Arrival by plane
- Manado airport was modernised and extended in 2001, so planes can land after dark. In fact, Mandala has a flight from Jakarta landing at 8pm.
- There are flights to Ternate and Ambon as well, but they are not very reliable and depend a lot on the whether. Price for Manado-Ternate-Ambon was 947.000 Rp (12/98). Price for a return ticket to Jakarta is about 3.500.000 Rp (1/99).
- There are also 2 flights a week to Davao (Philippines), 1 with Bouraq costing 100 US$ one way and 1 with Philippine airways. (9/2002).
- There is one small tourist office and some touts hanging around. One of them took us to Tasik Ria Resort, 20 km south of Manado and we liked it very much.
- You can also go to Manado itself, about 17 km from the airport.
- Also have a look at the North Sulawesi page for accurate schedules and fares for planes leaving from Manado.
- Update 9/2002: Due to increased competition flights out of Manado are extremely cheap right now. Jakarta ow is just a justunder Rp. 1.000,000! There are also three weekly direct flights to Bali on Garuda now. (9/2002)
Arrival by road from Palu/Gorontalo - The road from Palu to Manado is in good condition (except for the first part from Tiboli to Tawaeli. There are guesthouses in Tinombo, Moutong and Marisa (close to Tanjung Panjang reserve, not Marisa close to Sidoan).
- There are several buses coming from Gorontalo. they take about 12 hours depending on the weather.
- You could also rent an AC car with driver for about 240.000 Rp (4/98). This trip will take about 7 to 8 hours.
- Coming from Tentena, the trip takes 2 days and will cost 1.000.000 Rp in a hired car with driver (8/98).
Going to the Philippines - You could go to the Philippines for a visa-run, or simply to visit the place. From Bitung (Sulawesi) you could hop on a cargo boat to the Philippines if you have a lot of time (55 US$), or else there are 2 flights a week with Bouraq.
- The cargo boat is not really reliable and was not in service in 2001.
Going to Tahuna/Sangihe and Ternate - Since 8/99, a new speedboat, the KM Osiana 2 has gone into service. For the moment, there are 3 trips a week to Tahuna/Sangihe (one directly, the other via Siau on Mon, Wed., Friday, return next day). The trip takes 4 hours instead of the usual 10 hours.
- There will also be a trip to Ternate once a week (info from Peter Blumtritt).
Accommodation
Manado We stayed at the excellent 4-star Tasik Ria Resort 20 km south of Manado. They have a tout at the airport who will bring you there for free. The owner mailed me to say his price is now 40-45 US$ for a poolview bungalow and 50-55 US$ for a seaview bungalow including bungalow (10/98). They all have AC and hot water. They have a great pool with poolside bar and a nice garden. There is a diving school run by a British couple, and there's a Danish instructor. The website of the diving school is at www.eco-divers.com. Price is 65 US$ for 2 dives and snorkeling is 25 US$ p.p. per day. The boattrip to Bunaken takes a bit more than 1 hour. Their restaurant is OK. They rent cars with driver for 25.000 Rp per hour. They have their own website, have a look for more details and reservation.
Next door is the Manado Beach Hotel. It used to be a good 4-star hotel, but it's now completely run-down and they have financial problems. Definitely not recommended at 300.000 Rp.
In Manado itself there's the 4-star Ritzy Hotel Manado (used to be Novotel). They have a marvellous swimming pool at the sixth floor open only for guests. If you can't afford to stay there, at least go there for dinner, it's not that expensive and the food is good. They also have their own website at http://www.ritzymanado.com .
Peter Blume told me the Minahasa hotel at Jl. Sam Ratulangi is one of the best midrange hotels in Manado nowadays. The front building is colonial style. In the back, away from the street and therefore quiet, there is a new building with garden and nice AC rooms. Price is 95.000 Rp (8/98).
Kawanua City is an old hotel with swimming pool, but not recommended for the tourist.
Manado Sahid is described as the top place in the LP guide, but forget all this, it is equally depressing as the Kawanua.
Barracuda diving resort is expensive at 420.000 Rp for the basic accomodation they have (5/98). The manager of this resort however sent me an e-mail saying his resort was upgraded: "All rooms are spacious, air-conditioned and equipped with satellite t.v, refrigerator, private exclusive bath/WC with hot and cold water, private reading corner and veranda with Manado's best views over Manado Bay. Prices start from RP 210.000 per night and include breakfast. In addition, our diving and snorkeling packages and other resort services are offered at very competitive rates." Other people however tell me the manager can be pretty aggressive in getting customers (5/2001). Also, they are the only diving center not contributing to the North Sulawesi Water Sports association which was put up for conservation of the park. So I would advise to avoid them (9/2002).
Bunaken
Of course, it's also possible to stay at Bunaken. There are some basic homestays, but be aware that they loose a lot of their charm when it rains a lot. There is a public boat going to Bunaken at 2 pm and returning at 8 am.
- Daniel's homestay is popular
- Froggies Divers also have their own homestay.
Recommended on Bunaken by many: the Two Fish Divers, www.twofishdivers.com. New, promising dive center to open very soon: www.livingcoloursdiving.com, also on Pangalisang and affiliated with Lorenso's. (2/2002)
Restaurants
Manado Novotel: very good and classy restaurant, worth it's price.
Xanadu: Chinese restaurant, food is OK but we didn't like the atmosphere: neon lights and live organ music.
Hill top restaurant: we didn't go there, but it's supposed to be good.
Things to do There is a tourist office where they can give you a guide to Tangkoko, if you want, but this is not really necessary..
The snorkeling is really superb, the best I've ever seen. You can also dive there. The diving center we were at looked pretty good (but we didn't actually dive), on Bunaken island Froggies Divers constantly got good reports. They have their own website.
You can also rent a boat from Manado for 70.000 Rp per day (asking price will be 150.000 Rp) (8/98).
Don't miss the Mahawu volcano. You can rent a car to Tomohon, the track starts a little bit north. It's a 30 minutes walk to the base, and then a 15 min. walk to the top. Even if it's cloudy on the way, it can be clear at the top. You can go around the crater in 30 min., but be careful. Latest info from august 98 is that both Mahawu and Lokon are rumbling, so check out whether it's safe to go there first! My contact at Tasik Ria told me there was no problem (9/98), and this was again confirmed by Peter Blume (11/98).
- There is accommodation in Tomohon. A basic place with good atmosphere for budget travellers is the Happy Flower Homestay. There's 1 bungalow with hot shower, the rest have shared showers. Staff is helpful and friendly. Price including breakfast is 20.000 to 35.000 Rp (9/98). They can arrange a tour (private car + driver) for 200.000 Rp a day, this is the usual price in Northern Sulawesi. They have their own website. However, it has gotten some negative reports from travellers lately (2/2002).
- Another option recommended by Felix Requejo (4/2001) is the Highland Resort which has just opened in Kinilow, Tomohon. Cosy wooden bungalows. Good location surrounded by fields and forest, friendly hospitable staff. And tasty food. Tel. (62) 431353888 e-mail
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. The owner of the place is Charlie Liem. I paid Rp.125.000 (USD12) for a standard room with double bed. About a dozen rooms in total, all have bathroom with hot water. Very clean. They have a good website at http://www.highlandresort.info/
It's also possible to climb Mount Lokon. The hike up is moderate in difficulty and will take 3 hours for the round trip. You don't really need a guide, go to Happy Flower Homestay and they will help you with it. The crater is not really at the top of the mountain. It erupted for the last time in 1991 on 1 side of the mountain.
There's a new buddhist temple in Tomohon which is worth a visit if you happen to pass in the neighbourhood (1/99).
We loved Tangkoko reserve very much, although we arrived too late and could only stay from 4 pm till 6.30 pm. We saw black macaques and the lovely Tarsier Spectrum. A guide will cost you 25.000 Rp, and he will bring you to a tree were the Tarsier lives. They come out around 6 pm. The road is really very rough, and I would strongly advise against going there by public transport. It's unreliable and extremely uncomfortable.
BE CAREFUL: I got 2 independent reports from travellers saying the guard of the park tried to cheat them by asking extra money. The first one had to pay 100.000 Rp, the second one 50.000 Rp for the camera and 150.000 Rp for the video. Argue and ask for a receipt (they will probably give you an officially looking letter). Report it to the Tourist Office, or to the head ranger Johnny who is running the Londa Linda Homestay with his wife. So to be sure, here are the official fees (10/98):
- Morning tour 25.000 Rp pp, minimum 2 persons in a group.
- Afternoon tour same price If you're alone, price is 35.000.
- Thanks for the info Peter (10/98).
- The latest reports (12/98) however say that this scam is over now, so relax and visit this great place.
- There's another new homestay now run by 1 of the rangers. It's Tarsius Homestay, near the entrance of the park. They charge 25.000 Rp per night including meals.
Tomohon market: it's OK, but go there early enough because we missed part of the action.
Japanese caves: nothing special
Danau Linau: We saw it and thought it was OK, but apparently we missed part of the action, because others say it's a marvellous spot. So here's their advice: when you get there by the small dirt road, go to the left for about 250 metres. You have steams and little hot water poles. Take some eggs, you can boil them. Then walk back and move further on along the road to the other side of the lake, uphill. From there you have a nice view over the lake with Mount Lokon behind (go in the morning, otherwise it'll be cloudy). You can walk further on to Lake Tondano, it's a 2 hours walk. Don't attempt to go around the lake to the barns on the other side, it might be dangerous. If you fall in the water, you can get burned.
North Sulawesi
Water Sports association This association has done lots of good things in the park, including financing daily and nightly patrols to stop the growing number of dynamite and cyanide fishers. About 30 of them were arrested and imprisoned in recent months, a "first" in Indonesia! It is recommended that divers only go with members of this association and not with the non-members who are mainly located on the Pangalisang side of Bunaken and constantly refuse to do their part in the reef protection or even involve damaging practics. More about this association at www.bunaken.info. |
