The 'Thousand Islands' region to the north of Jakarta holds several hundred (but not a thousand) small coral islands. Some have been designated as a marine park although this does not appear to be policed in any way. Some of the islands have been set up as hotel islands (similar to the Maldives in concept if not execution) and these have diving facitities such as guides/instructors, rental equipment and dive boats.
The diving is interesting provided you don't expect to see large pelagics. Due to the fairly extensive fishing that goes on to help support the large population of the region (including Jakarta) most big fish have been severely depleted. However, there are many interesting smaller creatures and some of the reefs are untouched and beautiful with hard and soft coral in abundance. Some examples of what you are likely to see on any dive would include turtles, cuttlefish, squid, octopus, many species of nudibranch, crocodilefish, lionfish, scorpionfish, small groupers, blue-spotted stingrays, anenomes with resident anenomefish, moray eels, and many species of colourful reef fish.
There are also a number of wrecks around the islands that are worth visiting - one such is a tugboat called the 'Poso' which lies upright and intact in about 30m of water.
Visibility can be variable due mainly to sediment run-off from the mainland of Java, but it is rarely less than 5m and is often over 20m. The weather is seasonal with a rainy season from around November to March (although the rain is generally in short but heavy storms). The temparature remains constantly fairly high at around 30C or more, and the sea temparature is constant at about 29 or 30 degrees.
The seas are relatively calm all year round as the islands are sheltered within a few large atols (again, similar to the Maldives). Accomodation is often quite basis on these islands, although some are quite modern and up-market. Some resort islands offer facilities such as tennis or swimming pools, but most of the activity is based in the sea - diving, snorkelling, etc.
Access to the islands is by large speedboat from Ancol Marina in Jakarta. It takes between an hour and ninety minutes to reach most of the resorts. Diving is then usually carried out from small speedboats, although there are also good housereefs to dive. Trips can be arranged directly with the islands or through one of the Jakarta-based dive shops (such as Kristal Klear Dive, Bubbles, or Aquasport). Weekends are usually relatively busy on the islands with expats and locals from Jakarta making the trip. However, weekdays are usually very quiet.
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