Timor-Leste

If you’re looking for a new frontier in scuba diving, somewhere no one else has been then look no further than Timor Leste! Timor Leste, or East Timor, is the newest country within southeast Asia having officially been recognised as a sovereign state on 21st May 2002 after independence from Indonesia. Having been colonised by the Portuguese in the 16th century the country still retains a lot of its portuguese heritage, which can also be seen in its name, which literally translate as East East - timor deriving from the Indonesian word timur for east and leste being the Portuguese for east. While it may be a relatively new country in terms of independence it does boast some world class scuba diving for those who make the journey. From muck & macro diving along the coast near the capital Dili to the diving amongst the pristine reefs and crystal clear waters of Atauro island; it deserves to be on any scuba divers bucket list and when you throw in the possibility of whale sightings as well it needs to be taken seriously.

Timor Leste is located on the eastern half of the island of Timor it also includes the enclave of Oecusse and the islands of Atuaro and Jaco. Getting there can be a challenge and may put off many bar the most determined of travellers as you’ll need to fly into Bali and then take an infrequent flight to the capital of Dili. For those who do make the journey won’t be sorry - the capital itself, whilst not the most developed in the region, has a certain charm and it really does feel like you are making a trip into the unknown. As Timor Leste is such a new nation and with a troubled recent past there is still much to do, a trip here won’t be spent living in the lap of luxury at a 5 star Hilton hotel, but that shouldn’t put you off, the country has a strong culture and ss with most southeast Asian countries the people are fantastic, friendly and welcoming they are part of the charm and appeal of visiting.

Timor Leste, located on the island of Timor is close to the Indonesian islands of Alor and Wear, separated by the Ombai Strait and is right in the path of the Indonesian through flow - this means that it is rich in nutrients which is great news for scuba divers. In fact, the Ombai Strait is part of the migratory route for many species of whales including humpbacks and pygmy blue whales too due to the waters being rich in squid. August to November are the best months to head out into the channel between the mainland and Atauro island to see these magnificent creatures, at other times of the year you have a good chance of seeing dolphins as well.

Diving in Timor Leste in split between two main locations, in and around the capital of Dili and the magnificent Atauro island. The scuba diving in and around Dili is mainly muck diving looking for small critters such as nudibranchs and is conducted from the shore, Atauro Island consists of awe inspiring walls and beautiful coral reefs which are hard to beat in terms of bio-diversity. As scuba diving is fairly new to Timor Leste, the industry having grown since independence the current known dive sites are probably just a fraction of what is lying just beneath the surface.

Diving around Dili

There are three main dive sites in and around the capital, Dili, namely Pertamina Jetty, Dili Rock and Tasi Tolu. Tasi Tolu enjoys an almost mythical reputation in the local diving circles as something akin to the Lembah Strait, however this may be overstating the case. However, it is a good dive site and the only one we managed to dive in Dili whilst we were there.

Tasi Tolu:

This is a shore dive on the western outskirts of Dili and a popular dive spot with the local diving fraternity. Its a good place to muck dive and look for macro critters.

Depth: 24m

Life: Nudibranchs (Shaun the Sheep), pipefish, baby bobtail squid, squat lobster, dog tooth tuna

Diving at atauro island

The highlight of any diving trip to Timor Leste will be a trip to Atauro island which lies some 30 km north of Dili and is home to the best diving in the country. The dive sites are split between the east and west of the island. Visibility here is often superb as the island receives very little rainfall and thus there isn’t much runoff from the island leading to crystal clear waters. The journey over can be a bit bumpy - we went during June and in the middle of the channel between the island and mainland it was pretty bumpy - in fact we had top wait a few days to be able to get there due to the weather. It is definitely worth the trip though and the reef on the east coast is one of the most bio-diverse in the world rivalling Raja Ampat for sheer bio diversity!

West Coast Dive Sites:

Adara Bay:

Adara Bay is a wall dive with some spectacular coral formations like you have never seen before. It really is breath taking and needs to be seen to be believed. I dived this site on a day trip from Dili with Compass Diving - a locally based dive outfit with great guides and instructors. The visibility was pretty spectacular too at well over 20m. We dived this site twice just drifting along at different parts - the coral was amongst the best I have seen anywhere in the region.

Depth: 30m

Life: Parrotfish, Wrasse, Potato Grouper, Turtles, Nudibranchs, Scorpionfish, Lionfish.

Lucky Day: Keep an eye open looking out in the blue on the west coast dive sites - dolphins and whales are not unheard of!

east coast dive sites:

The coral reefs on the east coast of the island slope off a bit more before dropping off into the abyss, we dived here with Atauro Dive Resort. Unfortunately there dive boat had been caught in a storm and snapped in two so we were using a local outrigger boat to dive which made entering and exiting fun! Atauro dive resort were fantastic with great accommodation, food and dive centre staff (An Aussie couple) who really knew the dive sites and what to expect. Due to the conditions we were only able to dive two sites which we dived twice each but were not left disappointed at all.

Watwai:

Not far off from the resort, again fantastic healthy corals to rival Raja Ampat and teeming with life as you’d expect!

Depth: 23m

Life: Turtles, Leaf Scorpionfish, Blue Finned Trevally, Spotted Boxfish, Pufferfish, Porcupine fish, Peacock Mantis Shrimp, Banded Sea Krait (Sea Snake) Angelfish, Clown triggerfish, Titan Triggerfish, Coral Shrimp, Nudibranchs, Morray Eel, Painted Crayfish

Lucky Day: We didn’t see them but there are sharks around Ataturo, including if you are incredibly lucky scalloped hammerheads.

Haruvina Rala:

This site once held the record for bio diversity - a truly stunning site with more beautiful coral and teeming with life yet again!

Depth: 31m

Life: Great Barracuda, Painted Crayfish, Blue finned Trevally, Dogtooth Tuna, Coral Shrimp, Nudibranchs, Angelfish, Sweetlips, Batfish, Boxfish, Orangutan Crab

How to get to Timor leste

Getting to Timor Leste isn’t that difficult in terms of flights/connections - from KL we flew into Bali, stayed overnight and then caught a flight to Dili. However, the flights aren’t everyday and they can be expensive. Worth looking into and planning carefully before you go - there were rumours of a direct flight fro KL but this had yet to materialise.

where to stay

There are lots of options in Dili, we stayed at the Novo Turismo Resort & Spa - the closet Dili comes to having a 5 star hotel, it even has a swim up bar. However, it can be expensive as the local currency is US dollars. There are lots of other option in and around Dili so would suggest you shop around for the best deal.

On Atauro island we stayed at Atauro Dive Resort and would really recommend it. Run by a German expat, Volkar, it is really nicely laid out and well kept. The food is fantastic and they can even cater for vegetarians and vegans which is rare for southeast Asia and islands! Cannot speak highly enough of this resort and a fantastic dive centre with great staff as well.

who to dive with

There are lots of options for diving in and around Dili. We did a few dives with Compass Diving who are fantastic including one dive around Dili at Tasi Tolu and a day trip to Atauro Island. At Atauro island we dived with our resort, Atauro Dive Resort who were again fantastic.

costs

There is no denying it, a trip to Timor Leste and Atauro Island in particular will not be cheap, even if you stay in modest accommodation. This is due to the country using US dollars as their currency, however, it is worth making the trip the for the fantastic, untouched reefs at Atauro.