Alor Diving: What if Lembeh had a Raja?

The Lembeh Strait and Raja Ampat in Indonesia - two regions that are undoubtedly well known for their stunning underwater beauty, especially to the avid underwater photographer and ocean lover in general. And two regions that we have extensively covered here on the Underwater Photography Guide in the past, with articles, tutorials and of course also in the form of photo workshops (check out our Lembeh September workshop led by Erik Lukas!) So you have heard of both, read of both, perhaps even already dived both. And you are most likely familiar with the fact that Lembeh is known for its critters, while Raja Ampat offers big stuff and arguably the most stunning coral reefs you can find. 

Macro or Wide

Obviously you can also encounter the tiny and the weird in Raja Ampat, and the Lembeh Strait has some dive sites with surprisingly stunning coral. However, usually as a photographer, you would focus on shooting macro in one location and wide angle in the other. With perhaps a day or two, when you switch out your lenses and ports, to add diversity to your trip’s portfolio. But generally you center your work around what the respective region is famous for. After all, Lembeh is the macro diving capital of the world and Raja’s tropical aquarium is literally asking for you to shoot wide angle reef scenes. Can’t have it both. Or can you?

Enter: Alor

Alor, what? If you have never heard of Alor before, don’t worry! Many divers and photographers, even the very experienced ones, haven’t either. Not yet. Alor, part of Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara province, is one of these until now very little known regions, where diving still feels like true exploration and is considered a secret among underwater photographers. There are a mere 7 operators around on an island that is almost half the size of Bali with its countless dive centers - which means most of the time you will have the dive sites completely for yourself (no unwanted bubbles in your shots!). And these dive sites really bring the best of both worlds, macro and wide angle, to the scuba menu.

Alor’s Pantar Strait - that’s the channel formed by Alor itself and the neighbouring island of Pantar with Pura Island at its center - has some of the best coral reefs you can find anywhere in Indonesia and are definitely on par with the ones in Raja. This is mainly thanks to some heavy currents pumping through said channel, pushing nutrient rich waters from the depths to the shallows, making the reefs thrive. In Alor’s Kalabahi Bay however, the water is much calmer and protected. Therefore the explorable sites are of a mucky kind. Looking at the map you’ll notice how narrow the bay is - it’s pretty much like the Lembeh Strait, but with just one “opening”.