by The majestic island of Nusa Penida guarantees an adventure-filled days on the island. Not only it is home to world class beaches and stunning views, it is also a place to see and experience snorkeling with Manta Rays & Dolphins in Nusa Penida and in the wild.
I’ve been to Nusa Penida and we spent 3 days there, so if you’ll ask me.. NEVER LEAVE NUSA PENIDA without experiencing this. It’s truly one for the books! If you’ve been a reader of my blogs before, you’ll know that I would never create a separate travel guide if it’s not worth it.
Table of Contents
About Nusa Penida
Nusa Penida is a small island located in the South-Eastern part of Bali and it is roughly 40 minutes sea travel away from the mainland Bali. The island is known for its majestic beaches, collection of unique Hindu temples, breath-taking views, picturesque features of cliffs and natural pools from waterfalls.
Despite the above mentioned descriptions about the beautiful island, sadly it is also known for its underdeveloped roads. Lots of areas in the island are still rough road which makes it difficult to majority of the tourists to drive a motorbike around the island. Good news is there has been a significant change to its rough roads since 2018. And I reckon it will be of great change in the succeeding years considering the massive amount of tourists coming to the island.
How to Get to Nusa Penida?
Getting to Nusa Penida DIY way is easy peasy. Most tourists opt for arranged tours from travel agencies without knowing that DIY is easy even for first time travelers. Below are the options you can choose from depending on where you are coming from.
Option 1: From Bali
There are 2 ports in mainland Bali that can take you to Nusa Penida: (1) Sanur Port and (2) Port Padang Bai. If you are staying in Ubud, just book a Gojek taxi to either of these ports. Gojek taxi to Port Padang bai from Ubud will costs around 200K-230K IDR while Gojek taxi to Sanur Port from Ubud is 100K-120K IDR.
Subsequently, from the port ride a fast boat to Nusa Penida. Take note that walk-in tickets are expensive compared to discounted tickets booked online.
BOOK DISCOUNTED TICKETS FOR PHP333 (SANUR PORT TO NUSA PENIDA)
Option 2: From Gili Islands
Just proceed to the port of Gili Trawangan and board a fast boat to Banjar Nyuh Harbour in Nusa Penida. It will take 2-3 hours sea travel and again depending on sea tides. Similarly, walk-in tickets are expensive compared to discounted tickets booked online. I highly recommend booking cheaper tickets below:
BOOK DISCOUNTED TICKETS FOR PHP874 (GILI TRAWANGAN TO NUSA PENIDA)
Where to Stay in Nusa Penida?
BOOK ROOMS AT DRAGONFLY BED AND BREAKFAST FOR PHP410/NIGHT GOOD FOR 2
BOOK ROOMS AT AGUNG PRING HOMESTAY FOR PHP350/NIGHT GOOD FOR 2
We stayed at Agung Pring Homestay and booked a fan room for 2 nights. It’s the cheapest room in Nusa Penida and it is actually a Hindu home. The owners were very kind to us and the place was clean. Good place to stay if you are on a budget.
BOOK ROOMS AT SAWIT GARDEN COTTAGES FOR PHP1750/NIGHT GOOD FOR 2
BOOK ROOMS AT BLUE HARBOR BEACH FRONT FOR PHP3800/NIGHT GOOD FOR 2
RESERVE ROOMS AT GREEN HILL COTTAGE FOR PHP395/NIGHT GOOD FOR 2
Snorkeling With Manta Rays & Dolphins in Nusa Penida
Definitely the cherry on top of our 3 days trip in Nusa Penida! I can’t believe we were able to snorkel with huge Manta Rays in Nusa Penida, plus we got the chance to freedive with Dolphins in the wild as well! Can someone tell me that’s not one for the books?!
Freediving With Dolphins in Nusa Penida
Luckily, we got the chance to freedive with the Dolphins! Dolphin watching was included in the tour. So it was supposed to be just watching the Dolphins from our boats. But we were lucky enough that our boat captain allowed us to follow them.
But here’s the catch, Dolphins are very fast swimmers! There is no chance you can go with their speed, not if they choose to play with you. The other tourists from our group tried swimming towards them but they were fast. My partner and I on the other hand studied their behavior. Instead of following them which again is impossible to catch up with their speed, we went to the direction they are swimming and met with them below!
It was so surreal! I was in a a depth of about 10 meters below with my partner holding the Gopro and we were freediving with them. It was magical to swim with them, it felt like we were part of their herd.
Snorkeling With Manta Rays at Manta Point & Kelingking Beach
As part of the tour, there are 2 places where you can spot Manta Rays: (1) Kelingking Beach and (2) Manta Point. We were first brought at Kelingking Beach where we saw a number of Manta Rays from our boat. From there our boat docked and we started snorkeling towards them. Just so you know, the water was freezing!
A few friendly reminders, please do not attempt to touch them! Maintain a 3 meter distance from the Manta Rays. We continued snorkeling around and there were so many Manta Rays of my size!
Did you know? You can spot Manta Rays when you are at the cliff of Kelingking Beach! I read this from a blog post and I saw one from the cliff too!
Next we went snorkeling at Manta Point, this is where you’ll see the MOTHER of all giant Manta Rays! I thought I already saw big Mantas back at Kelingking Beach but these ones were the MOTHER OF ALL! Manta Rays at Manta Point were so big, bigger and wider than me. It was so magical to swim with them in the wild!
Gamat Bay Coral Reef
The last part of the tour is snorkeling at Gamat Bay Coral Reef. This is where you’ll see healthy reef filled with soft corals and colorful fishes. It is best for snorkeling too because it is about 2-4 meters only.
Where to Book Affordable Manta Ray Snorkeling Tour?
I’ve read and watched so many videos on where to get an affordable snorkeling tour online, unfortunately all recommendations will cost an arm and a leg. Since I’m a budget traveler, I searched and found a way!
Most recommended tours costs around 700,000IDR/PHP2,500/USD45 per person and the tour will only last for 3 hours maximum. That’s a bit expensive and unreasonable. After so many emails I’ve sent to countless locals, finally I found the most affordable snorkeling tour from Sir Lindra Nyoman of Captain Dolphino Tours.
Affordable Manta Ray Snorkeling Tour Contact Information
You can reach Sir Lindra Nyoman via email at lindranyoman42643@gmail.com or via Whatsapp for faster communication at +62812392770. Sir Lindra was very kind and accommodating to us, I highly recommend him for your Manta Ray snorkeling tour. You can also book your fast boat tickets back to mainland Bali for a very cheap price. Say hi to him for me please! 🙂
We got our snorkeling tour for only 350,000IDR for the both of us. That is about PHP600.00 each and that’s very affordable! Compared to snorkeling tours for PHP2,500.00 each.
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