The islands are series of four islands adjacent to and located in the west part of the Bird’s Head (Vogelkoop) of the island of Papua. The cluster is under Raja Ampat Regency, West Papua Province. There are four largest islands, namely Waigeo Island, Misool Island, Sulawati Island and Batanta Island.
The Raja Ampat Islands are now famous for the potential of marine tourism with the beauty of underwater scenery that attracts the attention of divers. The waters of the Raja Ampat Islands according to various sources are one of the 10 best waters for diving sites throughout the world.
In fact, it may also be recognized as number one for the completeness of the underwater flora and fauna at this time. As explained by Dr. John Veron, an experienced coral expert from Australia, that the Raja Ampat Islands have the best coral areas in Indonesia with around 450 species of coral.
There are several coral reef areas that are still very good condition with a percentage of live coral cover of up to 90%, namely in the Dampier Strait (strait between Waigeo Island and Batanta Island), Kofiau Islands, Southeast Misool Islands and Wayag Islands. The types of coral reefs in Raja Ampat are generally edge reefs with steep to steep contours but are found atoll type and charred type or taka.
Some places in Kampung Saondarek, when the lowest tides can be witnessed a stretch of coral reef without diving and with its own adaptation, the reef can still live even though it is in the open air and exposed to direct sunlight.
In fact, the Misool cluster was found in prehistoric remains in the form of a hand stamp that was applied to a rock wall. Uniquely, the stamp is very close to the surface of the sea and is not inside the cave. According to estimates, he is 50,000 years old and is part of a series of instructions for the path of human distribution from the western part of the archipelago to Papua and Melanesia. Not only that, the rest of the wreckage remains of World War II can also be found in several dive sites, such as Wai Island.
Raja Ampat Main Region
The area of the Raja Ampat Islands is 46,108 km2 divided into 24 districts, 117 villages and four villages. The 24 districts include:
- North Misool District
- North Waigeo District
- South Waigeo
- North Salawati District
- Ayau Islands District
- East Misool District
- West Waigeo District, Mainland
- East Waigeo District
- Mayalibit Bay District
- Kofiau District
- Meosmanswar District
- South Batanta District
- South Misool District
- Wawarboni District
- West Waige Islands District
- West Misool District
- District of Sembilan Nine
- Wasai City District
- Salawati Tengah District
- Salawati Barat District
- Ayau District
- Tiplol Mayalibit District
- North Batanta District
- Supnin District
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: History
According to local myth, the origin of Raja Ampat from a woman found seven eggs, of which four of them hatched into four separate princes and each became a ruling king in Waigeo, Salawati, East Misool and West Misool. While the other three items become ghosts, a woman and a stone.
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In the course of history, the old Raja Ampat region was inhabited by aristocrats and implemented the customary system of Maluku, where the community was a group of humans and each village was led by a king. was surrendered by the Dutch, the Raja Ampat Islands became part of the Dutch East Indies.
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: How to Reach There
There are several ways to go to Raja Ampat. The easiest and fastest way is by flying using a plane. An inexpensive way to Raja Ampat is to take a boat, although it will take longer.
Go to Raja Ampat by Airplane
Even though it’s located in West Papua, you don’t need to worry about being able to reach Raja Ampat because there are flights to Sorong from Jakarta or Bali via Makassar or Ambon and Manado. Although it takes around six hours to fly, Sorong City is a fairly large city with adequate facilities.
If you make a flight from Jakarta to Sorong it will take four hours to stop in Manado with the airline Lion Air or Wings Air. While with Garuda Indonesia or Sriwijaya Air airlines that transit in Makassar will take a six-hour flight. However, there are also direct flights from Jakarta to Sorong using the Express Air airline for four hours of flight. Next, you can continue your flight from Sorong to Raja Ampat with Susi Air with a capacity of 14 people.
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Go to Raja Ampat by ship
After arriving in Sorong, there are several transportation options to Raja Ampat, namely with Pioneer Ships, Tourist Ships and ASDP ships on the Sorong-Saonek and Waisai routes. You need to pay attention to the ship’s departure schedule because it doesn’t depart at any time, which is at 1:00 p.m. leaving from Sorong to Waisai which takes 1.5 to two hours. Meanwhile, the ship will return to Sorong from Waisai at 11.00 WIT. The ticket can be purchased at the Raja Ampat Culture and Tourism Service on telephone number (0411) 402650.
To explore the Raja Ampat islands, you can choose to take a pinisi tour or boat or stay at the Raja Ampat Dive Lodge resort. This location is not only intended for divers, but also non divers because there are beautiful white sand beaches with a group of karst islands and unique flora and fauna, such as red cendrawasih, Wilson’s paradise, maleo Waigeo, various parrots and parrots, Waigeo cuscus and various types of orchids.
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Transportation
To travel in Raja Ampat, usually a tour is available by a travel agent that can be found in Sorong. Travel agents will offer tour options, including tours from boats around Raja Ampat and diving in Raja Ampat. There are two types of boats from Sorong, namely speed boats and long boats.
The speed boat can carry 15 passengers with a travel time of 1 hour 40 minutes and costs Rp. 2000,000. while long boats can carry 10 passengers in two to three hours at a cost of Rp. 1200,000. These prices can also change at any time.
You can also rent a small boat to explore the islands to make it more flexible. There are four mountainous main islands and hundreds of small islands around it for exploration.
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Hotels
The following are recommendations for lodging and hotels in Raja Ampat that you can use to stay while you are there:
Fundar Sakela Road, Lukas Delon Street, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98481
Trans Wisata No. 88, after Marinda Airport, Saleo Beach, Waisai, Raja Ampat, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Raja Ampat Diva Homestay, yenbeser village, besir, raja ampat, west papua, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
Jalan Arfan, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
- Rifalda Cottage, Jl. Yos Sudarso – Kimindores, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Saleo Beach, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Cockatoo Hostel, Jalan Yos Sudarso no 8, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
Friwen Island, Raja Ampat, West Papua 98482, Indonesia, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Mawar Homestay, Arborek Island, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
Jl. Saporkren No 3 Rt.001 Rw 001, Raja Ampat, Waigeo Selatan, Waisai, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Best Raja Ampat Cottage, Sauandarek Island, Raja Ampat, West Papua, Indonesia, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
- Nut Tonton Homestay, Kampung Usaha Jaya, East Misool District, Raja Ampat Regency, West Papua., Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98483
Pam Island, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98481
- Phuyaka Mengge, Funder Sakela Road, Waisai, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
Jalan Kimindores, Waisai, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
Yenmangkwang Beach, Waigeo Island, 98482 Tapokreng, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
West Waigeo, Selpele Village, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
Jalan Marinda, Waiwo, Raja Ampat, Indonesia
Jl. Trikora No 21 Saonek, South Waigeo Raja Ampat Regency – West Papua, Raja Ampat, Indonesia, 98482
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Climate
The Raja Ampat Islands have a humid and hot tropical island climate. Generally, sunny weather with blue or cloudy white skies lasts most of the year. The average temperature is 27.4 0C with rainfall of 2,000 mm / year, where the dry and rainy seasons are not as clear as Papua in general.
Regional Languages in Raja Ampat
Generally, residents use the language of Papua as an everyday language. However, they can also use Indonesian as a communication with tourists, so you don’t have to worry about communicating with the local community.
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Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Tourist Attractions
There are many tourist attractions in Raja Ampat that can be visited. Some of them are as follows:
- Waiwo Beach
- Waisal Beach
- West Waigeo Island Nature Reserve
- West Batanta Island Nature Reserve
- North Salawati Island Nature Reserve
- South Misool Island Nature Reserve
- Arborek Tourism Village
- Sawinggrai Tourism Village
- Yenwaupnor Tourism Village
- Sauwundarek Tourism Village
Malls in Raja Ampat
Unlike other tourist cities in Indonesia, the Raja Ampat Islands do not have large malls or shopping, but have souvenir shops in various regions. For example, Arborek Village is famous for woven crafts that you can buy. Other souvenirs that you can bring home are Asmat statues, traditional fabrics and traditional musical instruments Suling Tambur (traditional drums).
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Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Culinary
Various stands at the Raja Ampat Anniversary Celebration
- Culinary at the Raja Ampat Festival
- Yellow Fish Soup on the coast of West Papua Beach
- Sago Caterpillar Satay
- Papeda
- Sea Fried Worms
Travel Tips to Raja Ampat: Summary
Some of these tourist tips in Raja Ampat will be useful for those of you who want to vacation in Raja Ampat:
1. Make a Plan with Ripe
Plan your trip especially about lodging and transportation because these two things are important and expensive if you are not careful. Preferably, look for standard lodging that is cheap, close and complete with prices ranging from IDR 200,000 per night. Another alternative is to stay in a resident’s house for rent to be cheaper. As for transportation, try to find promo flight tickets to Sorong or use the Pelni Ship from Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta to Sorong at a cost of Rp. 700,000 to Rp. 800,000 with a five-day four-night trip. Even to get to Raja Ampat, use a boat to save more money.
2. Report to the Department of Culture and Tourism in Waisai
The mandatory thing to do when you arrive at Waisai is to report to the Department of culture and tourism by paying a conservation fee of IDR 250,000 for local tourists and IDR 500,000 for foreign tourists.
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3. Take a trip with a group
This is done to save money. If you travel with a group, the previously expensive fees can be shared with other group members.
