Indonesia Archives - Jetsetamanda

First diving trip of the year 2017! I was really looking forward to this one as it was my second dive right after getting my Open Water license in December 2016. Just fun dives! Pulau Weh definitely made it to the ‘talk about list’ among the diving community. Honestly, i’ve not heard of this small island until it was suggested by my dive buddy. Being in South East Asia, I believe we are very blessed with amazing dive sites, which are all well within reach.

“You’re about to go in an unexpectable journey, become a Monster while living an incredible underwater adventure. Have a lot of fun, make new friends and learn how to dive or improve your skills. Glide over colorful reefs and meet plenty of wonderful marine life. – Monster Divers”

So, how did I ended up with Monster Divers? There were several dive centers in Pulau Weh and generally, being the review freak – I decided upon Monster Divers as they are rated number 1 on TripAdvisor. They were quick to reply to my emails and made the necessary pick up arrangements to the dive site. I stayed in Iboih Village, which was a 10 minutes bejak ride to Monster Divers located at Gapang Beach.

Pulau Weh, Sumatra Indonesia

Lonely Planet introduced Pulau Weh as a tiny tropical rock off the tip of Sumatra. Look carefully on the map or you would probably miss it. What brought me to Pulau Weh exactly? Diving, of course. In all honesty, I’ve not heard of this island and i literally had to google it up to see where in the world is this place. It is located on the north of Banda Aceh, Sumatra and the main town where most of Weh’s population live is known as Sabang. Surprisingly, it was just a 1.5 hours flight away from Penang to Banda Aceh via Fireflyz airline.

Pulau Weh marked my first trip for the year of 2017! There were so many modes of transport involved to get to Pulau Weh. Ulee Lheu Harbour is about 40 minutes away from Banda Aceh Sultan Iskandar Muda Airport and to get there, it is recommended for you to take a taxi. At the harbour, you have a choice to either take the fast or slow ferry depending on the availability. I arrived at 940am by flight and by the time i got to the harbour, it was almost 1030am. That left me with only one option – the slow ferry departing at 11am, which took about 1.5 hours to Balohan Harbour, Pulau Weh. From Balohan Harbour to Iboih beach, it took another 45 minutes by bejak (a local three wheel transport).

Monster Divers, Sumatra, Pulau Weh

Pulau Weh, Sumatra Indonesia