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Cruising Adventures! Snorkeling

The Wonders of North Maluku: A Snorkelling, Wildlife & Cultural Adventure

Ternate - Ternate - Example 13 Day Cruise aboard Katharina
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Embark on a 13-day cruise aboard the Katharina. Starting in Ternate, featuring snorkeling around vibrant coral reefs and volcanic landscapes. Visit limestone bays, waterfalls, and Makian Island's stunning volcanic views. On Halmahera, experience local culture and trek to a beautiful waterfall. Activities like paddleboarding, kayaking, and snorkeling continue, with chances to spot reef sharks. Bacan Island offers wildlife encounters with rare species, such as the Golden Birdwing butterfly and Wallace Standardwing Bird of Paradise, along with a visit to a Bajau "Sea Gypsy" village. Explore historical sites and Tidore Island, concluding in Ternate with a tour of its colonial landmarks.
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Highlights
  • Discover Makian Island, featuring breathtaking volcanic views and landscapes
  • Explore Halmahera’s local culture through guided village interactions and tours
  • Encounter rare wildlife species, like the Golden Birdwing butterfly
  • Discover Ternate’s colonial landmarks, including the Sultan's palace and fort
Places Visited
Activity Level: Variable
Activity options vary depending on destination and operator. Activity level is determined by the range and intensity of activities you choose to participate in. Discuss with your Trip Planner which options are best for you.
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Full Itinerary

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Day 1: Ternate | Embark

On the first day of your Moluccan adventure, your tour leader will pick you up from your hotel in Ternate and take you to the boat. After settling into your cabins and attending a safety briefing, the journey begins with a 90-minute cruise north, followed by your first snorkeling experience on a beautiful coral reef. Lunch will be served as the cruise continues northeast, passing Halmahera Island's jungle and volcanic landscapes on the right and the volcanoes of Ternate and Tidore on the left. After arriving in the evening, the boat will anchor in a peaceful spot for a quiet night.

Day 2: Ternate

After waking up near forested islets, the day begins with a relaxed breakfast. Then, take small boats to explore the bays, known for their limestone formations. A highlight of the day is visiting a waterfall that flows directly into the sea in a stunning, sheltered bay. There will also be a chance to snorkel at a nearby reef before having lunch on the boat. Later in the afternoon, a second snorkeling session is planned. As the sun sets, cocktails will be served on deck before the boat raises anchor for an overnight journey south to the next destination.

Day 3: Makian Island

Today's morning breakfast view will be dominated by volcanic peaks to the north and south of Makian island, bringing the Ring of Fire to the fore. Head out on the tenders to enjoy a good snorkeling session before returning to the boat for lunch as you raise anchor and cross east towards Halmahera Island. In the mid-afternoon, go ashore to the village of Bastiong on Halmahera, be welcomed by the friendly residents, and be guided through their fruit plantations and forests to a giant waterfall, where you can bathe in its cool, clear waters. On your way back, the villagers will likely get their musical instruments out and invite you all to sing and dance together. At sunset, head south, crossing the equator in the darkness,  to a small chain of islands and spend the night at anchor.

Day 4: Makian Island

Today is a day of play and adventure as you snorkel, paddleboard, kayak, and explore the beaches, reefs, and mangroves of two beautiful small island groups. If you are lucky, you can see white-tipped reef sharks as you swim among the rich, stunning coral gardens. At sunset, move the short distance south to the island of Bacan and spend the night at anchor in anticipation of some jungle exploration in search of iconic Indonesian species.

Day 5: Bacan Island

Beautiful rare and endemic wildlife awaits you today on Bacan as you see the Golden Birdwing butterfly, one of nature’s biggest and most beautiful specimens. You can also hope to see the stylishly quaffed Black-crested macaques and mohawk-sporting monkeys that live in the forests. This is the first of two chances to see them on this trip. You can also stop to see a copra processing plant and learn how the villagers live from their coconut plantations. Lunch on the boat, then head back to the island and visit a local hot spring in the afternoon to bathe in the thermal waters. After sunset cocktails and dinner, head east for an overnight crossing to a Bajau “Sea Gypsy” village.

Day 6: Dowaro

Wake up at the village of Dowaro, which is home to a large settlement of the famed Bajau ‘Sea Gypsy” people, who spend their entire lives living on, above, and near the water. Be welcomed into the community by the village head and shown around to see their way of life and how they live from the ocean. Expect many wonderful, smiling, and excited kids to accompany you as you move around the village – always a huge treat. After lunch on the boat, snorkeling on a local reef, and later in the afternoon, head west toward Bacan again, ready for more wildlife encounters.

Day 7: Labuha

Today calls for a very early wake-up and a quick breakfast as you go ashore in search of one of the trip's highlights, the Wallace Standardwing Bird of Paradise, which inhabits the deep forests in the interior. You can also have a second chance to see the Black-crested macaques as you return to the boat later in the morning. Later that morning, have a hearty breakfast on the boat and return to Labuha, the capital of Bacan and a vibrant fishing and trading port. Back on the boat for lunch, make the fascinating passage north through the narrow, island-filled channels that separate the heavily forested islands of Bacan and Kasuruta. At the head of the channel, stop on the white sand beach of an uninhabited island to snorkel, paddle, kayak, swim, and play. Sunset cocktails beckon at dusk before you make a short voyage to the north, where you spend a quiet night at anchor.

Day 8: Bacan Island

Go ashore and meet with the local people of a small fishing village to see how they live and enjoy a dance performance. After lunch on board, go by dingy to explore the river and mangroves north of the island to see the ruins of an old 17th-century fort. Later that afternoon, go snorkeling on a nearby coral reef.

Day 9: Bacan Island

Today is a day of pure play and relaxation as you spend time snorkeling, paddle boarding, and exploring the local islands, reefs, and beaches of this untouched part of Maluku. The area is pristine and relatively untouched. It is known for its white sandy beaches and crystal clear turquoise water, which are ideal for snorkeling and swimming, as well as its limestone formations and very picturesque setting. After sunset cocktails and dinner, make a short crossing north and spend a quiet night at anchor.

Day 10: Guraici Archipelago

The beautiful Guraici Archipelago awaits you today as you have another day of play and exploration. This is a chain of islands with white sandy beaches, vibrant coral reefs, and lovely local villages. Spend a full day here snorkeling, swimming, and beachcombing. The islands are part of a government-controlled conservation area designed to protect the reefs and the many beautiful marine species. You can also see manta rays often found in these waters.

Day 11: Crossing the Equator

Today is special as you cross the Equator in the daytime and partake in a centuries-old seafaring ritual for novices to celebrate their first crossing. The crew dress up in gaudy costumes, and you countdown to 'zero' on the GPS as you approach the Equator, and then, all swim in the sea with one leg in each hemisphere to celebrate. In the morning, go snorkeling on the reef of a small island, and then go ashore and visit the Equator monument. After lunch, explore the island's surroundings, and later in the afternoon, move to another location for a second snorkel of the day. Tonight, experience the glorious SeaTrek tradition of a beach BBQ and party under the stars with your crew.

Day 12: Tidore Island

Go ashore today at Tidore Island, an island dominated by a massive volcanic cone and, once, a rival sultanate to Ternate just across the bay. As you circle the island by car, visit a local blacksmith and an old Spanish fort. During lunch, head east to Halmahera and visit Dodinga Village, a seminal place in the history of science and the place where Victorian explorer and naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace first formulated the Theory of Evolution through Natural Selection, which was later published together with Charles Darwin. Later that afternoon, cruise north for a last snorkel on a colorful nearby reef.

Day 13: Ternate | Disembark

Today marks the end of your cruise adventure, but only after you take a short tour of the town of Ternate, the provincial capital. Once the world’s only source of cloves and highly contested by European powers, visit the Sultan’s palace, the market, and a 17th-century Dutch fort, a remnant of Indonesia’s colonial past. After lunch, say farewell to your crew before taking you to your hotel or the airport for the next leg of your journey.

Ship/Hotel

Katharina

Sail on board the Katharina
Katharina ship
Katharina

Dates & Prices

My Preferred Start Date

Per person starting at
$10,200 2-3 travelers
Katharina Cabin
Cabin Deck
Cabin Deck. Spacious, air-conditioned twin-share cabins with twin bunks or double beds. Private bathroom with toilet, washbasin, and hot shower.

Notes

- All rates are quoted in USD and represent cost per person, based on double occupancy.
- Cabins are available for single occupancy at 1.75 times the published rate.
Included
  • 12 Breakfasts, 11 Lunches, 11 Dinners
  • 12 Nights Accommodations
  • Accommodations as listed
  • Ground transportation as listed
  • Activities as listed
  • Meals as listed
  • Access to a 24-7 Emergency line while traveling
  • First aid kit containing all major medicines.
  • Use of sleeping bags for sleeping on deck.
  • Complimentary cotton backpack, luggage tag, fan, and stainless steel water bottle, which guests are encouraged to take home and keep.
  • Two pieces of laundry each day.
  • Beach BBQ with complimentary wine, beer, and selected cocktails
  • English-speaking SeaTrek tour leaders
  • Full board including all meals and soft drinks, tea, coffee, snacks. Starting and ending with lunch on first and last days.
  • All port fees
  • Welcome drink and cold towel upon boarding the boat on the first day and each time guests return from all off-boat excursions
  • Daily room cleaning
  • Towels and linens
  • Sunscreen lotion but do bring your own
  • Soaps, shampoo and conditioner
  • Selected wines with special farewell dinner
  • Use of on-board TV and multimedia facilities
  • Library of books, kids’ games and TV documentaries
  • Unlimited use of espresso machine
  • All park fees, cultural performances, local guides, and off-boat activities
  • Use of all facilities on board, including snorkeling gear, paddle boards, kayaks, board games
  • All transfers to and from the boats in ports
Excluded
  • Gratuities
  • Travel Insurance
  • Personal Expenses
  • Additional excursions during free time
  • Domestic Flights
  • Alcoholic drinks outside of special dinners and beach BBQ.
  • Fuel Surcharge - to be invoiced separately
  • Transit hotels

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