Reviews

Tim (US) has just returned from our Komodo 2019 adventure.

'I just wanted to send you a special note of appreciation for our incredible experience which would not have been possible without Crystal, you are so fortunate to have her on your staff!!

From the day we landed Crystal's form of positive energy, sense of humor and subtle caring and support made this trip by far and away my most enjoyable experience , perhaps in my life.By allowing me to do what I was capable of without pandring or coaxing and always with that infectious smile, as well as not pushing when I needed to come in early or take a session off was exceptional. She also laughed at my jokes!!!

Thank you so much for a most enjoyable experience'.

Thank you to Paulanne (US) who had this to say:

'This was my first trip to Indonesia. I've snorkeled in the the Caribbean, Galapagos, off San Diego, and Hawaii. Indonesia is stunning by comparison.

This trip was led by the most wonderful people, Ben Stokes and Bernita Lewin, both experienced in diving in Indonesia, who picked beautiful spots for us on the recent trip to Alor and Komodo.

Three+ snorkels per day, different reefs every trip left us wanting more, and the chance to go back to ones we'd visited. House reefs in both resorts were indeed stunning as claimed. Their thoughtfulness in selection of accommodations, transfers is commendable: both resorts, in terms of rooms, food, and services were excellent: featuring outdoor bathrooms, and closed, air-conditioned comfortable bedrooms for sleeping.

Alor: food was excellent, family style, fresh, and Komodo menu selections all very tasty and fresh. Our inter-island flights went smoothly, despite last minute changes by the airlines.

Boats for snorkeling used in both resorts were excellent, with in and out access affected mostly by conditions of wind and current..which were carefully monitored by team leaders, all of whom were locals, who knew the areas well, and who assisted with identifying unusual coral, animals, and helped with our underwater cameras and picture taking. Alami Alor even featured a 'dry room,' for photographers, and both resort boats offered clean, clear water for de-salt soaks for our cameras.

I almost hesitate to share how wonderful this trip was, in every way, because they are small (14 in our group) and fill early. Treat yourself to a trip of your lifetime..you will be amazed at the diversity of life in the reefs, as led by such a thoughtful group of people'.

Mr and Mrs M (AUS) have just travelled with us to Indonesia. Here is what they have to say:

'Jill and I have just returned from Alor and Komodo last Sunday we had a fabulous trip and can only speak so highly of the places and people. Plus the enormous effort that Alex did caring and ensuring everyone was safe and well. You have a great asset in this young man. We are recommending your Company to other Aussie snorkeling friends and reviewing other trips especially to Raja Ampat.'

Many thanks to them.

Anna C (US):

'Our whole Indonesia experience was fabulous! It included 6 nights in Ubud, where we did several one day trips which organized by Wakatobi/Bali, a week in Wakatobi, and two final nights in Jimbarin. Thank you for recommending Jimbarin to us. We loved our hotel, the Belmond, there on the beach.

The whole Wakatobi experience was marvelous. What a great resort. They took care of us well, and it really was luxury in paradise. Alex did a good job, although the Wakatobi staff is pretty much in charge there on the island, as well as at the airport. The dive guides and boat experience was exceptional. Some of us had ant problems in our bungalows, but the bungalows themselves were well thought out and comfortable. Meals were a highlight, both in setting and variety of foods, along with all the special orders we could request'.

Stuart and Kay H (US):

'The trip was fantastic and would definitely highly recommend it. We are not on Facebook but will be happy to share our photos on Google drive.

Duxy was really great - he managed us all very well and gave lots of great advice on photography and identifying the marine life. The tour was very well organized and we appreciated being in a small group. The accommodation was also excellent. The mix of snorkelling and culture was very balanced and the snorkelling sites were excellent. Would have loved to spend an exra day in Ubud as we arrived there late at night and had to leave 6 am next day to catch our flight to Labuan Baja.

We have a holiday organized next year but will be very interested in future trips with you.'

Sarah (UK):

'Maggie - It all seems so much longer ago than 2 weeks since we were enjoying the sun and the warm waters of Indonesia when back in the cold and wet of a UK winter. I would like to thank you again for making a lovely holiday so fantastic, and partially thanks to you, I have some nice piccies to remind me of the trip. You were great company and I really appreciate how hard you worked for us all.

I will certainly go on another holiday with Snorkel Venture in the future, and it would be the icing on the cake if you were the leader again - I can't imagine a better one.

many thanks and best wishes'.

Jane from the US summarised her trip with us beautifully:

'We had the MOST INCREDIBLE holiday.
There was not one single aspect of it that was anything less than perfect.

Snorkel Venture made our holiday what it was, superb.

I want to say a massive thank you to you for all your help and suggestions with itinerary, destination suggestions and hotel recommendations.
Your customer service is wonderful.
I would never have been able to organise things as well as you did.

Siladen was an absolute gem of a place. we had a ball there. Our every whim was taken care of.
Laura was able to fulfil several of her bucket list dreams, seeing dolphins,watching hatching and releasing of baby turtles. Swimming with turtles and swimming with eagle rays!

It was a dream destination, and all thanks to you.
Our hotel on the way out was also bang on the money, another one of your suggestions.

Then there was Sumatra!

OMG, you said it was a more authentic orang-utan experience, and oh boy was it.
There are no words to describe how blown away we were. How about magical!
We had a wonderful guide who took us totally off road. Fortunately im fairly fit cos it was pretty hard core trekking!! The orangutang encounters were breathtaking.

Singapore on the way home was a blast.
I would highly recommend the hotel "Yotel" on Orchard road. An unbeatable location and incredible value for money I thought.

So, I just want to say "thank you" for helping me make precious memories for Laura's 21st birthday.

You did an outstanding job and I would recommend Snorkel Venture in a heartbeat.

I would not hesitate in using you again, not sure if the budget could be quite so extravagant next time !!!

I hope your business is withstanding the Brexit rubbish and you continue to be successful as you so deserve to do well'.

Kind words from Peter (UK) who has this to say:

'Trip of a life time! We decided to venture over to Bali for our honeymoon, and the DSA team blew us away with such an incredible trip. After a couple of conversations where we discussed what kind of holiday we would like and things we enjoyed doing, they absolutely nailed it. Organising and planning everything, from our stunning accommodation to the transfers in between. The locations Ben and Charlie chose were very varied, offering a wonderful insight into the Balinese culture, beautiful scenery, kind people, and awesome wildlife. Each location was equally as luxurious as the next, and the service provided throughout by the team at home and the local partners were just fantastic. It was a trip full of adventure, rest, culture, delicious food and hand crafted wooden artefacts!

We initially stayed in the DeKlumpu resort, which was a fantastic immersion into Balineese culture with some fantastic local massages and trips run by Rocky. He ran great mountain biking trips, coffee tours and a traditional cooking class. We then headed to Permuteran and stayed at the luxurious and very restful Menjangan safari resort where we enjoyed fantastic snorkelling and beautiful pool side views, certainly giving us time to rest and enjoy the facilities. From there we headed on to Ubud for a bit of local craft, waterfalls and rice fields. Our final stretch took us to Java and a three day temple tour, highlighted by our stay at Plantaran Borobudur Resort and Spa, where we enjoyed watching the sunrise over Borobudur, one of the wonders of the world.

We couldn’t recommend going with these guys higher. Such fantastic customer service, expert knowledge and recommendations in creating a great experience both in prep and trip'.

Kay and Stuart (US):

'Sorry to hear of your infection and hope you are fully recovered. We managed to stay healthy and the week at Candidasa allowed us to totally relax. It was a great trip and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The group was small enough that we were able to function as one group, rather than several groups. I have been going through some photos and videos and there are some very good ones. I have managed to extract single frames from the 4k video and these are around 8MB. Markus got some great footage of the 3 mantas using the Sony 4k video which I can share when I figure out how!

Both Kay and I thought you did a fantastic job in guiding us. Not just the day to day stuff, but socially interacting, giving us pointers on photo techniques, helping us see things we would have missed and helping identify some of the fish we happened to photograph. As this was our first guided tour, we approached it with a little apprehension not knowing what to expect and thinking the other group members were going to be much younger and fitter and with more experience. We felt confident after a couple of days that we fit in well and held our own. Yourself and the boat crew, especially at Komodo Resort, helped the inexperienced, gave them confidence and am sure made their trip so special. While I cannot speak for the rest, I feel confident from discussions that you were the catalyst that made the trip special.

You started out as a guide but ended up being a true friend.

Both Kay and I wish to thank you so much, and again the door is open to you if you ever get to Australia. We would love to show you around.

Please use any comments on your social media that can assist.

Best wishes Kay and Stuart

Ps We haven't received any feedback requests from Ben as yet. However, we felt the tour was spot on. It had the right mix of culture, tripping and snorkeling. The places we visited were special, especially De Klumpu. It was a pity we couldn't see more of Ubud... maybe the trip in future should be 15 days instead of 14. The food and accommodation was first class. The only thing I would change is the snorkeling duration at Menjengan Island reducing the 90 minute snorkeling time to one hour. Same as what we did from the Komodo Resort. Have three one hour sessions instead of two 90 minute ones.'

Christine S (US):

'Duxy, I have taken a fair number of international trips. You truly are at the very top of my guide list. This is evidenced by my returning on a trip with you as a guide next summer. I especially appreciated your vast knowledge of marine life and your constant enthusiasm to show us all this marine activity. Thank you for constantly being available to all participants for any questions or trouble shooting. Your photography expertise was a wonderful bonus for this trip. You even made me interested!—I am so NOT a photographer but I really had fun taking the timed shoot and the “spliced” panoramic.'

Julie, S (US):

'Benita as tour leader: Amazing! I help take college students down to Baja Calif so have experience leading a group. It can be very tiring, but Benita was consistently available and eager to help and solve issues. It is interesting to note the differences between our group and college students. College students, in general, don’t seem to care about details. Our group, myself included, fell into the habit of asking her numerous questions. She very patiently put up with all of this. She was knowledgeable, very capable, friendly and approachable. I loved her sense of humor and her enthusiasm for marine life. Absolutely no suggestions for improvement. She is a gem'.

Sulawesi & Raja Ampat Dive Safari

Misool & Wakatobi Safari

Alor & Komodo Safari