Raja Ampat 2025 Trip Report

Bluewater Travel’s 2025 Cozumel Photo Workshop at Iberostar featured vibrant reefs, warm water, and expert photo instruction, with highlights including splendid toadfish, turtles, and sharks.

“There were SO many fish!” That was a constantly reoccurring comment throughout the wonderful 12 days we recently spent exploring the stunning reefs of Raja Ampat with Bluewater Travels February 2025 Photo Workshop. Located at the eastern end of the vast Indonesian archipelago, this region, which is at the epicenter of the famed “Coral Triangle”, is widely considered to have the world’s greatest marine biodiversity. It also features stunning topside scenery, thriving coral gardens, a huge range of invertebrate life, and unique underwater habitats. It’s also the only place I’ve dived where I’ve never once been cold underwater, as the temperature never dropped below a balmy 85 Fahrenheit!

Welcome to the Coral Triangle

Not including the lengthy flights required to get there, our journey began at the port city of Sorong, located on the western edge of an area known as the Bird’s Head Peninsula on the west end of the massive island of Papua. After a short dinghy ride, we received a warm welcome aboard our floating home for the expedition, the beautifully appointed 130 ft. Damai II Liveaboard. Built in the traditional Phinisi style of the original Spice Island trading ships, this spacious vessel is a treat for the eyes, combining the charm of natural wood with all the modern luxuries and conveniences. Everything about this operation speaks to comfort, relaxation, and convenience, from the huge cabins to dedicated camera room to individual camera rinse tanks at each dive station. And with a crew of eighteen for only twelve guests, they offer a level of customer service that is unparalleled, including careful handling of camera gear, loading and unloading of all dive gear from the tenders, and their embarrassingly helpful insistence of helping every guest in and out of their wetsuits on every dive. In addition to all the practical help, every time we departed or returned in the tenders, the ever-smiling crew broke into animated song, complete with guitar, bongos, and tambourine! Their simple, upbeat tunes were so infectious that before long, we guests couldn’t help but join in.

Kicking Off with Mantas and Macro Delights

Of course it was the diving that we really came for, and that certainly did not disappoint. After picking up five of our group from a nearby resort, we all got in for a checkout dive on a sloping reef where our guides pointed out all manner of interesting creatures, with various nudibranchs, flatworms, and a wide variety of fish life including a robust ghost pipefish. Not bad for a checkout dive! The night dive that evening was equally productive, where we saw numerous species of shrimp and crabs, all kinds of sleeping fish, several squid, and an unconcerned octopus on the prowl.

Blue Magic and the Winged Giants

Raja Ampat, which translates into “Four Kings”, comprises four large islands and roughly six hundred smaller ones, most of which are just south of the equator. The first part of our trip was centred in the northern region, among the islands and reefs surrounding Dampier Strait. There are dozens of great dive sites in this area, but we started with one of the most celebrated, a submerged reef called Blue Magic. After a detailed dive briefing, our group of twelve was split into three separate tender departures, each with their own dive guide. This was a pattern that stuck throughout the trip, allowing ample space in the tenders and plenty of personal attention underwater. Descending in a steady current, we were greeted by schooling yellowtail barracudas and surgeonfish, as a large Napoleon wrasse cruised in the distance, and countless colorful reef fish went about their business. It was tempting to spend time with these reef dwellers, but our main goal on this dive was to get a look at the oceanic manta rays that the site is known for. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long, and we all took up positions near the reef top where up to seven of the winged giants swooped in to be serviced by the resident cleaner wrasses, returning again and again throughout the dive.

The following two dives were also on seamounts with similar-looking terrain at Lau Lau and Sardines, where fish life including blue-spotted stingrays, schooling chevron barracuda, pinnate spadefish and midnight snappers, along with a blacktip reef shark, a swimming giant moray, and a shy and rarely seen species, a cometfish. And, for those focused on smaller attractions, our guides found examples of both Denise’s and Pontohi pygmy seahorses, each of which did a great job of blending in with its surroundings. While a bit of bleaching was evident in certain hard corals and anemones, most of the reef appeared very healthy.

Night Critters and Reef Diversity at Papokreng & Kri

That evening’s night dive took us to a mucky rubble slope at Papokreng, where we encountered several common seahorses, sleeping saddleback anemonefish, snake eels, decorator crabs, Saron shrimp, pygmy cuttlefish and a small frogfish, plus a scary looking Bobbit worm that was sticking up nearly a foot above the silty bottom, jaws agape, waiting for some unsuspecting prey to venture too close.

The next morning found us at Kri Island, site of the first dive resort in the region, at a reef that once held the record for the greatest variety of fish species ever recorded on a single dive. Descending the steep slope in good visibility, fish of all kinds soon came into view. Large schools of lobetail snapper and several sweetlips species hovered over the sandy bottom at base of the slope, holding formation in the gentle current. Layers upon layers of schooling surgeonfish, fusiliers and giant trevallies swarmed in mid-water. A lone gray reef shark patrolled the reef’s edge, as a huge variety of angelfish, butterflyfish, rabbitfish, wrasses and other reef fish appeared throughout the dive. It was easy to see why the record for fish diversity was set here – it was easier to keep track of the few species we had not seen than the huge variety that we had!

We next moved to a sloping reef in front of Sawandarak Village, where a massive colony of cabbage coral was home to a big school of yellow snappers and goatfish, as well as a small school of very relaxed ribbon sweetlips. Several giant tridacna clams dotted the reef slope, but the big attraction was a number of absolutely unconcerned green turtles with big remoras that allowed us to get as close as we liked.

Sea Turtles, Mangroves & Blackwater Wonders

For the afternoon and evening dives, we moved again to a sloping reef in a narrow mangrove-lined channel called Mangrove Ridge, where we were greeted by a small baleen whale upon arrival! The scuba dive here featured wire coral shrimp and triplefin gobies along with assorted other critters and fish, but for most of us was nothing special. Those who went snorkeling in the mangroves, however, reported stunning hard corals and clear water right up to the mangrove roots, where pajama cardinalfish and archerfish hovered under the overhanging branches. Archerfish have the unusual ability to see well above and below the waterline, allowing them to hunt insects by spitting a forceful stream of water, knocking their prey into the water!

For the night dive, we were given the option to explore a mucky slope, where highlights included a pygmy cuttlefish, several nudibranchs, a toadfish and a Randall’s frogfish. As an alternative, however, several of us embarked on a “blackwater” dive from the anchored boat, which was positioned on the edge of a deep dropoff. As we finned against a gentle current to stay near the lights of the boat, a parade of fascinating creatures passed by, including comb jellies, tiny larval snails, crabs and reef fish, squadrons of small squid, and a tiny larval lobster riding a comb jelly. Cool stuff!

Kawe & Aljui: From Fish Storms to Soft Coral Bliss

The following day took us to the Kawe area under cloudy skies, where we dived two remarkably “fishy” sites, Black Rock and Eagle Rock. At the former, the water column surrounding two tiny pinnacles was so densely packed with rainbow runners, yellowmask surgeonfish and fusiliers that it was sometimes difficult to see the reef! As we neared the bottom, however, the sloping reef revealed itself as a forest of gorgonians and small sponges, home to pewter and emperor angelfish, scrawled filefish, and a pair of barramundi cod, as well as a small green turtle. Eagle Rock was another awesome dive, where we descended on the upcurrent side of three small islets, and immediately found a large, pregnant marble ray. Sizable fan corals were surrounded by schooling red-tooth triggerfish, as pairs of clown triggerfish, six-band, blue-gridle and emperor angelfish meandered along the reef slope. In deeper sections, stunning soft corals covered a pair of small pinnacles at depth, complimented by schooling spadefish and yellowmask surgeonfish. Several bumphead parrotfish in the shallows kept us company during our safety stop.

As we moved on to the Aljui area in the vicinity of a long-established pearl farm, the sun reappeared, making our next dive at Tear Drop Corner all the more spectacular. Here, at the base of a limestone cliff, the steep slope was covered with vibrant red and chartreuse soft corals, complimented by occasional fans and table corals. Schooling scissortail fusiliers streamed by overhead as a wide variety of reef fish came and went. Macro life was also abundant, including a spiny lobster, several nudibranchs and a trio of small pipefish. But the beauty of the soft corals was so overwhelming that most of us paid little attention to anything but the scenery.

Those who did the night dive found a mostly rubble bottom, and were well rewarded with sightings various shrimp and crabs, an octopus, a small orange painted frogfish, and an endemic Raja walking (epaulette) shark

Pearl Farming & Shallow Coral Forests

We remained in the same area for all the next day, starting with a tour of the pearl farm, providing a fascinating look at the process of growing cultured pearls. We then spent the rest of the morning exploring one of the most special attractions that Raja Ampat has to offer, one of only a handful of places in the world where clear ocean water meets mangrove forest, providing a rare underwater view of the mangrove community, which serves as a vital nursery ground for all manner of marine life. Not only is this special habitat home to a wide range of juvenile fish and invertebrates, it is also a stunning visual spectacle, combining forests of mangroves bordered by thriving hard corals, healthy seagrass beds, and dazzling soft corals growing on mangrove roots in full sunlight, only inches below the surface. Many of us couldn’t get enough of this rare opportunity, and took full advantage of the unlimited dive times that Damai offered for this and most other locations.

The afternoon offered up another unique and stunningly beautiful site on the opposite side of the same narrow channel, Dalton’s Point. Here, the terrain alternates between a steep drop-off at the base of limestone walls and small, shallow coves populated by dense mangrove forests. There may have been good things to see at depth, but we never made it there, as the scenery was so captivating at 3 to 15 feet that there was no point in going deeper. For most of the dive, we swam beneath a mushroom cap limestone overhang, where a rainbow of brilliant soft corals and gorgonians covered much of the substrate. A similar profusion of soft corals was also growing on the mangrove roots in some areas, especially in the area where we finished the dive – once again, nobody wanted it to end!

After dark, we spent a relaxing 90 minutes exploring the shallows near the pearl farm pier, where our guides found a wealth of cool critters, including Chromodoris and Flabellina nudibranchs, a black and neon blue helmethead slug, numerous lionfish, a toadfish, a tiny pygmy pipehorse, and 2 wobbegong sharks. As with every night dive, the cheerful crew greeted us with mugs of hot chocolate upon our return, along with the usual live musical performance.

Melissa’s Garden & the Reefs of Penemu

Daybreak the next morning found us in the Penemu area, where we started the day by ascending several flights of wooden stairs to a popular viewpoint that provides a 360 degree vista of the many small limestone islets that epitomize the topside scenery in Raja Ampat. Then, after a quick round of scenic photos and selfies, it was time to return to the boat for breakfast while getting underway to one of the region’s iconic dive sites, an expansive hard coral community known as Melissa’s Garden, named for the daughter of pioneering dive operator Max Ammer. The glassy surface and sunny skies made it easy to appreciate the exquisite hard corals, with fields of staghorn and cabbage coral, accompanied by occasional fans and sponges. While it’s too large to see in one dive, lack of current allowed most divers to see a good portion of this sprawling reef system, from the deeper slopes to the three small, mushroom-shaped islets in the center. Highlights included various snappers, lyretail and squaretail coral trout, marble grouper and a small blacktip reef shark. The vertical bases of the small limestone islets were especially colorful, with clusters of orange cup corals and encrusting sponges starting at only 15 ft. depth.

The following two dives were both on submerged, coral-covered ridges, the first known as My Reef, which rises to within 40 feet at its shallowest point, and is covered with a variety of hard corals and gorgonian fans. Despite the lack of current, fish life was abundant, including schooling fusiliers, unicornfish, blue-lined barracuda, pinjalo snapper, longnose emperor, and gold-spotted trevallies. Many cleaning stations were open for business, with handfuls of yellowmask surgeonfish hovering near certain coral heads, waiting to be serviced by bluestreak cleaner wrasses. Macro shooters were also rewarded, as some fans were home to as many as nine Bargiabanti pygmy seahorses!

The next site, Swarm, is a large, current-swept reef that reaches within 5 feet of the surface in some places, sloping to a sandy bottom around 70 ft., and is covered in healthy hard corals, along with large black corals and leather corals in some areas. As the name implies, this was another very fishy site, as schooling fish of all kinds milled about in mid-water. A huge variety of reef fish also reside here, including emperor snapper, tall-fin spadefish, gold-spotted trevallies, yellow-mask, regal, emperor and blue-girdle angelfish and pairs of foxface rabbitfish, as well as magenta and splendid dottybacks. Critter hunters also had fun, as several species of nudibranchs and other interesting invertebrates were spotted as we whisked along in a vigorous current.

Dramatic Seascapes in Misool: Puri Puri to Barracuda Rock

After steaming for most of the night, we awoke on the east side of Misool, which is the southernmost of the four main islands of Racha Ampat. Our morning dives were both in the Yuliet area, at a pair of sites, Puri Puri and Puri Pinnacle, that are named for the small schooling, anchovy-like fish that are especially abundant here, and are food for just about every predatory fish in the region. While these small fish were not present in the numbers that are sometimes seen, there was nonetheless a lot of feeding activity, as gold-spotted and bluefin trevallies charged through their ranks in mid-water. Reef dwellers were also in good supply, with fish life including colorful wrasses, reef bannerfish, tailspot blennies, and doublebanded soapfish, along with invertebrates like spindle cowries, thorny oysters and various nudibranchs. On the following dive at Puri Pinnacle, highlights included giant, pizza-sized coralimorphs, several very large groupers, a wobbegong under a coral head, and a brief appearance by a manta!

Nudi Rock Raja Ampat – Dive Site Guide

That afternoon we moved to another iconic site, Nudi Rock. When viewed from the surface, this limestone islet bears an uncanny resemblance to a nudibranch, complete with small trees growing exactly where the gills and rhinophores would be located. Below the waterline, there’s an amazing profusion of marine life at every depth, with forests of black corals and gorgonian fans, punctuated with occasional sponges and hard corals. Swirling clouds of fusiliers, bannerfish and barracuda filled the water column, as a huge assortment of reef fish made their rounds, including Napoleon wrasse, semi-circle angelfish, clown triggerfish, and yellow boxfish. And, while our concentration was mostly focused on the scenery, there were plenty of critters to be found as well, including the several examples of the dive site’s namesake.

For the night dive, we moved to the Yayil area to a site known as Barracuda Rock, where a steep slope was home to a variety of cool critters, including a soft coral crab, eggshell shrimp, reef octopus, and a huge Spanish dancer nudibranch. Fish life included a giant moray, sleeping parrotfish and redtooth triggerfish and another Raja Ampat epaulette (walking) shark.

Neptune's FanSea, Four Kings, and Funbar

We remained in the Misool region over the next few days, starting at Pulao Tapo, where two small islets are surrounded by a series of shallow pinnacles, sandy plateaus and sections of vertical wall. Huge, perfect barrel sponges dot the reefscape, along with occasional fans and massive black coral trees. Lack of current meant minimal fish activity, but there was a good variety nonetheless, including yellowback fusiliers, bumphead parrotfish, giant sweetlips, and an epaulet (walking) shark at 7 ft. of depth!

Next was a site in the Pele area known as Kaleidoscope, where a narrow ridge at the tip of a small islet sticks out into deep water, and is covered with sea fans, red whip corals and elephant ear sponges. Once again lack of current meant for a sedate vibe, but there was still a good variety of fish, including bumphead parrotfish, young Napoleon wrasse, orange-lined triggerfish and a pair of six-banded angelfish, as well as several species of anemonefish and a banded sea snake.

For the afternoon dive we moved to Waaf Island and a site called Funbar, a submerged reef whose walls are COVERED with colorful tunicates and small orange soft corals. Many interesting and unusual reef fish were encountered here, including urchin clingfish, blue-spotted and lunar-tail grouper, a strikingly patterned juvenile emperor angelfish and rarely seen juvenile clown triggerfish and juvenile regal angelfish. Several folks also encountered a peacock mantis shrimp peering out from its burrow. We returned to the same site for our night dive, where highlights included the same juvenile clown trigger, a giant moray, a huge starry pufferfish and a squadron of squid near the surface.

The following day started with a site called Toblerone, where we descended on a wall with occasional fans and moderate fish life. Followed slope up to safety stop depth, where there’s a large swim-through with room for 6 divers to swim through the island and emerge on the opposite side. Cool topography, but overall it was a mediocre dive.

Famous Diving Site of Raja Ampat, Four Kings Misool

We then moved on to the Wayil area to a place that many consider to be the most scenic and colorful of all Raja’s sites, Four Kings. Judging by what we saw there, this reputation is well-deserved – what an awesome site! Consistent with its name, four submerged pinnacles lie in close proximity, the shallowest of which reaches 25 ft. depth, dropping off steeply on all sides. All four peaks are covered with colorful soft corals, fans, crinoids and sponges. Schooling yellow snappers, gold-spotted and bluefin trevallies and longnose emperors filed past throughout the dive, as masked coral groupers and coral trout lurked in the crevices and clouds of anthias and chromis danced above the healthy reef. Everyone agreed that we’d be happy diving this site many times, but the rules dictate that liveaboards in the Misool region do only one dive per site each trip.

Neptune’s FanSea: A Cathedral of Coral Giants

The night dive was conducted at Yuliet Kecil on a site called Romeo, where a combination of sloping reef and wall revealed a variety of crabs, shrimp and nudis, plus a pair of blacktip sharks catching and fighting over a fish!

Raja Ampat's Southern Treasure: The Magic Mountain Dive Site

Our last full diving day started out with a bang in the Warakaret area at another justifiably famous site called Magic Mountain. An isolated seamount that was the southernmost point of our trip, this reef rises from deep water to safety-stop depth, making for a perfect multi-level profile. As with most of the dives on this trip, there was a distinct lack of current, resulting in a no-show from the mantas that this site is known for. But aside from that it was an outstanding dive with lively fish action, including schooling fusiliers, red-tooth triggerfish, midnight snappers and schooling bannerfish, adding a welcome flash of color to the mid-water. There were lots of beautiful individual fish too, including square-spot anthias, yellow boxfish, clown triggerfish and regal angelfish, to name just a few. Reef life was also excellent, with sponges and fan corals dominating deeper areas, while prolific soft corals prevailed in the shallows, where huge Dendronepthya trees were complimented by a forest of smaller orange ones covering the sides of many bommies. Just as we were about to end the dive, a small hawksbill turtle swam right up to us, totally ignoring our presence as it chomped on the abundant sponges and soft corals.

Boo Window: Underwater Circus of Raja Ampat

Our next dive was another superstar site, known as Boo Window, which consists of a small islet and tiny “one tree” rock above the waterline. Below the surface, there is thriving marine life everywhere – schooling bannerfish, spadefish, barracuda and bigeye trevallies crowd the mid-water, while yellow snappers and clouds of chromis hover closer to the reef. Seemingly every reef fish in the book paraded past at some point, as well as a gray reef shark, Napoleon wrasse, hawksbill turtle, and a banded sea snake. Several Notodoris gardineri nudibranchs were laying eggs at safety stop depth next to the “window” that gives the site its name.

Tank Rock Dive Site: The Macro Paradise of Raja Ampat

Nearby Tank Rock was another fantastic dive. It was raining heavily as we did our backrolls, so it actually felt warmer once we were in the water. We descending on a terraced wall populated by a thriving community of fans, sponges and soft corals, complimented by clusters of red whip corals. Most of us were focused on small creatures, and it wasn’t long before our guides had pointed out several pairs of both Denise’s and Bargiabanti pygmy seahorses. Several species of nudibranchs were discovered as well as a wide range of small fish, including Raja, magenta and splendid dottybacks, squarespot anthias, various blennies, gobies and hawkfish, as well as a pair of juvenile emperor angelfish, and the usual assortment of anemonefish. Before we knew it an hour had passed and it was time to ascend to safety stop depth, where we were surrounded by one of the most enthralling scenes I’ve witnessed underwater. We found ourselves at the submerged portion of the tiny, mushroom-shaped rock that is the site’s namesake, which is completely covered by a living carpet of tiny green and larger yellow and purple tunicates, clusters of orange cup corals and pink and red soft corals, all open and feeding in the moderate current. Colorful small reef fish were everywhere, but the star attraction was the constant parade of gold-spotted and bluefin trevallies that were teamed with dozens of longnose emperors, all dashing about in pursuit of shimmering waves of glassfish and small fusiliers. The scene cried out for wide angle, but those of us who were setup with macro were happy just to watch the incredible show going on all around us.

Apolo Night Dive: Nighttime Surprises

Once the sun set, we headed to a site called Apolo, a beautiful hard coral reef that conveniently tops out at 15 ft. then gently slopes into the depths. Moments after jumping in, we were greeted by a large tawny nurse shark that acted very surprised to see us and sprinted off into the darkness. Other highlights included several nudibranchs including a pair of Flabellinas, various shrimp, and a big sleeping pufferfish, as well as a wobbegong eating a scorpionfish!

Andiamn: Coral, Currents & a Turtle

Our final diving day was in the Daram area, starting at a pair of limestone islets known as Andiamn. The deeper pinnacles here were very scenic, with several big lionfish hovering near large fans and black corals, as schooling spadefish and Spanish mackerel passed by in mid-water. Of particular interest was the current-swept pass between the islets, where prolific soft corals complimented a good variety of reef fish, and a curious young hawksbill turtle. The most scenic area, however, was at safety stop depth, where small bommies were covered with orange soft corals, sponges and small fans. Once again, it seemed too good to leave!

Final Dive Magic: Manta Goodbye

Our last dive of the trip was also in the Daram area at a site called Candy Store, consisting of two more small islets in the same area as Andiamn. It started with dark skies, limited visibility and uninspiring scenery, but the appearance of waves of schooling bannerfish quickly brightened the mood, along with another super-relaxed hawksbill that was feeding on a deep ledge. Then, as we were about to head to the surface, a magnificent manta arrived on the scene, as if to bid us farewell. What a nice way to finish off a trip that was filled with incredible scenery, a vast variety of marine life, and SO many fish – I think we all hope to return again sometime soon!