The Togian Islands is a real tropical paradise with stunning powder white sand seashores lined in tropical hail jungles and surrounded by means of unutilized coral reefs in crystal unclouded H2O. This archipelago of 56 islands and islets is situated in the course of the Gulf of Tomini off the coast of Central Sulawesi. Secure by means of steady barrier reefs the islands are well-known for unclouded and tranquility waters within the sheltered section. Indonesia is made up by means of greater than 17 000 islands and the 56 islands of the Togians are a few of the maximum far off. It takes 3 flights and several other boat and ferry rides to succeed in the touristy Bali, so get ready your self for an off-the-beaten-track journey when touring to the Togians. Being so far off protects a number of undisclosed treasures from international tourism; diving is skillful at the unutilized secure reefs, the nomadic tradition of the well-known ‘sea gypsy’ Bajo community remains to be guarded and it is likely one of the simplest parks on the earth the place you’ll be able to nonetheless swim isolated with thousands and thousands of risk free jellyfish in Mariona Pool. Don’t pass over our Complete Information to The entire Perfect Diving in Indonesia.
Put up up to date – 10/5/2024
Touring Highlights of The Togean Islands
Exploring this undisclosed tropical paradise was once an improbable revel in, the whole lot, origination with the in a single day trip on a neighborhood ferry to going spearfishing with the mythical Bajo community.
Diving is the primary reason why vacationers in finding their method right here. The fauna and plants on those separate islands are improbable and many of the highlights are underwater. The H2O is crystal unclouded and we had over 30 m visibility on maximum of our dives, with diving various from large fish, unreal coral, and minute critters to diving on a WWII B24 Bomber demolition!
Many endangered species live to tell the tale the Togean Islands together with dugongs, hawksbill, and inexperienced sea turtles. It is likely one of the simplest populations of the immense endangered coconut crab that you’ll be able to see strolling and mountain climbing the bushes over those islands
The crystal unclouded, heat H2O and colourful coral reefs assemble some incredible gardens for snorkeling across the Togian islands. Sadly, dynamite fishing and fish poisoning through the years have led to critical injury to deal with reefs alike to many islands. Growing the Togian Nationwide Terrain advanced regulate, schooling, and task alternatives homogeneous to marine conservation and tourism. At your lodging or dive middle you will have to be capable to get knowledge on the most productive snorkeling spots alike in your lodging and on boats that may whip you on a snorkeling excursion.
The tradition and way of life of the original Bajau community “sea gypsies” community, residing of their floating properties is one thing as a real aquaholic I’ve at all times sought after to peer and revel in. You’ll see how the nomadic community are living in cohesion with the ocean within the agreement of Pulau Papan. That is the terminating agreement of the unique Bajau Laut community.
Chilling at the seashore was once a undeniable spotlight. Stress-free on white, unoccupied unutilized seashores with coconut bushes and heat, blank H2O is a part of a dream pleasure.
Swimming in Mariona Pool, a jellyfish puddle, the place thousands and thousands of those creatures misplaced the power to sting, is one among just a handful of parks the place the isolation of jellyfish rendered them risk free over thousands and thousands of years. After we have been in Mariona Pool it was once a mystical revel in with hundreds of jellyfish in every single place. I’ve heard reviews from circumstance dive colleges that almost all of the jellyfish died and that simplest about 20% of the folk (Might 2024).
Pulau Weh related Sumatra is every other off-the-beaten-track tiny island in Indonesia the place we had a splendid era diving, see our Dive Information for Pulau Weh.
The place are The Togean Islands?
Sulawesi is one among about 17 000 islands that in combination mode Indonesia and is the 4th biggest island in Indonesia following Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua. Sulawesi has an atypical surrounding with 4 ‘arms’ or peninsulas extending from the island’s frame. The Togian islands are within the Gulf of Tomini between the northern Minahasa and East Peninsulas.
Attending to the Togian Islands.
The Togian islands in Central Sulawesi can simplest be reached by means of boat, from the north of Sulawesi the islands can also be accessed from Gorontalo and the south from Ampana.
For boat schedules see this Togian ferry shipping desk.
From Wakai, you’ll be able to get to nearly any alternative island in Togeans by means of community or non-public boats. Maximum accommodations will select up visitors immediately from the harbor.
I traveled overland from south Sulawesi to Ampana and by means of Ferry to Wakai, from right here by means of boat to Kadidiri. From Kadidiri I traveled by means of ferry to Gorontalo in north Sulawesi and endured to Makasar. I went diving on the improbable Lembeh Strait and Bunaken from Gorontalo.
The group of workers at Unlit Marlin Resort on Kadidiri helped us to discover a native skipper who took us to Mariona Pool and Pulao Papan.
When you get started your Indonesia journey in Bali, move and dive the demolition of the USAT Self government in Bali, one among my favourite shore dives anyplace on the earth!
Which Togean Island to move to?
The 3 biggest islands within the Togeans are Batudaka, Togean, and Una Una, maximum community begin on the port of Wakai on Batudaka island. The principle islands have excellent lodging and amenities, however the undisclosed treasures are at the unutilized tiny tropical islands unfold out within the Gulf of Tomini.
Kadidiri
Kadidiri is touristy by means of Togian requirements however is a petite off-the-beaten-track island with few community. It was once some distance from busy or touristy, however we met extra younger vacationers right here than at the alternative islands we visited. Diving was once excellent, with unutilized reefs in crystal unclouded H2O. We arranged native outrigger canoes/boats to whip us to circumstance islands and websites the place we spent a few days.
Lodging:
Pondok Lestari Kadidiri. unadorned homestay at the seashore with superb evaluations.
Sundown Seaside is situated at the beachfront in Batudaka, alike to Sundown Seaside. Unsophisticated homestay with excellent evaluations.
Katupat
When you in reality wish to escape from the arena, that is your playground. There’s a homestay or two at the island, however is tricky to secure forward. There’s a petite fisher village Lembanato on Katupat and the jellyfish puddle Mariona Pool, is situated at the island.
Malenge
Malenge Island is an actual off-the-beaten-track paradise, made up of 2 tiny islands – Papan and Kakoda Islands, which can be connected by means of an 1800 m lengthy, picket, overwater path. The snorkeling was once pleasant from Malenge,
Pulau Papan
This petite Bajau crowd hooked up to Malenge Island by means of a protracted picket bridge was once splendid to peer how those nomadic sea gypsies are living, nonetheless doing compressor diving and spearfishing with conventional tools. We requested round and stayed with one of the crucial native community, it was once a splendid revel in they cooked rice for us and one of the crucial fish we speared. I imagine there at the moment are a number of guesthouses at the island.
Una Una
Una Una is a gorgeous volcanic island with cloudy volcanic sand, and coconut palm bushes lining emerald waters on cloudy seashores. Diving is splendid with large colleges of barracudas and horse-eye jacks, unutilized wholesome coral reefs, turtles, rays, and reef sharks. It’s situated moderately some distance from the alternative islands.
Lodging – Fresh Paradise Dive Hotel Una Una and Sanctum Una Una Eco Dive Hotel
Diving within the Togian islands
Diving situations have been incredible on my dives with 30 m plus visibility and 31C H2O temperature. Within the middle of the Gulf of Tomini, that is referred to as the calmest bay on the earth and I skilled splendid situations diving right here.
Diving from Kadidiri – dramatic drop-offs, colourful pinnacles, and canyons with unutilized reefs and wonderful marine occasion corresponding to moray eels, turtles, colleges of barracuda, and fascinating nudibranchs. The reefs listed below are stated to host 314 species of corals, 541 species of mollusk & 819 species of tropical fish. Alike the mangroves dive masters advised me they’d open dugongs, sadly, we weren’t so fortunate!
Diving at the demolition of a B24 Bomber airplane about an generation boat trip from Kadidiri was once an enchanting dive. The airplane was once a part of an American bomb squadron that crash-landed throughout WWII. After we dived at the demolition the visibility across the airplane demolition was once inferior to we had at the reefs, it was once lower than 10 meters. You’ll penetrate the primary cabin and there have been fish, nudis, and cushy corals across the demolition.
Diving from Una Una – pleasant diving, greater than 30 dive websites lined in immense enthusiasts and wonderful coral with marine occasion starting from pelagic species like rays and reef sharks, excess colleges of fish, barracudas, jackfish to pleasant macro diving with frogfishes, seahorses, leafy scorpionfishes and plenty of nudibranchs.
I had a splendid era right here, however it takes era and attempt to get to the Togean islands. Touring just for Scuba diving, I might instead move to Lembeh, Komodo, or Raja Ampat with extra important reefs, fish occasion, and macro diving. See our information to the most productive diving in Indonesia
Dive Season within the Togian Islands
The Togian Islands can also be dived all age spherical, however March to December is open as the most productive era to dive right here. That is the crisp season making diving extra delightful, however visibility and situations are excellent for diving all seasons.
Liveaboard diving across the Togian Islands
The Togian Islands are tough to get admission to and the very best spot for an off-the-grid liveaboard revel in. 4 customery liveaboards function across the Togians.
The Sunshine
KLM Sunshine is a 30m intimate, luxurious liveaboard with double cabins supplied with non-public toilets. Working across the unutilized waters of Indonesia, house to a thriving ecosystem of over 600 species of coral and 3000 species of fish. Diving facilities come with a spacious dive deck, rinse tanks, dive station, Nitrox, and dive guides.
from US$ 179 / while
Gourmand eating place enroute, serving scrumptious foods
a massive solar deck with comfy seating
Take a look at the KLM Sunshine
Swim at Mariona Pool with the non-stinging jellyfish
Mariona Pool on Katupat, alike to the primary Togean island is one among 7 ‘jellyfish lakes’ on the earth. The well-known jellyfish puddle in Palau was once at all times on my bucket listing, so I used to be tremendous excited when I discovered in the market was once a matching puddle within the Togians. On this uncommon puddle, jellyfish misplaced the power to sting over thousands and thousands of years of geographic isolation. Swimming with hundreds of risk free jellies was once a good looking and unreal revel in. To get to Mariona Pool ask at your visitor area for a ship touch, we have been 3 pals who shared a neighborhood boat and it didn’t value an arm and a leg. The life of this particular jellyfish puddle isn’t very widely recognized, we have been the one community posing for selfies with the superior jellyfish after we have been there. I’ve heard from dive facilities that I corresponded with on the era of updating this submit that there are these days a accumulation fewer jellyfish within the puddle (2024).
Staying with a neighborhood Bajo population
I’ve been excited about the Bajau community of Indonesia and the Philippines ever since gazing the documentary Human Planet. The digicam staff follows the lives of those Sea Gypsies residing a nomadic occasion at the ocean. The documentary displays the fantastic skill the Bajau spearfishermen have to seek underwater with very primitive apparatus and the way fishing is completed in those portions by means of compressor diving. We have been privileged to stick within the Bajau agreement Pulao Papan within the Togean islands and give you the option to satisfy a few of these distinctive community.
We paid a neighborhood boat proprietor at Kadidiri to whip me and a couple of pals to Pulao Papan the place he spoke to a few native community and arranged for us to stick in one of the crucial properties at the H2O with a neighborhood population. Town does no longer get many international guests and the youngsters have been excited about us, following us in every single place.
One of the most native fishermen have been fishing by means of doing ‘compressor diving’. They dive with a floor provide of breeze coming from a compressor on a ship and lay out a excess internet at the sea base, matching to how industrial divers paintings underwater. Future diving they chase all of the fish at the reef into the online and shoot the online into the boat. This can be a bad follow basically on account of the danger of decompression problem and could be very damaging to the reef and marine occasion.
Diving with the Bajau community “sea gypsies”
The Bajo community do loose dive spearfishing so they don’t worth Scuba apparatus, they do that with out fins and a few of them nonetheless worth conventional apparatus they form themselves, picket goggles and selfmade spearguns.
I do a accumulation of free-dive spearfishing at house in South Africa and was once very excited to move spearfishing with a professional the use of those conventional modes.
I attempted the use of the unique Bajau goggles, a picket body fitted with a tumbler lens. It was once tough to peer with the goggles leaking. I imagine a accumulation of the Bajo divers worth fashionable mask these days, they have been, then again, diving barefoot, and no longer the use of fins definitely makes it a accumulation tougher to dive deep.
Dressed in incorrect fins with a gun in a single handcrafted it tough to dive deep. I controlled to dive to 17m, however I may just certainly no longer succeed in the depths Subin did within the documentary!
Diving with the native selfmade weapons, those spearos are restricted to focused on smaller fish. The weapons are simply no longer robust plenty to kill larger recreation fish.
The weapons are powered by means of a few rubbers scale down from automobile’s interior tubes. To extend the gap they are able to kill, one of the crucial weapons are very large with barrels as much as 2m lengthy.
I imagine spearfishing is an overly selective and environmentally pleasant method of fishing and didn’t kill a accumulation of fish, since I used to be no longer prepared to kill petite reef fish.
There was once a few nice-sized blue fin trevally searching within the shallows. Those recreation fish have been then again very skittish after we were given within the H2O. Drawing near them with stealth was once no longer very a hit with out dressed in fins. Lets thus by no means get alike plenty to spear them and the vulnerable automobile tube-powered spearguns weren’t robust plenty to attempt to seek those larger fish.
Mariona Pool and Pulao Papan have been charm and are somewhat of a challenge to get to. Experiencing those parks is certainly importance the attempt in the event you walk to the north of Sulawesi.
Hike up at Una Una volcano
An important while hike in the course of the stunning forest up the volcano and into the crater. Arrange a information at your resort. Within the crater you’ll be able to move for a swim and notice indicators of volcanic process; boiling H2O, steam, and sulfur. The hike takes about 5 hours.
Extra Sulawesi adventures!
Heading North. – Funeral ceremonies, putting graves, espresso farms, and a unbalanced bus chase in Tana Touraja.
South Sulawesi. – Now not widely recognized because the north, however Pantai Bira has a accumulation of attainable. We did some pleasant dives within the section.
North Sulawesi. – Diving the well-known partitions of Bunaken and the paranormal creatures of Lembeh Strait. One take a look at our pictures and you’re going to perceive why this playground is a photographer’s dream!
Committing to Bali? Take a look at our Whole Information to Dive and Exit Bali
Occurring a dive commute? – Dive Commute Packing Listing+Pointers
Extra Diving in South East Asia
Sipadan in Malaysia and Komodo Nationwide Terrain in Indonesia are my two favourite gardens to dive on the earth. See in those articles why I really like those dive spots.
Dive Nusa Penida related Bali is a splendid spot to combine a seashore pleasure or some browsing with diving. You’ll dive at this tiny island alike to Bali with manta rays many of the age.
The Perhentian Islands in Malaysia are stunning with crystal unclouded H2O and superb seashores, this could also be a splendid playground to mix an island pleasure with studying to dive. Koh Tao in Thailand is referred to as one of the crucial best possible parks on the earth for any dive coaching, see our evaluation of our favourite dive colleges on Koh Tao.
Swimming with whale sharks is a bucket listing revel in for those who love the sea, the Philippines has some incredible gardens for this revel in. Take a look at our Whale Shark Swimming Information for the Philippines and our ideas on Swimming with Whale Sharks in Oslob.
Indonesia is not just about diving, take a look at 17 Superior parks in Indonesia our information on Find out how to get from Bali to Flores, and a few actions and parks to not pass over in our Nusa Penida island information.
We would really like to listen to from you, so don’t be shy to remark give tips or ask questions!
Please apply and prefer us:
The robust part of Stingy Nomads, a nomadic aquaman that will be at liberty to spend all his occasion within the H2O diving, browsing and spearfishing however steadily has to compromise with Alya and move mountain climbing in lieu. Campbell is liable for all our marine adventures and following them with write-ups. He loves touring, braai (BBQ in South Africa), crimson wine and spending the while in a wetsuit.
