North Sulawesi, just south of heaven, Coral Eye & Siladen Resorts August 2-13, 2025

My last group to Bangka and Siladen was in 2019 and I’ve been dreaming of returning ever since.
I have vivid memories of the reefs of Bangka teeming with so much life, I recorded the sound of the fish whooshing around me.
At Bangka’s Batu Mandi pinnacle, I was enthralled watching a cuttlefish flash hypnotically while hunting it’s prey while a gorgeous giant yellow frogfish looked up at me from the reef below.

Our snorkel adventure begins on Bangka Island with a six night stay at Coral Eye resort.
Situated between the Celebes Sea and the Molucca Sea, in the northern province of Sulawesi, Bangka Island lies in the heart of the Coral Triangle, the global epicenter of marine biodiversity.

August 2 Arrive Manado and transfer by boat to Coral Eye Eco-Resort.

August 2-8  Six nights at the Coral Eye in Bangka
Coral Eye is a unique dive resort on Bangka.  Originally founded as a marine research outpost, the resort still hosts researchers and students involved in marine science and coral conservation.  Bangka is a snorkeler’s paradise, situated on a palm-fringed white sand beach.
The House Reef right in front of the resort is on a crystal-clear turquoise lagoon with excellent snorkeling.

Bangka’s archipelago offers a diversity of marine environments from richly-colonized volcanic pinnacles, pristine coral reef slopes to sandy slopes, mangroves and walls.  We’ll snorkel reefs with stunning coral gardens and sandy patches with cryptic critters. We’ll be wowed by prolific schools of fish and on the lookout for cuttlefish, octopus, seahorse, leaf fish, frog fish and nudibranchs.

Our accommodations will be in the gorgeous, newly built villas.

All meals & snacks, drinking water, coffee and tea are included.  Breakfast includes freshly baked bread, homemade tropical jams and preserves, eggs made to order, cereals, home baked muffins, seasonal fruit platters, fresh juices, tea and moka coffee. For lunch and dinner Coral Eye prides themselves for using the freshest, locally available ingredients to prepare a wide variety of dishes that combine European traditions with Indonesian cuisine. Fish is purchased direct from Bangka Island’s fishermen to ensure freshness, quality and sustainability.
Coral Eye is happy to accommodate special diet requests.

During our six days we’ll have time to enjoy the remarkable house reef, five days of exploring nearby reefs by boat and a day tour to Tangkoko National Park.
Tangkoko National Park is a nature reserve with exceptional groves of very old trees and a variety of animal life.  The Tarsius (the smallest known primates), several groups of the endemic Black Macaque monkeys, Maleo birds and Kuskus (marsupials) are often spotted by the park guide.

August 8 Transfer Coral Eye to Siladen. If sea conditions allow we’re transfer by boat and snorkel along the way!

August 8-13 Five nights at Siladen Resort and Spa
Siladen Resort & Spa is a gorgeous boutique dive resort located on Pulau Siladen, a lush tropical island in the heart of the Bunaken National Marine Park, a protected ocean area known worldwide for the richness of its waters marine biodiversity.
Siladen resort is just a half hour boat ride from Manado, yet it feels remote and pristine.

The resort stretches along a long white sandy beach and a fringing reef.  The views out to the turquoise sea and Manando Tua volcano are breathtaking.  The sunsets aren’t too shabby either!

The elegant beach view villas featuring a luxurious private open air bathroom with a full set of amenities including a hair dryer. Each features wood floors and walls, a comfortable king size draped 4-poster bed, 100% cotton sheets with light duvet, air conditioning, room safe, mini bar, 23 inch flat screen HD television TV with international channels, telephone , tea and coffee making facilities, private sun beds and a private covered terrace and a sun deck.

All meals, snacks, drinking water, coffee and tea are included. With influences from European, Mediterranean and Asian cuisines, meals are an event to look forward to. Any dietary requests are easily catered to including vegetarian and vegan. Weather permitting we can enjoy dining outside under the stars.
The dramatic walls  around Bunaken are rich in hard and soft corals and shallow reefs are ideal for for snorkeling. Our time at Siladen will include time to explore the house reef, three days of boat snorkel trips to nearby reefs and a Dolphin tour.

Bunaken is protected marine sanctuary known for the richness of its marine biodiversity, from macro life to pelagics such as reef sharks, eagle rays, barracudas, tuna, napoleon wrasses.  In Bunaken you won’t just find giant clams, you’ll find 7 out of the 8 species of giant clams that exist worldwide. Butterflyfish are found at every dive site and there are over 33 species. The walls are encrusted with hard and soft coral and over 70% of all fish species that exist in the Indo-Western Pacific Ocean can be found in the park. Needless to say, you will always have something to look at!  I’ve also enjoyed seeing spadefish, anemonefish, ornate ghost pipe fish and turtles. If you love turtles, you’ve come to the right place! We may be lucky enough to witness turtle hatchling which happen between February and August.

The house reef is best accessed by taking a short path through the village. With the right current you can snorkel over the coral reefs to and pop out in front of the bungalows. It’s a wonderful snorkel over hard and soft corals and a fantastic variety of marine life including butterflyfish, parrotfish, moorish idols, fluorescent-blue damselfish, anemonefish, turtles, rays and tons of sea stars.

I also had several wonderful night snorkels on the house reef. After dinner I walked over to the reef, flashlight in hand, and delighted in finding pygmy cuttlefish mating two nights in a row plus scorpion fish and reef octopus.

August 13 Transfer back to Manado early morning.  You are available to begin your journey home or onward.

North Sulawesi Trip Cost
$4650 per person based on double occupancy
Trip enrollment is full on this departure. Accepting waitlists.  Contact Wendy@snorkelingetc.com

Trip costs include:
– 6 Nights villa accommodation at the Coral Eye in Bangka
– 5 nights in Siladen in a beach view villa
– 9 Guided Boat Snorkeling Sessions from the Coral Eye
– 1 Tangkoko National Park Trip
– 7 Guided Boat Snorkel Sessions from Siladen
– all transfers
– Unlimited self guided snorkeling on house reef
– All meals & snacks, free flow drinking water, local coffee and tea, all taxes & free Wifi

Trip costs exclude:
– Airfare
-Bunaken Marine Park entrance fee is IDR 150.000 per person (approx $20 USD) payable at the resort.
– Additional hotel nights
– Alcoholic beverages
– Massages
– Laundry
– Gratuities
– Trip cancellation and medical insurance. (essential)

I hope you will be able to join me on this exceptional journey to experience the beauty and wonders of North Sulawesi

Wendy Simon
CEO/and Fellow Snorkel Addict
Snorkeling Etc. Inc.
Santa Cruz, CA.
831 254-5001
Wendy@SnorkelingEtc.com