We have been on a Penida day trip to spot Manta rays, and we did ! Yes, plenty of them! It’s one of the great pleasure of being in Amed, we have awesome diving just here at home and aren’t very far from amazing Nusa Penida! It requires a few logistics and preparation but it’s definitely feasible to go on a day trip there to see the amazing Reef Manta Rays (Mobula alfredi).

This week was a group of divers from Singapore we bring on that trip. Initially based in Tulamben, the nine divers ask TwoFish Amed to organize the journey. Objective: Manta Rays and eventually Mola Mola as Penida offers both of these species. After an hour driving from their hotel, they arrived at Padang Bay where another forty-five minutes boat ride brings them to the famous dive site: Manta Point. The dive site is well known and so for a reason, Manta rays are always here. Manta Point is actually a shallow bay where these giants (3 – 3.5m on average) come to get rid of the parasite they collect in the ocean. This is what we call a “cleaning station”. Basically, big fishes come to the reef for smaller ones to feed themselves on the vermin they carry. It gives us the chance to observe a lot of interactions and in our case the beautiful Manta Ray in action. After the first moment of doubt, we finally spotted the first one and then the dance began. During a good half hour, we have been surrounded by these magnificent majesties of our ocean.

After that dive, everybody was very happy and agreed that the choppy conditions get there definitely worth it!