Calico Jack Itinerary

Triton Bay - Raja Ampat

Day 1: Embarkation in Kaimana, Triton Bay | 1 check dive

We will pick you up from the hotel in Kaimana and take you to the harbour, where our crew will welcome you onboard Calico Jack. Following refreshments and a short tour of the ship, you will be briefed on safety, diving operations, and life onboard. You will be served a delicious lunch and have time to get acquainted with the ship, set up your dive gear & cameras, and meet and socialise with the other guests and friendly crew. We will do a check dive in the area later in the afternoon.

Days 2-3: Triton Bay | 6 dives

This still relatively unknown destination is full of treasures and fast becoming legendary for its beautiful soft corals, huge schools of fish, and migrating whale sharks. The area has been protected since 2008, allowing fish stocks to recover from overfishing. Devoid of humans, the healthy, unbleached reefs have practically no garbage floating around. When not diving the fishy sites, there is fantastic macro diving. Big, fat candy crabs and other species of decorator crabs can be spotted even by the less trained eye. All five species of pygmy seahorse can be found with solid predictability. The following is a little taste of what to expect from some of the dive sites in the area.

Four hours from Kaimana, we visit the head of the village for permission to swim with the local whale sharks. This is one of the only places in the world where you can encounter whale sharks all year round. The whale sharks are attracted to the local fishing platforms (bagans) because the fishermen feed them as they believe they bring good luck.

Larry’s heaven is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful places ever and has been given its name by the late Larry Smith. The colours and sheer diversity are truly mind-blowing experiences. Fields of soft coral, thick forests of black coral, sea fans, and hard corals dominate the reef. Fish, fish, and fish are everywhere, all kinds and all sizes, true underwater heaven.

Aiduma is an island outside of the mouth of Triton Bay. Every inch is occupied by some invertebrate and an abundance of soft and hard corals. Large numbers of jacks, mackerel's patrol these waters. Large groups and tasselled wobbegongs also call this dive site home.

Little Komodo resembles the famous invertebrate-rich sites that abound in Southern Komodo National Park and is one of the top dive sites in all of West Papua! A series of boulders about 14m high, covered in diminutive orange soft corals, schools of sweetlips in black coral and waves of anthias and damselfish on steroids, nearly break the surface.

While in Triton Bay, we will enjoy one of Calico Jack’s famous beach BBQ parties, where the crew will entertain and socialise with you as you relax on our giant bean bags under a pagoda while being served up our chef’s delicious BBQ dinner.

Day 4: Namatote | 3 dives

Five-hour navigation from Triton Bay is the islands of Namatote and Sagin. Rich with diverse fish life and beautiful hard and soft corals, these islands are great for macro and pelagic species. Soft coral walls teaming with schools of jacks and barracuda, turtles, wonderous octopus, and all kinds of critters make it great div-ing for both wide-angle and macro enthusiasts. We will manage three dives in this area. Early morning navigation to Momon.

Day 5: Momon | 3 dives

Early in the morning, we arrive in West Papua’s Momon reef, where we will make three dives on this large hard coral seamount, which is blessed with some of the healthiest fish life in the area. Large schools of Bigeye Trevally, schools of batfish, napoleon wrasse, Barracuda, and Giant Trevally reside here. Afternoon we will visit the beautiful Kita Kita waterfalls where a freshwater river runs right straight into the sea! Early morning navigation to Pulau Pisang.

Day 6: Pulau Pisang | 3 dives

Seventy miles south of Misool is the beautiful Pisang archipelago, where we'll dive off the surrounding islands. The corals are incredibly healthy and full of life in this remote area. You'll see giant elephant ears and swirling schools of a wide variety of fish, mantas, and turtles.

Day 7: Wayilbatan, Misool | 4 dives

The Wayilbatan area offers impressive dive sites with a remarkable range of marine diversity and topography. At Wedding Cake, schools of batfish, trevallies, barracuda, and pygmy seahorses congregate. In the afternoon, you can take in scenic landscapes with some kayaking and paddle boarding amongst the most spectacular hidden lagoons in the region. Four Kings dive site is made up of four underwater pinnacles covered in soft coral and colourful tunicates. You can swim from one rock to the next, enjoying the soft corals, psychedelic colours, and abundant fish life. Be sure to look out for turtles here.

Day 8: Warokaraket, Misool | 4 dives

Shadow Reef, also known as Magic Mountain, is one of the top-rated diving sites in Raja Ampat. An off-shore pinnacle with a long and narrow ridge, schools of bannerfish, pyramid butterfly, and yellow snappers can be seen cavorting on top of the ridge, persistently stalked by giant trevallies, orange-spotted jacks & longnose emperors. The ridge goes progressively down, with yellowtail barracuda patrolling the upper sector and white tip and grey reef sharks found nestled under the large coral tables. At the end of the peninsular is a cleaning station where oceanic manta rays come to be cleaned from parasites by wrasse and other reef fish.

Boo Rock or Jamur Boo is known for the ‘windows’ or rounded openings on the end of the largest rock that completely pierce the reef from the surface down to five metres deep. Although the two rocks appear separate from the surface, they are, in fact, connected underwater by a magnificent reef draped in such corals and brimming with fish. Reef sharks, parrotfish, surgeonfish, schooling batfish, fusiliers, snappers, and moray eels are all found here, as well as a wide variety of nudibranchs, unicornfish, octopus and green turtles. Yellit Kecil’s (while sharing all of the attributes of its neighbouring sites) main characteristic is a large number of Nembrotha nudibranchs that can be observed on the ridge.

Day 9: Yilliet, Misool | 3 dives

In the early morning, we will take short navigation to dive into the Fiabacet area, where colourful corals and beautiful sea fans smother the reefs. A deep underwater ridge connects the islands of Boo in the East to Kalig in the West. In certain areas, the ridge moves up shallower to form the most unforgettable dive sites in the park. These include Batu Kecil (also known as Tank Rock), Nudi Rock, and Whale Rock. Here you will find one of the most extensive reef systems in all of Raja Ampat, offering a fantastic range of marine diversity. You can expect to see abundant and healthy fish life, a galore of pygmy seahorses, nudibranchs, colourful anemones, and reef sharks.

Day 10: Daram, Misool | 3 dives

Andiamo is a large, stunning reef with a submerged pinnacle covered in sea fans and surrounded by schools of fusiliers and batfish. Blacktip reef sharks and napoleon wrasse can also be found here. Candy Store, named as the first divers to explore this reef felt like kids in a candy store, is covered in giant sponges, beautiful corals and sea fans. In the valleys, schools of fusiliers, butterflyfish, and barracuda gather.

Day 11: Balbulol - No Contest, Love Potion | 2 dives

Schools of platax, snapper, and bump head parrotfish can be found at these dive sites, including barracudas and jacks surrounding the pinnacles. You will spend the afternoon in the hidden lagoon, a special anchorage inside a narrow bay enclosed by towering rocks. We will take the dinghies to explore another lagoon located further into the rocks. As night falls, you will see and hear the magnificent Palm Cockatoos roosting along the rainforest edges. Late in the afternoon, we will depart North and set sail for an overnight cruise back to Sorong, a navigation of approximately 12 hours.

Day 12: Disembarkation in Sorong

After breakfast and the last exchange of photos and memories, the crew and Calico Jack will say our fondest farewells and transport you either to your hotel or airport.

Sample itineraries are for guidance only. Actual itineraries may differ slightly due to factors such as weather, wildlife, logistics, and local regulations.