Alluring Alor

Tolkien wrote, “Not all who wander are lost.” Although I did feel a bit lost researching some remote areas of Indonesia I'd never heard of – the Lesser Sunda Islands in the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. The liveaboard itineraries usually list them as 'Alor'.

Those who have dived Komodo will be familiar with Flores which is west of Alor. When the Komodo and Raja Ampat diving seasons cross over, the liveaboard staff sail alone through the Alor archipelago and the Banda Sea as they go from one area to the other. So why let the crew have all the fun?

I was blessed to join the Emperor Raja Laut on its first Alor itinerary during the last crossover season. Having been on the boat in 2019, I was excited to return, remembering chef Agus’s culinary delights of rendang, breaded king prawns, and sweet and sour chicken. What a joy to find he was still on board, along with a rather talented bartender who made a winning mojito as an aperitif.

Alor remains very much on the down-low. With only a few intimate dive resorts and one domestic flight option, it's a precious secret. Why is this ecosystem SO special? The coral is in great condition as there are few divers and less boat traffic; there's a wide range of water temperatures keeping any bleaching events at bay; and local sustainable fishing practices contribute to healthy reefs.

Cold water rises from the depths through the narrow Pantar Strait, gifting Alor with amazing visibility, colourful corals and pelagic species. I was lucky enough to encounter a mola mola, two thresher sharks and over 100 dolphins. Schools of scalloped hammerheads can be spotted too. Alor is also a muck diving paradise. There was much “snooting”, focus lighting and flipping of diopters going on by the keen photographers on board.

We began the trip with the usual rustling of paperwork, a very thorough tour, and a safety briefing. Since my last trip on the Raja Laut, there have been welcome additions of softer furnishings, beanbags and hammocks. Emperor still offers Nitrox free of charge and a glass of wine with dinner. All marine park fees are included, and there are no surprising costs added to your bill like fuel surcharges. The whole week had the happy hour price list too! Because of onboard desalination, there was no need to save water. “In fact, you can all shower together", they said - this was somewhat lost in translation, but we knew what they meant!

Cruise Director Nihed had a great rapport with all the staff on board. There was lots of fun, songs and banter but also great professionalism from all, from the housekeeping team to the Zodiac drivers. I barely had to lift a finger all week other than to analyse my gas and remember to defog my mask.

We had our check dive in Kalabahi Bay, then continued towards Ternate and Pura islands before ending in Alor Besar. Dive sites combined coral slopes, sandy areas, muck, wall dives, drop offs, and even a couple of jetties (boy do we love a jetty here at Dive Worldwide?!). With this blend of varied topography, everyone seemed happy and the photographers were spoilt for choice.

The topside views were lush green hillsides, black volcanic and white sandy beaches, interspersed with more populated fishing villages with pretty mosques and churches. We got used to the familiar phut phut of a fishing boat passing by and kids play-fighting on their home-made vessels (made sometimes from a tree, or from pieces of polystyrene packaging). They were fascinated by the drones that were being launched from the boat, and grateful to receive copious amounts of fresh fruit gifted by the crew. Butterflies were another familiar sight, almost as if they were using the boat to gain DRS for their exhausting flight between islands.

As for the dive sites, I was particularly enamored by Reta Wall on Ternate, with its hard coral pinnacles literally swarming with damselfish guarding their eggs. As we shallowed up, we saw gorgonia, black coral, curly whips and staghorn coral. Nearby Babylon had possibly the most amount of small fish I have ever seen on one dive: surgeonfish, triggers, damsels, anthias and chromis battling for space among table corals, barrel sponges and crinoids.

As we reached Pura Island, we could feel the cooler water from the Indian Ocean. Bait balls of eel catfish and sardines rolled between plate corals on Coconut Grove, while anemones laddered along crevices and overhangs. I expected to be photographing spaghetti anemones at Clown Valley, but a flash of silver in the blue had our whole group sprinting away from the reef to watch a couple of pelagic threshers gliding around in a bracing 15 degrees!

I was pleased to learn that Thresher Shark Indonesia operates out of Kalabahi in Alor. Not only do they research pelagic threshers, but they also provide outreach to schools and local communities to educate them about protecting this endangered species for the future.

Hot Rock at Pantar Island sent smoke signals to us from the beach to dive in, and what better subjects to look for in black volcanic sand than weird critters. Early morning light rays danced among the legs of the village jetty as we chased longfin batfish and juvenile emperor angelfish in circles around them.

Down in the muck our eagle-eyed guide Chris spied fireworms, baby scorpionfish, long arm octopus and unicorn sole. We played Hide and Seek with blue fluorescent plankton in the shallows like something alien from Star Trek. Sadly the famous rhinopias didn’t grace us with their purple presence here, or later on at Holy Grail, but Pantar is famous for them.

The following morning we awoke back at Pura to another beautiful sunrise and chilled tunes. Lulled into a false sense of security, we were somewhat surprised to feel the current around Red Sand had become turbulent whilst we slept! The current in this location went up, down, sideways and above all – fast! Black tip reef sharks, giant trevally and barracuda glided gracefully past us clumsy fools blowing bubbles around them. We surfaced in fits of giggles and nervous energy as we watched the water boil and spin around us. Top marks to the Zodiac drivers for their smooth pick-ups within Mother Nature’s carnage.

On our penultimate day, we dived Mandarin Wall in north Pura Island. I can only describe this as a psychedelic scene like an underwater Chocolate Factory. Soft polyp corals sprouted from tube sponges like pot plants; anemone poked through gaps in the acropora, and huge barrel sponges looked like a split meteorite or crushed giant Maltesers (other cocoa-laced treats are available). Iridescent small fish swam around the brain and mosaic corals with the movement of sunbeams, while dotty backs, fairy wrasse and fusiliers changed direction every time a silver shadow graced the reef slope.

On our final day the crew raised the sails of the schooner for a photo opportunity, and we raced around her in the RIBs clicking away frantically. We also visited a local village to see the traditional dress, and learn about betel nut. After 17 dives and being barefoot for a week, it was quite a surreal experience to be back on terra firma in front of a man who was slightly high, holding a bow and an impressive selection of arrows!

Someone once said to me that diving in Alor is like watching water breathing. The water took my breath away, so much so that I've already booked to go back in April when the dry season begins!

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Image of Emperor Raja Laut provided by supplier. All other images by Cath Bates.

If you'd like to discover Indonesia's Alor Archipelago like Cath, check out our Alor Liveaboard Adventure today. For further Indonesia inspiration and information, contact our friendly team.