Bunaken Islands are surrounded by a fringing reef which is composed of a narrow reef shelf which then descends, sometimes vertically, to the external reef. Lagoons or patch reefs are rare.
All dives in Bunaken are done on the external reef, along the vertical walls. Most of them are drift dives. A mild current is almost always present (seldom extremely strong): usually the divers follow the current along the reef and the dive boat picks them up when they surface. Currents are not dangerous as they run parallel to the reef gently pushing the divers into one direction. Perfect conditions for a beautiful drift dive!
In Manado Bay and Lembeh Strait, many dives are on sandy bottom in calm water.
The main reason why diving this area is so attractive is the fact that you find
exceptional biodiversity on these reefs, with the number of animal and plant species higher than in
any other sea in the world. For more detailed information please refer to the pages
Books and
Biology.