In June, I had a chance to visit P. Weh in Indonesia, a much talked about diving destination in Sumatra Island. Direct flights from KL to Aceh are available and prices are reasonable.
Bandar Aceh
Bandar Aceh is located at the Northern most tip of the Sumatra Island. Aceh is a religiously conservative territory and the only Indonesian province practicing the Sharia law officially. There are quite a number of interesting places to visit and explore. I do recommend a stopover either before or after diving in P. Weh
The town was devastated by a tsunami some years ago, but the city has rebuilt itself over the years. There are some monuments that commemorate the unfortunate incident.
Two of the vessels that were washed ashore in to the City
Pulau Weh
To get to P. Weh, you need to arrange your pick up from the airport and boat transfer with the dive center. The boat ride takes about 1 hour. We were booked at Lumba Lumba Dive Resort, located on the western side of the island. The car ride took us about 40 minutes through some winding road arriving at Gapang Beach.
During our free time, we hired some motorbikes to explore the island. Some the places we visited include Monument 0 km, Wisata Gua Sarang and some look-out points. At Monument 0 km you will find some stalls selling souvenirs and local food.
Indonesian Fruit Rojak
There are some very scenic coastal viewpoints along our ride and we manage to stop at a few for some Instagram moments
Lumba Lumba Dive Resort
At Lumba Lumba, we stayed at the cottages. The resort faces the sea with the cottages on a small hill slope. The resort is very basic with simple decor.
The sea front of Lumba Lumba Resort
The room is fairly big with a small living area, a small pantry and a balcony with a very nice sea view. My room came with a double and single bed and can sleep 3 very comfortably. The bathroom is very basic and nothing to shout about, not your 3 or 4 star accommodation. Nevertheless the air-conditioner works well and the beds comfortable.
The Cottage
Food wise, it's simple local dishes and we get very fresh seafood almost every meal. Although the portions are not very large but nevertheless, sufficient for a good hearty meal.
Diving in P. Weh
We managed to squeeze in 7 dives including 1 night dive. The island is full of marine life with a huge variety of fishes. 2 interesting dive sites stands out, firstly the eel garden is an interesting site to dive and secondly, the hot spring where warm or rather hot water from the ground flows out. Basically it is due to the volcanic heat from under the ground. On the surface the smell of sulphur is very strong.
During the night dive, we manage to spot a Spanish Dancer as well as a sea snake and a whole of other marine life.
Overall, Pulau Weh is a good place for your diving adventure. There is more dive site to explore, and I would love to come back again to visit some of these places. Only this time, will plan a longer stay so I can explore more and probably do some hiking in Pulau Weh
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