Choose Your Activity
Choose Where You Sleep
- Derawan Dive Lodge
- Derawan Dive Resort
- Maratua Paradise Resort
- Nabucco Island Resort
- M/V Panunee
Indonesia Snorkeling

Choose where you sleep
- Derawan Dive Lodge
- Derawan Dive Resort
- Maratua Paradise Resort
- Nabucco Island Resort
- M/V Panunee
The Derawan Islands are located in the western part of the Celebes Sea (also known as the Sulawesi Sea or Laut Sulawesi) off the coast of East Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo. The archipelago of 31 islands includes Derawan, Kakaban, Maratua and Sangalaki, each of which boast unique dive sites that are truly world class.
In fact the Derawan islands are a biodiversity hotspot featuring 872 species of reef fish, 507 species of coral, along with 5 different giant clam species, 2 sea turtle species and coconut crabs. It is the largest turtle nesting site in Indonesia.
There are a small number of resorts now established, mostly on the island of Derawan, catering to divers and dive liveaboards occasionally visit from Northern Sulawesi to the east or the Malaysian state of Sabah to the north.
Difficult to get to, diving the Derawan Island remains a frontier location for determined divers looking for some of the most exhilarating diving in the world, including an extraordinary “jellyfish” lake packed with non-stinging jellyfish, and a manta cleaning station. The calm waters around Derawan, however, make it suitable for relatively novice divers too.
Derawan Dive Lodge
The Lodge is built from wood and located right at a white sandy private beach. There are only 10 rooms, all air-conditioned and furnished in a basic, but comfortable Balinese style. The rooms are all air-conditioned and furnished in a basic, but comfortable Balinese style.
It takes you exactly 10 seconds to go for a swim in crystal clear sea. Surrounded by shallow water you can meet and greet giant turtles, all around you, visiting the beach to find the perfect place to lay their eggs. Derawan is the home to green turtles and the management do work and support John, who is a turtle consultant employed by the WWF. John will be happy to inform anytime the turtles come up the beach to lay their eggs.
A barefoot walk on the long beach around the island is a must, but there are more secrets to discover on the other islands around Derawan. Or simply watch the world go by from your hammock under swaying palms.
The friendly staff is mainly from the island itself and happy to make your stay a once in a lifetime experience.
Cosy atmosphere meets ecology: the lodge had put in extra care by using septic tank as well energy saving amenities such as heat exchange water heaters and low watt air-conditioning.
The Lodge is not just built for divers. Its outstanding location also invites snorkelers as well as sun seekers.
Food & Beverages
The lodge provides a small outdoor restaurant, located halfway on the beach and above the water. The restaurant mainly serves Indonesian food - a lot of fresh fish - and the menu is completed by some European dishes.
The restaurant staff is a mixture of locals and Manadonese who will look after your culinary well-being with traditional Indonesian spices. They will be happy to serve your favourite Indonesian dishes on special request.
Be aware that Derawan is in the Muslim part of Indonesia and the meats are limited to fish, seafood, chicken and beef. No pork will be served due to respect to the staff.
Accommodation Rates:
Beach Chalet: Single: USD 80 / Double: USD 95
*All Rates Includes Breakfast, Govt. tax & service 21%
Round-trip airport transfer: USD 50/pax
Additional single bed:USD 30/pax, including Breakfast, Govt. tax & service 21%
Full-board option: USD 20/pax
Child Policy (Accommodation)
0-2 Free of charge
3-10 Free of charge if sharing bed with parents or USD 15 BB for extra bed
11+ Book extra bed (USD 30)
Derawan Dive Resort
Derawan Dive Resort has Twenty Seven Traditional Kalimantan style cottages:
16 standard cottages equipped with air-conditioning; private bathroom and toilet; one double spring bed and one single spring bed.
4 Deluxe rooms are equipped with air-conditioning; private bathroom; toilet and hot water; two double spring beds.
7 VIP cottages, each with 2 rooms equipped with air-conditioning; bathroom, toilet and hot water; 2 double spring beds; shared lounge room; TV; Audio; Kitchen; microwave and freezer.
The Floating Restaurant seats 75 guests and offers a superb sea view for a delicious "all you can eat" BBQ, or Chinese, European, Japanese and local menus.
The dive terrains at Derawan are varied-from walls and fringing reef to great caverns. Big green turtles (chelonia mydas), whitetip leopard and nurse sharks, schooling barracudas, napoleon wrasses, cuttle fish, Spanish mackerel, jacks and batfishes, and ornamental reef fishes hang out in record densities and diversity.
Not only it is possible to dive with turtles on most dives at Derawan, but they are also found coming on land every night to lay their eggs; hatchlings are often encountered just below the cottages and restaurant.
One favourite dive site, however, is just on the door step-beneath the pylons of 200 m long jetty where you can find some of the most mind-boggling and bizarre critters; luminous multi coloured dumpling squids, pairs of 3 ft (1 metre) crocodile fish, finger-sized purple sea horses and unidentified species of worms, tunicates and dwarf scorpion fish.
The Resort Dive Center is located on the beach, and is offer dive gear for rent. 3 Bauer air compressors are used for refilling dive tanks.
For underwater photographers, there is a camera room for setting up equipment and recharging. Four twin-engined dive boats - 2 medium with 85 HP engines and 2 larger boats with 115 HP engine - take divers to the dive sites.
Three twin-engined boats provide transfers to and from the mainland, 2 medium sized with 115 HP engines and 1 larger boat with a 200 HP engine.
General Info
-
Name : Derawan Resort - Destination : Indonesia
- Location : Celebes Sea off the east coast of East Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo. Access by boat from Berau or Tarakan.
- Seasons : year round
- Capacity : 54 (max. no. guests)
Room Facilities
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Room Types : single room cottages set amongst palm trees along sea front. Standard, deluxe, VIP & Family room. - Showers & toilets : en suite
- A/C : yes
- Hot Water : deluxe & VIP rooms only
- Entertainment :
- Electricity : Two big generators provide 24 hour electricity at 240 volt. 110 volt supply is also available at the camera room.
Safety
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Fire warning system : N/A - Fire extinguishers : N/A
- Fire escapes : N/A
Dive location & resources
- Dive location : Derawan Archipelago, including: Derawan, Kakaban, Sangalaki, Maratua, Nabucco Islands
- Dive facilities : Dive shop with rental dive gear, lockers, showers. 2 Mariner Bauer compressors, 50 K-valve dive tanks. 7 Divemasters.
Maratua Paradise Resort
The resort has both water bungalows and beach chalets, which are all very spacious and have private bathrooms and air-conditioning. From the beach chalets you can enjoy the beach while the water bungalows offer stunning views and relaxed balconies.
ACCOMMODATION
Beach Chalets: 8 units
- All chalets are attached with spacious private bathroom facilitated with shower screen and bathtub that comes with water heater.
- All chalets are spacious with either twin bed or double bed, equipped with modern lighting, fans, air conditioner and a mini bar.
- All the chalets come with a closet, working table and a dressing table with hair dryer as well as mosquito mate. The chalets have 220V outlets which can be used to charge batteries, camera's etc.
Water Villa: 8 units
- All villas are attached with spacious private bathroom facilitated with shower screen and bathtub that comes with water heater. From the bathtub of the water villa, one can enjoy taking a warm bath while glazing into the sunset open sea view.
- All villas are spacious with either twin bed or double bed, equipped with modern lighting, fans, air conditioner and a mini bar as well as private balcony with sun beds.
- All the rooms come with the closet, sofa set, working table and a dressing table with hair dryer as well as mosquito mate. The villas have 220V outlets which can be used to charge batteries, camera's etc.
Your stay at Maratua Paradise Resort will include all meals, water, tea and coffee, snacks, etc. Beer and soft drinks are not included in the price. All meals are being served in the restaurant, which is located above the house reef and next to the landing dock for the boats. And during the day you can use the sundeck to relax, work on your tan, have a drink or boast about your dives.
MAIN BUILDING & RESTAURANT
The spacious lobby has a sofa set and TV equipped with DVD player and audio sets. A small bookrack with novels, magazines and fish identity books are available for guests.
This is also where all the meals are served. Soft drinks, beers, mineral water, wines and souvenir T-shirts are sold here.
The management office is also located here. In the office there is a safe for all guests to store their valuable belongings.
GETTING THERE
Since Maratua is an island off the east-coast of Borneo, all guests will be transferred by speedboat. Normally the speedboat picks up guests in Berau, but in some cases (also depending on the weather) it is possible to do the transfer from Nunukan or Tarakan.
There are two options to get to Maratua
Option 1:
Fly to Balikpapan, Kalimantan from Singapore or Jakarta. Then connect with domestic flights to Berau. From Berau airport you will be transferred to the jetty to board the boat to the resort.
Domestic flight Balikpapan – Berau takes about 1 hour.
Boat transfer Berau – Maratua Paradise Resort takes about 3 hours.
Option 2:
Take a public ferry from Tawau, Malaysia to Tarakan and stay one night. The next day take a domestic flight from Tarakan to Berau and transfer to the jetty to board the boat to the resort.
Ferry from Tawau – Tarakan around 3 – 3 ½ hours ride.
Domestic flight from Tarakan – Berau with 1 stop at Tanjung Selor is around 45 minutes.
Boat transfer Berau – Maratua Paradise Resor takes about 3 hours.
SCHEDULED BOAT TRANSFER TO/FROM MARATUA:
- From Berau to Maratua resort is on Monday, Wednesday, Saturday.
- From Maratua to Berau is on Tuesday, Friday, Sunday.
*Minimum 2 divers staying for 7 days/6 nights and longer at the resort. There will be a surcharge for unscheduled boat transfer if you arrive/departs on different day.
Nabucco Island Resort
Beautifully situated off the east coast of Borneo in the Sulawesi Sea, Nabucco Island Resort offers eight double bungalows and one single bungalow, all in the traditional Indonesian style. Around the tiny island there are a few little beaches where visitors can swim and sunbathe during high tide.
During the construction of this little paradise, the natural vegetation was preserved so as not to disrupt the ecology and coconut crabs, monitor lizards, king fishers, flying foxes and many different other kinds of small lizards still inhabit the island.
The Rooms
Each spacious waterfront bungalow features a large roofed terrace with lazy chairs and direct access to the beach. Two of the bungalows are nestled in a tropical garden, surrounded by coconut trees and lush vegetation. All rooms have air conditioning or a fan, mini-bar, mosquito net, open bathroom with shower/WC, as well as hot and cold water.
Restaurant
The airy and roomy restaurant is constructed on stilts directly over the sea. While enjoying delicious meals, your eyes can feast on fantastic views of the Maratua Atoll. In the evening, the starry sky over the Sulawesi Sea is the perfect ambience to enjoy the freshly prepared five-course dinner. Breakfast and lunch are served "a la carte".
Nabucco Bar
The bar is situated on a small cliff, overlooking the sea. This is the perfect place to enjoy the sunset and the moonrise while having a cocktail with friends and other guests. The bar is equipped with a satellite TV and DVD player to watch the highlights of the day.
The M/V Panunee
Panunee Yacht is a 32-metre long, steel-hulled, vessel furnished to the highest standards, accommodating up to 20 divers in great comfort. She is managed by a professional crew and dive team with over 10 years operational experience.
Panunee's eight cabins and two suite rooms are located on the main and lower decks. Each has private bathroom, individually controlled air conditioning and plenty of storage space.
A wide sundeck, located in front of the wheelhouse, is furnished with padded sun beds where you can sit with a long, refreshing drink and soak up the sun.
Panunee's extensive dive deck allows offers plenty of space comfortable gearing up with individual storage and dressing areas. There are stations for 30 tanks and 5 rinse tanks for dive and photographic equipment. Dive entry is from a dive platform at the stern.
The Panunee dive team have at least 10 years of experience and are familiar with dealing with the needs of photographers and videographers.
The “Andaman room” is a multimedia room & library, equipped with multi-system video, DVD player and slide projector, offering additional resources for the keen underwater photographer.
Accommodation
All staterooms are fitted with queen-size or twin beds and daily cleaned. There are full facilities such as individual air-conditioners, wardrobes, reading lights, wide storage space, and pipe-in music.
Suites:
2 Suite staterooms are fitted with a queen-size beds, en-suited toilets with hot showers, individually controlled air-conditioning, wardrobes, mirrors, working desks, reading lights, wide storage space and piped-in music.
Deluxe Cabins
7 Deluxe staterooms are fitted with twin beds and individual air-conditioners, wardrobes, mirrors, reading Lights, wide storage space, panoramic windows and piped-in music.
Studios:
2 Studio staterooms are specially designed for underwater photographers/ videographers. Twin beds can be lifted up to equip housings conveniently. Electric sockets are provided for battery charging, plus a blow gun is supplied to clean and dry housings.
Technical specifications
Panunee Yacht
Length: 32.0 M
Breath: 7.2 M
Draft (Design): 3.50 M
Maximum Speed: 18 Knots
Maximum Passenger: 20
Crew Members: 10
Water Supply: Water Tank = 15,000 Litres
Desalination machine = 4,000 litres/day:
Voltage: 380 / 220 / 110 V, 50hz, 12v DC
A/C - Individual control in all staterooms and common area
Video & Audio: 42-inch Samsung Plasma screen, DVD player and slide projector in Andaman room (multi-media room & library) 29-inch television & DVD player in Similan room (Dining room)
Engine
Main: Twin Man D2842 LE 760 Hp 2300 RPM MARINE
Gear Box: ZF IRM 350 A Ratio 2636 : 1
Generator: Twin Man D2866 LE 100 kw 380 V (3 phase, 50 Hz)
AC Generator: Stamford
Navigation
Radar: Furuno FR-1942 64 NM range, 6 KW
GPS: Furuno color video plotter model GP-1650
Sounder: Furuno video sounder model FCV-291, 10-inch color CRT
Communications
VHF: Furuno Radio telephone FM-2710 (25 w)
H.F.: Super Star SS-2400 MK II
SSB: Kenwood
Satellite Telephone: Mini-M Telephone
Safety
Life Raft: Two x 12-persons automatic inflate
PFDs: 40 x Type - I commercial life vests
E.P.I.R.Bs: 406 MHz Category 1 automatically deployable
Fire Extinguishing System: In engine room and common areas
Oxygen: Two DAN portable and two DAN stationary
First aid: Comprehensive first aid kits available on board
Emergency Power: Lighting, ship communication and navigation system
General liabilities & personal accident Insurance
Diving Equipment
Diving Support Boat: Two x 4.3 metre R.I.B. with 40 HP Yamaha outboard
Air Compressor: Three x electric bauers mariner M II E, 4500-psi, Air bank storage system with 5 fill hoses
Scuba Tanks: 30 (80) cu.ft., 2 (65) cu.ft. Aluminum with K-value yoke
Weights: Belt and 2-lb. Lead weight - plenty for everyone
Diving Gear: Meres - available for rent on board upon request