Tourist Attractions in Manokwari

In recent months, the number of foreign tourists or travelers who come to Manokwari, the capital town of West Papua province in Indonesia is increasing. They fly with domestic airlines such as Batavia Air, and Merpati from Jakarta to this town. There are various tourist attractions which they can visit when staying in Manokwari.

Cheap Hotel in Manokwari

First, before I explain about the interesting places which you can see, I have to recommend a cheap hotel which is an affordable accommodation with good facilities. The name of the hotel is Penginapan Kagum. The cost per room is around 18 US dollars per night. It is located on Brawijaya Street behind Xavier bookstore. If you are one of the tourists who wants to come to Manokwari, when you have arrived at Rendani airport, ask the taxi driver to bring you to the hotel. The manager's name is Miss Ivanna Roring. Her mobile phone number is 081 28307331. You had better call or send an SMS to her to arrange for a room and the duration of your stay in this town. After you have put or bags in Penginapan Kagum, you will begin to explore the town and its surrounding places. If you want to visit the following places, as a guide I can accompany you. My cell phone number is Charles Roring: 081332245180. Here are the places which I recommend:

Table Mountain of Manokwari
This is the place near the town where there is a well protected tropical rainforest. Inside the forest a lot of species of trees grow. The trees are big and tall, many with diameters of more than 1 meter. Various species of orchids and tropical flowers can also be found thriving on the branches of the trees and on the ground. When we walk deeper into the forest, we will be able to see birds such as Kakatoe, Hornbill, KumKum and Lory playing and singing. If we are lucky, we will be able to see Kuskus, Soa Soa and Snakes. The beauty of the forest is not only seen at the tree but also on the ground. Various tropical mushrooms with beautiful colors and forms live in this jungle. The journey into this forest is not complete if you have not visited the caves.

The Caves of of Table Mountain

The caves in Manokwari are devided into two types, the man-made ones (which were built during the World War II) and the natural caves. There are four natural caves in this mountain. I can guide you to find them and explore the interior. Inside the caves you can see bats, lizards and various colour of crystal stones. The caves in the table mountain is wet and slippery so, when we go in there, we will need lamps. P

Bats Hanging on Trees

Some tourists like to explore the forest of Table Mountain at night because they will have a chance to see more animals, one of the types is bat. Bats in tropical region live in caves and in trees. The small bats live in caves whereas the bigger ones live hanging on brances of trees. To take photos of the bats you will need digital photo camera or video recorder that is equipped with flash lights or infra red light.

Islands in the Dorey Bay and off the northern coast

Mansinam and Lemon islands are visited by most of the tourists who come to Manokwari of West Papua Indonesia. But I will guide or accompany you to other islands such as Raimuti island and Kaki island. This Raimuti island provides interesting underwater coral reef environment with colorful fish which you can see when snorkling around it. Kaki island is the place where Turtles like to come up to the beach to lay their eggs there. You will need special watertight digital camera if you want to snorkle and take photos of its beautiful coral reef.

Manokwari artists

Inside the Manokwari town, there are a number of artists which you can visit. I can accompany you to see artists who make beautiful paintings of Papua's nature and animals such as the paradise birds and the Kasuari. Or if you are interested more in wood carvings, then the house of Mr. Awom or Mr. Yenno should be visited. An old woman Ms. Fonataba is my recommendation for you if you want to see beautiful hand made woven clothes.

There are still many other interesting places which I can guide you to visit. I will write more about them later. If you want to contact me, this is my email: peace4wp@gmail.com and my cell phone number: 081332245180. Manokwari is a beautiful place worthy of your visit.

Traveling and scuba diving in Bunaken of North Sulawesi

by Charles Roring in Manokwari of West Papua - Indonesia

Traveling and scuba diving in Bunaken of Manado city North Sulawesi has been a standard tour package offered by many tour and travel agencies in Indonesia. Bunaken National Marine Park is considered world class coral reef of the South East Asia.

Every dry season, travelers and scuba divers from Asian, Australian, European and American countries come to scuba dive in Bunaken. The increasing number of tourists coming to Bunaken should be accompanied by the seriousness of the city dwellers of Manado to protect the coral reefs in the region.

It seems that the public awareness among the Manadonese is still low. This can be seen from the increasing number of coastal reclamation which continues to cover the coral reef site along the beach of Manado city and the garbage thrown to the sea by the city dwellers.

The municipality of Manado city should enforce strict law to their citizen if they are really serious in developing and maintaining the Bunaken national marine park as world class diving center.

The beauty of the underwater is also balanced by the beauty of the mountainous region of Minahasa. Minahasa has a number of active volcanoes which make the land very fertile. Along the roads of the mountainous region, we can see how the farmers work on their farms, plowing their lands with cows. A tour to Bunaken National Marine Park is not complete if you don't add it with a tour across the beautiful mountainous region of Minahasa.

Cheap hotel for travelers and scuba divers in Manokwari of West Papua

Budget travelers and scuba divers who come to Manokwari and want to stay in a hotel that is not expensive and is more affordable to them can stay in Kagum inn. It is a cheap hotel run by my family. It is located on Jalan Brawijaya Kompleks Missi at the back of Xavier bookstore. The rate of a room per night varies from 10 US to 18 USD depending on the size of each room. The operational manager is Ivanna Roring. She can be contacted through her mobile phone: +62 81 283 07 331 or via home based telephone: +62 986 211618. An Affordable Inn for Eco Travellers in Papua Island.

The view of Manokwari town from Kagum inn is spectacular. You can see Arfak mountain, the bay, and the town simultaneously. If you want to stay in the inn, you can e-mail me. I can arrange the accommodation for you.

Manokwari is a beautiful town located a long Dore bay.

There are two islands in the middle of the bay, Mansinam and Lemon islands. Shipwrecks at the back and the front side of the Mansinam island remain intact for tens of years. The best time to dive in Manokwari is during the dry season.

If you want to travel and scuba dive in Cendrawasih National Marine Park, you can take speed boat from Manokwari. The duration of your trip from this town to the largest marine park in Indonesia will be around 4 hours. Before traveling to Cendrawasih marine park, make sure that your diving equipment is in very good condition. There is not any diving center in the park but you can contact the park administrator for some help. They work together with people from WWF.

Besides the underwater beauty of the Marine park in Cendrawasih bay and shipwrecks of Dore bay, you can enjoy the exotic beauty of plants and flowers, as well as the birds of tropical rainforest of West Papua. You need a guide to travel along the forest. I can provide one who is an experienced forest guide for you. Your trip or travel to Manokwari will be an enjoyable experience. by Charles Roring in Manokwari of West Papua - Indonesia Also read: Traveling around the traditional market of Manokwari

Diving site and Coral Reef in Timor Leste

Coral reef preservation is always related to sustainable diving. Traveling to Timor Leste has been my dream for years. Unfortunately, I haven't got enough time to arrange such trip. In addition, there are not any travel deals to East Timor offered by tour and travel agency here. This kind of tourism can better inform the public about how important it is to protect the sea environment. One of the best but least known diving sites in the world is Coral Reef of Timor Leste.

I just knew its existence after watching a TV program aired by Timor Leste's national TV, TVTL. The coral reef of Timor Leste is located less than one hour driving from Dilli, the capital town of Timor Leste. It is a small country located between Australia and Indonesia. The natural beauty of Timor Leste is extraordinary.

After arriving in at the beach, scuba divers wear their diving suites and slowly walk to the sea water. The coral reef is still in good condition and has become the national asset for the state's economy.

The national government of Timor Leste is serious in promoting the diving site. TVTL is a national TV station of the country that runs in Portuguese. English speaking divers who are interested to go there can find more information about the region from the internet. It seems that the East Timorese have a number of websites which they update regularly.

I think, you can fly to Timor Leste from Bali, the hub of Indonesia's tourism industry, by Merpati. It is an Indonesian state owned company. by Charles Roring in Manokwari of West Papua - Indonesia

P.S. All pictures, the coral reef and the sunset, in this article were taken from the TV show aired by TVTL. Read more: Diving Boat General Arrangement Consideration