Togean Islands: Where to Stay and How Many Nights on Each Island

Kadidiri is the best base for most visitors to the Togean Islands: easy boats, comfortable bungalows and dive centres. Malenge suits travellers who want Bajau villages and a quiet base next to the reef. Only experienced divers should go to Una Una. If you are happy to do almost nothing for days, choose Bomba or Bolilanga. Coming from Ampana, begin on Kadidiri, and then pick one more island.

The Togeans lie in the centre of Tomini Bay, 400 km east of Palu, and every route in is a long ferry ride. Only six islands have places to stay, and only three of those deserve more than one night. Every move is by boat, and boats stop running early in the afternoon. So your choice of island matters more than your choice of activity. The diving is not in question: the water is clear, the reef is healthy, and you will see plenty. Planning is where trips fail.

Getting your bearings

The chain has about fifty islands. The key choice is between three of them: Malenge, Kadidiri and Una Una. Two more, Bolilanga and Bomba, complete the short list.

• Wakai, on Batudaka, is the port town. It has rooms, but use them only if you miss a ferry.
• Pulau Anam and Pasir Putih are the famous names, but they are sandbars for day trips, not places to sleep.

The map makes distances look short. They are not:

Build your plan around the days you spend on boats, not around the islands.

The islands one by one

Kadidiri: the easy choice

With fewer than four nights, most people should choose Kadidiri. Its three resorts are all mid-range and much alike. Each has beach bungalows and a dive centre.

• Black Marlin is the oldest of the three, with the best dive boats.
• Lestari offers more quiet and better food.
• Pondok Lestari is the budget choice. A family runs it, rooms have fans only, and it is fine for two nights.

Malenge: culture and calm

The main guesthouse, Lestari Malenge, stands at the edge of a Bajau village built on stilts. The reef just offshore is the best in the islands. If you came for the sea and the people more than for a dive centre, choose Malenge. Stay three nights at least, or the long boat ride is not worth it.

Una Una: the volcano island

Sanctum dive resort is on the south side. The diving here, above all at Apollo and the pinnacles to the west, is the best in the Togeans, and possibly in all of central Indonesia. Come only if you dive, and only with at least fifty logged dives. For most of the year the crossing is rough.

Bomba: time to read and write

Bomba is for a week of reading or writing with nobody planning your day. It has a quiet beach, two simple homestays and one dive centre that runs when enough divers want to go. The night sky is the real reason to come.

Bolilanga: for couples

One small island with one small resort, made for couples celebrating an occasion. It is expensive for what you get, but at sunset the island truly empties.

Three sample plans

Five nights, from Ampana

1. Ferry to Wakai, then a boat to Kadidiri. Stay 3 nights.
2. Boat to Malenge. Stay 2 nights.
3. Boat back to Wakai and take the morning ferry out.

This is the standard plan, and it works.

Seven nights, for divers Use the five-night plan and add 2 nights on Una Una in the middle. The order matters: Kadidiri, then Una Una, then Malenge, then out. Una Una is easiest to reach from Kadidiri and hardest from Malenge.

Ten nights Add 3 quiet nights on Bomba at the end. Then return to Wakai on the slow direct boat.

Getting to the Togeans

There are two real gateways: Ampana and Gorontalo.

From Ampana (easier)

Ampana is on the south shore of the bay. The ferry to Wakai takes about three hours. When this guide was written, it sailed daily in the dry season and every second day in the wet season. To reach Ampana, take a bus or plane to Palu, then drive along the coast for four to five hours. Asphalt now covers the whole road, and the drive is pleasant. Leave Palu by 06:00 to catch the morning ferry.

From Gorontalo

The Tuna Tomini ferry sails overnight from Gorontalo to Wakai, about twice a week at the time of writing. The crossing takes twelve to fourteen hours. It suits travellers coming overland through North Sulawesi.

Check the day before

Confirm your boat the day before you travel. The harbour office in Ampana gives accurate information. Messages from resorts on WhatsApp often arrive a day too late.

Seasons

Book for April to October: the dry months are the only safe window.

• November and December: cross winds and choppy crossings.
• January and February: the worst weather. The islands are effectively closed.
• March: uncertain. Resorts reopen and boats run, but squalls in a bad week can still stop the boats for two days running.

When the weather turns, operators cancel the Una Una crossing first. If Una Una is in your plan, do not book a tight flight out of Palu.