I live on the West coast of the USA and I have two weeks off in late October. Possibly, my wife could be in the 2nd trimester or early 3rd trimester of pregnancy by then, so we would like to stay in a country where emergency transport and healthcare is easily accessible. I am hoping to go somewhere with excellent opportunities for diving photography, especially macro. I would love to go back to Lembeh or Tulamben but I am worried these are not good in terms of access to healthcare. Also, because my wife will not be diving, it would be great to go somewhere where there are things to do on land.

I was thinking Okinawa might be good? Philippines maybe? Maybe Bali is actually one of the better options? Any other suggestions for overlap between world-class tropical diving and accessibility to civilization/healthcare?

I probably have misconceptions about healthcare in non-Western countries so feel free to correct me.

thanks

I would consider Fiji or Guam. You are not interested in Hawaii I take it? Seattle is excellent in October as well but maybe you don't like cold water?

I would not consider Indonesia at all, probably not the Philippines.

Cool thanks I will look into Fiji and Guam. Hawaii is such an easy one week trip for us, and honestly I haven't been too impressed with the diving there.

Maybe Palau as well? It's a short hop from Guam, and it's practically a US territory. Palau citizens can join the US military, interestingly.

cool I will look at that too. The US hospital in Guam will certainly provide of peace of mind.

Asides from medical care available at your destination, you need to consider the dangers of a long flight.

When my wife, who is a physician, was pregnant she passed on a long trip to Australia from the US West Coast because it was too long to be in a plane and seated.

Check with your wife's OB for a recommendation.

Business Class!

@rwb500

My wife was pregnant a number of years ago and we were in a similar situation...

Indonesian (public) healthcare is not anywhere near up to western standards. I would completely avoid all of Indo. The Philippines (outside of Manila) is just as limited so avoid the Philippines as well.

We chose Hawaii when she was pregnant the first time (I still love diving the Big Island - It's not the Coral Triangle, but I would choose it over any part of the Carribean). For her 2nd pregnancy we chose Australia. Healthcare in OZ (for pregnant women) is easily a match for the US system, and in some ways even better). We chose Lizard Island up on the GBR - diving was good...

Guam is an option, Palau would be an option as well (mainly because you could get off island to Guam or Taiwan fairly easily).

Unfortunately, none of these are great (or even good) macro destinations. The Big Island of Hawaii has the "pelagic magic" blackwater dive, which is worth doing a few times, but not the same as true macro.

Because of this, what you might consider is using Singapore as a base for a trip. The healthcare in Singapore is world class - surpassing much of the US healthcare system. You can buy travel insurance to evacuate someone in a medical emergency back to Singapore, which is 3 hours from Bali, etc.

Thailand has good healthcare in general, but the diving is not as good as Philippines or Indonesia. A combination of decent diving spots and easy access to major hospitals is even harder to come by - the closest thing I can think of would be Phuket; you can dive Kata Beach or day boats there, which is not magnificent but still decent. Khao Lak is also an option - you can do day boats to Richelieu Rock or a short liveaboard.

Another option, kind out of of the left field - have you considered blackwater diving in Florida? I haven't been there personally, but I understand that it is one of the world's hotspots for blackwater, and it would obviate all the issues with international travel, healthcare, etc. It's very difficult from your typical muck diving, but it's still macro.