We took travelers off the beaten track throughout Indonesia, but especially to the islands east of Bali, such as Komodo. A few years later we carried out our first dive explorations, teaming up with naturalists and photographers such as Dr. Kal Müller, Burt Jones, Maurine Shimlock, Gerry Allen, Roger Steene, Wally Siagian, Mike Severns and David Pickel. Teamed with them we discovered some of Komod
o’s most exciting dive sites. Since 1990 the company became Grand Komodo Tours & Dives. Grand Komodo operate 5 + 1 boats built for liveaboard dive trips. Are all clean and cozy, with air conditioned cabins and ensuite bathroom, a dive platform, gear up stations, a dedicated camera table and rinse tank, and battery charging stations (both 110V and 220V). Once each diver’s outfit is rigged, the tank stays in place throughout the trip, being refilled in place. All the boats are sturdy Bugis-style wooden boats optimized for Indonesia’s waters. They include:
MV Raja Ampat Explorer, with 7 AC cabins for 14 passengers
MV TemuKira, with 6 AC cabins for 12
MV Tarata, with 6 AC cabins for 12
MV Putri Papua, with 4 AC cabins for 9
MV NusaTara, with 3 AC cabins for 6
MV Keti, our “honeymoon boat”, with 1 AC cabin for a couple or a family with one child. The boats’ home port locations mainly support Komodo or Raja Ampat trips. Our itineraries take adventurous divers to locales such as Komodo, Alor, WaKaToBi, Lembeh, Raja Ampat, Manokwari, Mapia, Triton Bay, Halmahera, and Banda. Many potentially exciting dive sites in Indonesia remain undiscovered, and Grand Komodo is steadily exploring and opening up new areas.