Rare Species, Remote Cultures & Remarkable Corals

You visit Dodinga Village, the historic site where naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace developed the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection. Next, you explore the Guraici Archipelago, a government-protected conservation area featuring white sandy beaches and vibrant coral reefs. Here, you spend time snorkeling, swimming, and meeting locals in an island village. These protected waters offer a chance to spot manta rays and provide an ideal environment for beginner or out-of-practice snorkelers to build confidence for the days ahead.

Explore the deep forest and rivers of Bacan Island, where Wallace first saw what he called ‘the most beautiful butterfly in the world, the Golden Birdwing. During your trek, the other species that you might see here include cuscus, hornbills, and other birds, and maybe even an encounter with the black-crested macaque. Snorkel on some spectacular coral reefs and visit a local hot spring where you're encouraged to take a warm dip. Visit Balang Belang Island, which offers fantastic snorkeling both on the reefs and the mangroves, which act as a nursery to many marine species, including baby sharks and many kinds of school fish. You will explore the huge inland lagoon, which you can explore from the boat's tender. The island is home to healthy populations of birds including parrots, tree swift, imperial pigeon, and many more.

Time for snorkeling, culture, and history as you find yourself in the middle of the Banda Sea in the remote and breathtaking Sulu Archipelago, where the reefs are teeming with fish and other marine life. True to the desert island locales, you will also kayak, paddle, swim, explore, and relax on the white-sand beaches. Visit a local village market and see the ruins of a 17th-century Dutch fort, which once protected the spice trade along these routes. You will be treated to a traditional dance known as the ‘cakalale’, by local warriors. You will also have a chance to explore the local village and meet the people of this remote region. Enjoy a beach BBQ for you, and they will regale you with traditional Indonesian folk songs and sea shanties as you party by firelight late into the night.

The Bokan Islands are an area of unsurpassed beauty, and today will be a day of marine exploration and relaxation. You also have the rare privilege to swim in a small marine lake filled with stingless jellyfish, one of only 20 lakes of its kind in the world. You will visit the bustling Indonesian island port town of Banggai, where you will visit the local market, the sultan’s palace, and the Maleo bird egg ‘museum’, and all from your fleet of brightly-colored motor rickshaws, which will be on the dock awaiting your arrival. You will pay a hands-on visit to LINI, an NGO doing great work with coral restoration on the surrounding reefs, in addition to working with local fishermen in finding sustainable solutions for supplying fish for overseas markets and the live aquarium fishing trade.

Today you will have the chance to see possibly one of the strangest and most unique flightless birds found in the world - the Maleo. You visit a conservation project on the mainland where scores of Maleo live and breed. Entering in twos, you can watch them at their sandy nesting sites from a camouflaged hide as they go about their business. You visit the Togean Islands National Park for some island hopping and spectacular snorkeling, wildlife, and culture. - Today will be your first encounter with the Bajau sea gypsies of Southeast Asia and their famous patriarch ‘Jago’, a people with a unique way of living with the sea. About 2,500 people live in this small village, and you will be welcomed into their world to meet and talk with them about their lives.

Some great wildlife experiences await both in the water and the air, with birds, fish, Babirusa (Indonesia’s rare native pig), and invertebrates as the main features. You will enjoy a snorkel on the lush reefs near the island of Malenge, before taking your snorkels and masks for a rare second swim with stingless jellyfish. You will visit a local village and meet the people, and enjoy a late afternoon walk in the forest before being witness to a most amazing show of nature as flocks of hornbills come flying in to roost in the trees – a once-in-a-lifetime sight only accessible with SeaTrek.

After an overnight crossing from Togean, you have an early morning swim with whale sharks that congregate just off the coast at a small village in the North Sulawesi. Swimming with these gentle giants is one of life’s highlights and is not to be missed. Visit Tangkoko National Park for a trek through the forest, a haven for many rare and endemic wildlife species, including spectral tarsiers, black-crested macaque, cuscus, and a wide variety of birds. This is where Wallace did a lot of his collecting, and you will visit a statue that celebrates this great man.

After a final swim and snorkel on the beach and then a short sail into Bitung Harbor, you will say a fond farewell to your crew and tour leaders and head to Manado City for your onward flights.