The Banda Islands consist of 11 groups of islands and are surrounded by a vast ocean.
Some islands have extraordinary underwater beauty, one of which is Lava Flow.
Lava Flow is one of the snorkelling spots in the Banda Islands that offers amazing marine life. The location of Lava Flow is to the north of Mount Api Banda, about 25 minutes from Banda Neira.
As the name implies, Lava Flow was created from the flow of an erupting volcano. At that time, the bottom of the waters of the diving spot was covered by lava.
“This place was formed from the eruption of the Banda Volcano in 1988, which at that time was covered by lava,” said Secretary of Nusantara Village Arifin Lakembe, who accompanied a group dive on the morning of Wednesday, 2nd November 2022.
At that time, all coral reefs were destroyed, but subsequently, the growth of coral reefs accelerated.
This area in Central Maluku has an underwater natural beauty that has been recognised by the international community. It is not surprising that many divers from all over the world deliberately come on vacation to the Banda Islands to enjoy the underwater world.
Preparation before diving
Tourists can choose to do snorkelling, diving, or try scuba in this area. The most basic difference between snorkelling and diving itself lies in the depth when ascending into the water.
Usually, snorkelling is done on the surface of the water with a depth of one to three metres, so one does not have to be able to swim to snorkel because you can use a buoy. Diving is usually carried out at a depth of more than 10 metres, with the help of air tubes and you must also master diving techniques and even have a licence.
Meanwhile, there is another option, namely scuba, a means to introduce the sport of diving to those who do not have a diving licence. The depth will also be adjusted and you will be accompanied by a special guide when diving.
Snorkelling costs around Rp200,000-300,000 per person, diving is Rp600,000-750,000 per person, and scuba is Rp1 million – which all include complete equipment such as masks, fins, air tubes, and other incidentals.
The beautiful underwater viewing experience
In this spot, tourists can see the extraordinary underwater beauty; in the sea, there is a coral reef garden that is a habitat for millions of colourful fish. Various natural biota such as hammerhead sharks, lionfish, and other fish can also be found in this area.
The coral reefs are large and almost cover the entire Lava Flow area which has a depth of approximately 27 metres, which has gone through a process of hardening lava for decades. Even though it doesn’t dive very deep, the coral reefs in this spot look magnificent.
Lava Flow is one of the extraordinary and unique dive sites in Banda Neira. Naturally, it is categorised as one of the iconic dive spots in Banda Neira and is sought after by many divers from all over the world to enjoy its beauty.