Terry Sherman - Bluewater Dive Travel

Terry Sherman

Terry Sherman

My Dive Map

Reviews (3)

Siladen Resort and Spa

5
5
5
5

Siladen Resort is a beautiful place that does everything right. We booked this resort for 3 nights and 4 days, and did eight dives here, including two on the way to Lembeh Resort, in Bangka. Our biggest regret was not spending more time here. Ana and Miguel, the management team, have a very professional and organized approach to the running of the resort, and we felt instantly welcomed. Our bungalow was spotless, spacious, and thoughtfully appointed. It was very luxurious, despite not being beachfront (we would have liked that, but the beachfront villas were unavailable, despite our booking months in advance). The food was mostly buffet style, with a wide variety of choices both Indonesian, and western/Italian. It was excellent, and meals were mostly beachfront.
I took one group yoga class, and also did a private yoga class, both took place in a "treehouse" platform type building with a terrific view of the ocean, and the sunset. This felt terrific after the long flights to get here.
Diving was beautiful and colorful, and the dive operation ran smoothly. Nice touches included hot beverages between dives and fruit offered by the dive staff. All the dive sites were very good.

I also received one of the best massages I have ever had. This took place in their well appointed spa.

I would love to return to Siladen one day, and my husband and I highly recommend this resort for couples wanting a romantic getaway with some relaxing diversions in addition to diving, but the diving is truly world class here as well!

I should also mention that airport transfer, as well as our boat transfer were very efficient, and that was much appreciated.

Visited on 09/2023 - Submitted on 10/09/2023
Read all Siladen Resort and Spa Dive Resort reviews

Emperor Harmoni

5
5
5
4

We traveled on the Emperor Harmoni in September/October for a dive trip to the Komodo National Park, and I would highly recommend this beautiful, well-kept, first class boat. We stayed in an upper deck double cabin, and it is by far the nicest cabin accommodation we have ever experienced. The whole boat is decorated tastefully, and the cabins are spotless. Wrap around windows let us enjoy a beautiful sunrise many mornings, and the deck behind us was very convenient for experiencing the gorgeous Komodo sunsets. Public areas were clean and well maintained, and the dive deck was well laid out for daily diving. The staff on the Harmoni were incredibly courteous, knowledgeable, and a lot of fun. Great diver to guide ratio. The management team of Guillaume and Amy really worked hard to make sure everyone had a good time, and that the boat ran smoothly. Several excursions on land from the boat included a trip to an isolated beach at sunset for singing and drinks by the talented crew, a trip in Maumere to see the Watublapi weavers/village and of course the trip to see the Komodo dragons in the park. It was a special anniversary trip for my husband and myself, and when the staff found out, they planned a special dinner on the back deck for us, and gifted us with a bottle of wine, and some small gifts to help us remember our special day. I also have to talk about the incredibly hardworking staff. The dive team, Antos, Gustin and Danny, as well as the managers/divemasters were terrific. The dinghy drivers were helpful and polite. The cabin stewards, kitchen crew, and captain/engineers were all really high quality, friendly, and fun. We enjoyed getting to know them on our 9 day trip. Food was good, but I would comment that it would be fun to have more Indonesian food, and more spices. I think they could really shine if they cooked more of their food! The diving on this trip was particularly good in Komodo. Clean dive sites with copious small fish, lush, hard and soft corals, and some sharks. There were also plenty of manta rays! Currents were pretty strong, and can be a little tough for photographers, so that bears consideration. We also felt dive sites in the remote places were better than the ones close to Maumere. We are already thinking of a trip to RAJA AMPAT on this wonderful boat!

Visited on 10/2023 - Submitted on 10/12/2023
Read all Emperor Harmoni Dive Liveaboard reviews

Lembeh Resort

5
5
5
5

Lembeh Resort has it all! Access to great muck diving, a first class dive operation, beautiful rooms, a courteous staff in the resort, and the kitchen, and terrific food. We stayed in a well appointed Hillside villa, and enjoyed beautiful sunsets every evening. Beds in the room were very comfortable, and everything was tastefully decorated. The food was a great combination of Indonesian and western food, with lots of choices for vegetables and fruits, and a good vegetarian selection every day. I took a cooking class with Rusyani and April, and this was a lot of fun. I learned to make three Indonesian specialties. I also did a massage and pedicure, and these were great, but their spa is closed for renovation, so it was done in the room. I think this service will be great when they can move back into the spa facility. The dive operation might actually be separate, but it is the resort dive operation, so I will review it as well. We had one of the best dive masters, David, I have ever had in my years of diving. He had a terrific eye for finding the small stuff, and his knowledge of the scientific name of every, single creature we encountered was astounding. He filled a small plastic slate with the names of the creatures every dive. Great photography opportunities here. Every day we saw frogfish, octopus, and lots of nudibranchs, pipefish, and shrimp. We did see the pygmy seahorse as well. The boats were good, with plenty of room, and the diving teams, divers to guide ratio was very good. Usually 2-4 divers per guide. We were a bit disappointed in the house reef, and only did one dive there, but the boat dives were terrific. Very nice place, with a lot to offer divers wanting to see the little stuff.

Visited on 09/2023 - Submitted on 10/12/2023
Read all Lembeh Resort Dive Resort reviews

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