Gangga Island Manado

Hi all,

I'm contemplating a trip back to Manado and want to know if anyone has stayed at Gangga Island resort, if so what was your experience like?

In the past few trips to Manado I've dived the Bunaken and Lembeh but missed the oppertunity to get out to Gangga and Bangka.

I'd also like to know if the diving in Bangka is that much different to bunaken, Ive heard that there is alot more soft coral and shoaling fish to be found.

Any information will be really helpful

Thanks

Nige Wade

Hi Nige

Yes been a couple of times - once in April and once in October. Gangga itself is terrific - really upmarket and pretty expensive. Food is brilliant and too much for me! There is a great camera room.

Diving wise it is all small stuff and I never saw serious shoals of anything. Too much fishing in the area for that. It differs from Bunaken in that there are only a few steep walls but what there are are very scenic. I hardly use my wide angle when there. Coral is generally in good order but I don't recall serious amounts of soft coral. There is also a good muck diving area on the N. Sulawesi coast about 30mins from Gangga.

Diving is well organised but you have to be supervised which I hate. Depending on who your supervisor is (you are allocated one for your whole stay), you could be limited to 60mins flat and have to surface with half your air left - or do your own thing and then tell your guide when you are ready to surface. Like other places out there, all the guides are great critter spotters but can be a bit too enthuisiastic (with tips in mind I suppose) and can seriously muck about with subjects in order to present them to you unless you let them know you don't want that sort of thing. Nitrox is available.

PM me if you want further info

I've also been a couple of times and agree with the post above - especially the food!

To add, Bangka has some really great sites and I prefer the variety of diving that's available around the Gangga area to that around Bunaken. (Lembeh, Bangka, Bunaken & Northern Mainland are all possible from Gangga). It's my first choice resort if diving outside Lembeh.

The diving around Gangga itself is not so good, best to go to Bangka/Mainland for the afternoon dive.