Much like its neighbouring islands of Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan, Nusa Penida holds some of the best diving Indonesia has to offer. There are about 13 dive sites within the area teeming with different kinds of amazing marine life. So what are the best 4 dive sites? Let’s find out!

Manta Point - On the south side of Nusa Penida is the famous Manta Point. A manta ray feeding and cleaning station, this dive site is beginner-friendly as you are likely to be diving at about 10 to 15 meters of depth to see the feeding and cleaning manta rays. Furthermore, Manta Point is located in a bay, therefore there is no current, however, there is a surge. The boat ride to this site can also be quite choppy, so we recommend taking seasickness tablets before embarking if you are prone to seasickness. Otherwise, the boat ride over is stunning as you cruise along the bottom of sheer limestone cliffs and rugged Indonesian wilderness.

Aside from the opportunity to see manta rays, Manta Point is also home to several octopuses, bamboo sharks, and eagle rays. If you are an advanced level diver, your guide may also take you out toward the mola mola cleaning station at 20+ meters, where you may have the chance to see these amazing creatures in the dry season months of July to September. If not, there will most likely be more mantas, so don't worry!

Crystal Bay - Named after its crystal clear waters, this is probably the most reliable dive site to see mola molas in the dry season. Crystal Bay is suitable for any level of diver, however, the overhangs and mola mola cleaning stations do lie deeper at about 20 to 30 meters.

This site is a stunning sloping reef that wraps around a little island within a bay. Beginning the dive on the inside of the bay, you will descend to a sandy bottom where you can find garden eels hiding and flounders camouflaged. Moving towards the reef you will be able to find an abundance of diverse marine life including sea snakes, snake eels, cowfish, nudibranchs, mantis shrimp, sea turtles, and if you have a really good eye, even the occasional stonefish and frogfish!

Toya Pakeh - Translating to salty water in the local dialect, this dive site sits just off the shoulder of Toya Pakeh Bay in Nusa Penida. It is the most pristine reef that the island has to offer. Beginning with a wall and moving north into a sloping reef, this dive site homes anything and everything from stunning reef life consisting of ribbon eels, giant moray eels, lionfish, sea turtles, octopuses, and scorpionfish, to pelagics cruising out the in the blue such as schooling giant trevallies, the rare whale shark, and mola molas in the dry season!

Toya Pakeh is suitable for all levels of scuba divers, however, the deeper you go, the bigger stuff you might see!

SD Point - An acronym for Sekolah Dasar (translating to elementary school in Indonesian), this site is named after the school that sits on land directly in front of the dive site. It is suitable for any level of scuba diver, is the first stop for a string of drift dive sites that line the north coast of Nusa Penida, and is the best one out of them all.

Teeming with healthy sloping coral reefs, macro marine life, as well as bigger fish such as the Napoleon wrasse, schools of skipjack tuna, sea turtles, orangutang crabs hiding in soft corals, delicate anemone shrimps, and eagle rays. During the dry season, mola molas also make an appearance here to sunbathe and clean.

Diving in Nusa Penida will never be boring. Though these are the best dive sites in the area, the ones we have not mentioned also hold treasures as the ocean is an unpredictable source of surprise and beauty. Don’t wait to visit Nusa Penida and dive into its spectacular sites on your next scuba holiday to Indonesia!

Written by Kayli Wouters

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