By Salah Teman · 5 August 2026
Indonesia does not have one dive season. It has several, in different places, and a liveaboard follows them. Understanding which destination is open when is the first decision, before boat or itinerary.
Komodo National Park
June to September. Port: Labuan Bajo (LBJ). Dry season, calm seas, warm water and consistent sunshine. Komodo dragons, strong drift diving, coral gardens and the pink beaches. Water 26–30°C in the north, 24–26°C in the south.
Raja Ampat, West Papua
November to April. Port: Sorong (SOQ). Mantas, the world’s highest recorded reef fish diversity, and the healthiest hard coral in the region. Water 27–30°C, warm and stable.
Banda Sea and the Ring of Fire
September to November. Ports: Ambon (AMQ) and Kaimana (KNG). Schooling fish, whale migrations, coral walls, active volcanoes and cultural landings. Cooler below the thermocline. This is the crossing season, between the two main destinations.
Alor and Flores
June to October. Ports: Labuan Bajo (LBJ), Alor (ARD) and Maumere (MOF).
Sumbawa
June to September. Ports: Sumbawa (SWQ) and Labuan Bajo (LBJ).
How to choose
If your dates are fixed, the season chooses the destination for you. If your destination is fixed, book inside its window rather than at the edges — shoulder weeks exist but conditions are less reliable. And if you are flexible, the crossings in September to November are the ones experienced divers ask for, because the Banda Sea sees far fewer boats than either Komodo or Raja Ampat.
About the boat
The KLM Teman is a 36-metre Indonesian phinisi carrying 12 guests in 5 ensuite cabins with a crew of 10 and a Cruise Director. See our full FAQ for booking and onboard detail.
Salah writes for Teman Liveaboard, the owner-operator of the KLM Teman. The Teman is a 36-metre Indonesian phinisi, handbuilt in Sulawesi and launched in 2017, carrying 12 guests in 5 ensuite cabins with a permanent crew of 10 and a Cruise Director. The team behind her has more than 20 years sailing the Indonesian archipelago. The boat works Komodo National Park from June to September out of Labuan Bajo, Raja Ampat from November to April out of Sorong, and runs Banda Sea and Ring of Fire crossings between the two seasons. The dive site guides on this blog are written from the operator's own logs and itineraries, with conditions, seasons and equipment guidance checked against the dive team who work these sites every week. Where a detail depends on the day — depth on a given tide, or where a current will take you — we say so rather than guess, because that is a briefing the Cruise Director gives on the boat, not something a web page can promise.
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About the author
Salah Teman — Salah writes for Teman Liveaboard, the owner-operator of the KLM Teman. The Teman is a 36-metre Indonesian phinisi, handbuilt in Sulawesi and launched in 2017, carrying 12 guests in 5 ensuite cabins with a permanent crew of 10 and a Cruise Director. The team behind her has more than 20 years sailing the Indonesian archipelago. The boat works Komodo National Park from June to September out of Labuan Bajo, Raja Ampat from November to April out of Sorong, and runs Banda Sea and Ring of Fire crossings between the two seasons. The dive site guides on this blog are written from the operator's own logs and itineraries, with conditions, seasons and equipment guidance checked against the dive team who work these sites every week. Where a detail depends on the day — depth on a given tide, or where a current will take you — we say so rather than guess, because that is a briefing the Cruise Director gives on the boat, not something a web page can promise.
