Alor
Being remote and untouched the 18 islands of the Alor and Solor group are considered one of the best diving destinations in Asia. Tourism has not developed yet and only few divers have explored these waters. One of the very last traditional whale hunter communities on the planet still lives in this magical archipelago. The islands are from volcanic origin, which make for stunning scenery. The waters around the islands are known for their strong currents, particularly in the relatively narrow strait between Pantar and Alor and also between Lembata and Pantar. With each tide, large water masses are pushed through the straits causing strong upwellings. The straits in the area play an important role in the exchange of marine life between the Indian and Pacific Ocean. Each year whales and dolphins travel from the Pacific and Indian Ocean through the deep but narrow Nusa Tenggara island chain. The four island passages between Flores and Alor seem to be some of the richest in large marine life of all of Nusa Tenggara, and are especially abundant in whales and dolphins. The area is renowned for its large marine mammal migration and the whale watching in particular is breathtaking. During the season, while cruising through the area, you can spot whales surfacing by their water spout. Because of this, coastal communities living along eastern Indonesia's marine migratory routes, especially in the villages of Lamalera and Lamakera have been hunting whales for centuries. Equipped with simple spears, they take only what their village needs to eat and barter just a bit in return for vegetables and rice. In every cruise is also possible to visit the traditional whale-hunters villages. Alor is teeming with numerous dive sites that offer even the most seasoned of muck divers an experience they will never forget. So dust off those cameras and prepare to meet some weird creatures that in any other context could come from another planet: pegasus sea moths to mimic octopus; devil fish to ornate sea horses. Coral reefs are mostly found along the northern coast of the Solor and Alor island group with some coral reefs lining the channels in between major islands. The southern coastline of the islands, particularly on the island of Lembata, is lined with rocks and just little coral. The reefs also include rocky bottoms along the northwest tip of Alor starting in the strait between Alor and Pantar.
