site, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Ratha Grimes from Seattle, WA, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Sunlight and bubbles in deep blue water, Sarah Lee, Unsplash License, on Unsplash
.jpg){kind=link}
