Bunaken

Bunaken is an island, formerly part of Manado bay, is norther part of Sulawesi province,
Indonesia. The visitors can reach Bunaken by speed boat abour 30 minutes from Manado sea
port. Around the Bunaken Island, there is Bunaken Sea Garden which is part of Bunaken
National Park. Overall, Bunaken is covers an area of 75,265 hectares with five islands within,
which is the island of Manado Tua, Bunaken Island, Siladen Island, Mantehage Island island and
the branch of it, Naen Island.

Bunaken marine park has 20 points dive spot with varying depth of up to 1344 meters.
From those 20 diving points, the 12 points among them are around is Bunaken Island. Those
twelve point dive are the most frequently visited by the divers or tourist who want to enjoy the
beauty of the underwater scenery.

Most of the 12 points dive in Bunaken Island is line from the southeast to the northwest
of the island. In this area, there are great underwater walls, also called the hanging walls, a giant
rock walls that stand vertically and curved upward. These rock walls are also a source of food for
fish in the waters around Bunaken Island.

While on Bunaken National Park, Bunaken National Park is a representative of

Indonesian tropical water ecosystems consist of mangrove ecosystems, seagrass beds, coral reefs,
and land / coastal ecosystems. Potential mainland islands national park is rich in species of palm,
sago, woka, silar and coconut. Animal species that exist on the mainland and the coast are,
Sulawesi black macaques (Macaca nigra nigra), deer (Cervus timorensis russa), and polecat
(Ailurops ursinus ursinus).

Mangrove plant species in the Bunaken National Park is Rhizophora sp., Sonneratia sp.,
Lumnitzera sp., And Bruguiera sp. This forest is rich with various kinds of crab, shrimp,
mollusks and various types of sea birds such as seagulls, storks, sea dove and Heron.
 Approximately there are 91 species of fish found in the waters of Bunaken National Park,
including fish gusumi horse (Hippocampus horse), white oci (Seriola rivoliana), yellow tail lolosi
(Lutjanus kasmira), goropa (Ephinephelus spilotoceps and Pseudanthias hypselosoma), ila trunk
(Scolopsis bilineatus) , and others.

Bunaken National Park can be reached through the port of Manado, Marina Nusantara
Diving Centre (NDC) in the District of Molas and Marina Blue Banter. From the Port of Manado
using a motorboat to the Siladen island is about 20 minutes, Bunaken Island about 30 minutes,
Montehege island about 50 minutes, and Nian Island about 60 minutes. If the visitors went from
Blue Banter Marina with a yacht that is available to the tourist areas on the island of Bunaken, it
will be taken within 10-15 minutes, while to go the diving spot from NDC using a speed boat can
be reach in 20 minutes.