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Ambon
Ambon ist the capital and largest city of the Indonesian province of Maluku. It lies on an elongated 23 km long bay with high hills on both sides. The bay is deep reaching 563 metres of maximum depth.
Located in the far east of Indonesia close to West Papua, Ambon, with a population of 350’000, contains a busy seaport and is the economic center for the area. There are daily direct flights from and to Jakarta.
The Moluccas were known as the Spice Islands because of nutmeg, mace, and cloves that were originally only found there.
There are countless dives sites both within the Ambon bay and around the island. Many Liveaboards stop at Ambon in September/October and March/April.
Reef diving is available but most divers visit the area for muck diving in Ambon bay. The choice of rustic dive resorts is limited, so book ahead of time. It appears to be an underrrated diving destination as it offers top rated muck diving with an abundance of rare and exotic critters.
Dive resorts are open from September to May. I have been told that the best time to visit is from September to December.
Ambon bay is quite polluted so be prepared to frequently spot copious amounts of plastic floating on the surface as well as debris in the water column and on the ground. Diving is done in pebbles, sand and occasionally a piece of coral. Depending on the level of current and the nature of the ground visibility can drop substantially.
