SOUTHEAST SULAWESI potention

Formerly called the Celebes, Sulawesi is one of the world's most uniquely shaped islands. It is often referred to as the "Orchid Shaped Island". Historically, Sultans ruled this land and the Local area is Governed by regents. Today, Sulawesi is divided into four provinces, one of them being Southeast Sulawesi, covering the lower eastern leg of this beautiful island.
Southeast Sulawesi is an Indonesia province on Sulawesi Island. The capital of the province is Kendari, on the east coast of the peninsula. The province is one of the most remote regions of Sulawesi; no highway connects it to the cities on the rest of the island, so the primary transportation link is a ferry across Bone Sea between Watampone (Bone) in South Sulawesi and Kolaka port.
The population of the province is 1.771,951 (in 2000 Census), most of which is centered on Buton island of the Sulawesi south coast, and around Kendari. From the seventeenth century until the early twentieth century, the region was the site of the Buton (Butung) sultanate.
The Southeast Province is populated by more than 1,2 million people, in five diverse and interesting cultural groups: Tolaki, Morunene, Buton, Muna (Locally called Wuna), and Bajo. All offer the visitor a glimpse of life-styles, which have survived man's rush to modernization while using much of today's technology to their advantage.

Most of the land area of southeast Sulawesi is covered by natural jungle, with extensive plantations of teak and ironwood, which are used for local handicraft and contribute to the local economy. Much of the beauty of the region has been preserved for prosperity by declaring it "National Parks" and "Nature Preserve.

Wonereous animals, living freely, easily seen and appreciated by visitors, inhabit the entire province. Deer, Wild Pigs, Small Rodent-Like animals called Kus-Kus, Monkey, Snakes, Anoa (small buffalo) and numerous varieties of birds abound. But the hunting of animals is forbidden in national parks preserves and carefully controlled by local government, in other areas.

The friendly of the Sulawesi People, the local flora, fauna, and untouched beaches, are the highlights of this unique located. It is truly one of the world's last remaining. Natural habitats are waiting to show for the visitor who can appreciate such natural beauty and the people who live in it.

EAST NUSA TENGGARA

East Nusa Tenggara Islands have been shaped by the power and force of an enormous chain of mountains and volcanoes, which begins from the North of Sumatra and stretches east across Java. The province consists of over 550 islands, but is dominated by the three main islands of Flores, Sumba, and Timor. Occupying a unique position at the junction of Australian and Asian submarine ridges marked by the Wallace Line, it is one the world's most dynamic and exotic marine environments with nearly every species of coral and tropical fish represented. The arid landscape of eastern and southeastern Nusa Tenggara is the result of hot, dry winds blasting in from the Australian continent. In fact, in many coastal areas not a drop of rain falls during most of the year.
Flores is a Portuguese name, which means 'flower' and ideally describes the beauty to be found here. This long island between Sumbawa and Timor is crowded with volcanoes and mountains dividing it into several distinct regions with individual languages and traditions. Predominantly Catholic and heavily influenced by the Portuguese, there are many examples of a strong European cultural heritage like eastern procession held in Larantuka, and the royal regalia of the former king in Maumere.
Formerly known as the Sandalwood Island, Sumba is now famous for its horses and an excellent style of ikat cloth. Spirits, both ancestral and natural are worshipped. Although some exist in East Sumba, it is in West Sumba that there are a number of enormous megalithic tombs and traditional thatched and peaked huts raised on stilts. It is here where incredible rituals take place, such as 'Pasola' where hundreds of horsemen fling spreads at each other in an annual ritual. Many traditional ceremonies, all with a component paying homage to the spirits, take place from July to October including the traditional houses and burials when sometimes hundreds of pigs, water buffaloes, horses, and dogs are scarified. Other ceremonies include 'Pajura' or traditional boxing, festivals for the Lunar New Year in October and November, horse races and ritual dances.

GEOGRAPHICALLYEast Nusa Tenggara is one of the four provinces in the Nusa Tenggara (Southeast Islands). Starting from Bali, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, and east Timor. It stretch is between 118° and 125° east longitude, and between 1 18° and 125°southern latitude lines, and between 8° and 12 ° southern latitude lines. The territory of East Nusa Tenggara Province comprises 566 islands. The three main islands are Flores, Sumba, and Timor from which come the term FLOBAMOR, which has been familiar as one of the names of East Nusa Tenggara.Flores is the main volcanic island and has many unique and spectacular attractions, one of these is Mount Kelimutu with its lakes of distinct color variation, has become one of the fabled destinations travelers.Sumba is the island famous for its arts, handicrafts, particularly the textile weaving, and cultural assets. The other name given to East Nusa Tenggara is "Nusa Cendana" the Sandalwood Island.
GEOLOGICALLYGeologically, East Nusa Tenggara can be regarded as being divided into two zones: first, the volcanic inner curve formed by the islands Rinca, Komodo, Flores, Alor, Pantar, Adonara, Lembata and Solor, which have fertile soils and second, the out curve with limestone and rock formation, made up of the island Sumba, Sabu, Rote, Semau, and Timor.
DEMOGRAPHYThe total number of NTT inhabitants in 2001 was 3,888.735 - 1,919.644 (49.36%) men and 1,969.091 (50.64%) women. The most populated is Manggarai regency (621,989 people) and Kupang city is the most densely populated (1,517.30 people per square kilometer).
CLIMATEDue to central highlands and their closeness to Australia, the seasons are irregular. Generally the islands are semi-arid, with a longer dry season lasting from March to November. The wet season lasts from December to March, but can be considerably shorter and small island of Savu. The average rainfall of this region is between 36 - 4,127 mm/year. The temperature is range from 20.3 C to 31.7 C.
TOPOGRAPHYEast Nusa Tenggara is mountainous, and very steep slopes are everywhere besides some not too wide plateaus or uplands. The lowlands are a long the coastal areas only. Despite of the situation, most part of this region is not fertile, since the rainfall varies between 500 mm and 2000 mm a year. East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) is includes 566 islands. In addition, there are 524 uninhabited islands. It covers an area of about 47,349.9 square kilometers, including 200,000 square kilometers of maritime territory. Roughly 57 percent of the territory is hilly, with cliffs. The lowlands lay generally around the beaches and river mouths.
WIDE AREAThe area of East Nusa Tenggara occupies an area of 49,879.98 square kilometers, and has a population of more than 3,500.000. It is divided into 12 regencies and one municipality. Kupang regency is the largest region (7,178.26 square kilometers) and the smallest region is Kupang city (160.34 km2).
LANGUAGESThere are a lot of languages spoken in East Nusa Tenggara coming from as many different which groups of the population. Bahasa Indonesia is the national language in Malay, written in Roman script and based in European orthography. In all tourist destination areas English is the number one foreign language fairly spoken and written.

wakatobi south east sulawesi

Welcome to Wakatobi - a destination where you can dive the world's most pristine reefs and experience remoteness from everyday life in total comfort. Situated on a beautiful tropical island in the remote and peaceful Wakatobi archipelago in the Banda Sea, Wakatobi Dive Resort offers what many consider to be the best reef diving in the world.

Intimate and eco-friendly"
Our intimate, eco-friendly resort is located in the Wakatobi archipelago in remote Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia where we are the only fully licence dive tourism operator. The resort itself is situated on a small island locally called Onemobaa. Our island is beside Tomia Island, one of four major islands covering an area of 821 sq. km. The beautiful resort is built directly at the seaside, with all bungalows spaced along our exquisite beach.
A whole new level
Over the years Wakatobi's grown from being a simple, remote outpost to a fully equipped resort offering comforts otherwise not associated with the best diving. Often you have to choose between comforts and diving quality. Well, not anymore!
Wakatobi now offers beautiful accommodations with fine appointments that will satisfy the most discriminating traveler! There are four (4) levels of accommodation: Villas, Select Beach Bungalows, Standard Beach Bungalows and Garden Bungalows. All accommodations are spacious and available with a either a king-size bed, and/or twin beds to sleep up to three adults or two adults and two children. All of our accommodations have a balcony in front as well as lounge chairs, tables and other furnishings. There a desk with internet access, a mini-bar, and much more. All bungalows and villas are equipped with airconditioning.
I've been to 19 different resorts & liveaboards around the world and the only place I've ever returned to, despite having had a wonderful times at every other place, is Wakatobi. And now I want to come back again! 5 time returnee T. Grogan, CA-USA

Guest conveniences
Just because we are located on a remote island doesn't mean you half to sacrifice on comfort and conveniences. We generate and provide our own electricity 24-7. All of our villas and beach bungalows are equipped with air conditing to keep you comfortable day or night. We have our own reverse-osmosis water system to provide plenty of purified safe drinking water and hot water for your shower.
To keep in touch with the outside world, we also provide guests access to the resort's own satellite communication system which handles voice, fax and 64/128 kbs internet. All bungalows have complimentary internet connectively

Delightful cuisine
Our team of top-trained Balinese Chefs prepare delicious, ample and healthy meals using fresh produce that we fly in from Bali and overseas. Added to this are loads of day-fresh tuna sashimi, excellent soups, barbecued fish, fresh fruits, steaks and oriental specialties. Be sure to save room for one of the decadent desserts made fresh every day by our pastry chef.
We are of course able to accommodate special diet needs and in advance of your arrival our attentive Bali administrative staff will enquire if you have any special wishes or needs.
"The staff is great and actually the food is mind blowing considering the remoteness of Wakatobi. Beef fillet, smoked marlin, pastries, fresh salad almost to the very end. No one went hungry; an amazing feat of logistical support. We had 2 birthday cake parties. Beautiful. The breads are amazing. The entire staff really works and it shows. They really care. I like Wakatobi and I will get busy putting together a group for a repeat visit."
Edward Fedoruk - GourmetDivers.com (2005, 2007)

The Story of Wakatobi

The story of Wakatobi Dive Resort starts back in the sixties when Resort founder Lorenz Mäder's father brought him from the mountains of Switzerland to the Mediterranean and taught him to snorkel. That was the start of a life-long passion for Lorenz. Two decades later after years of working in the Red Sea and Maldives as a dive instructor and Dive Liveaboard Cruise Director Lorenz set out to create his dream. A Dive Resort far away from the tourism hot spots, where he could establish a new way of running an ecotourism operation. A Resort combining diving with care for the environment. A place where a quality experience goes over the number of people served in a day. A community based business concept to manage the natural resources.
Lorenz was in Singapore establishing a base for his exploration of Eastern Indonesia. (Having studied Navy Charts and dived the Wallacea area, which marks the region with the highest marine biodiversity, he knew that the envisioned dream location must be there). Months of trekking through the islands and exploring the reefs on local fishermen's boats finally brought him to the blissful corner of an island the locals called Onemobaa (Local language for 'Long white sandy Beach'. Knowing that this was indeed the place to build his resort, Lorenz approached the locals to find out who owned the land. He then met Mr.. Baharruddin, the son of the last Sultan of the area and made friends with him. Till this day the two are, as they say, inseparable. In his role as keeper of traditions, serving the community by thinking long-term, Haji Baharuddin is one of the very few Indonesians truly understanding the necessity of conservation.

Reinforced by Lorenz's personal objective to make a contribution to marine conservation, the challenging project was started in a region where locals have not seen a white man since the Dutch left the country and electricity and running water are still a rarity.
The first building, the LonghouseSearching for the right location to setup his dream resort, Lorenz spent many days being "Manta-towed" behind local boats researching the reef conditions in the area. Lorenz' objective - to find a place with a combination of a World-class reef in front, a beautiful topside (read: beach), ground water availability and a friendly local community.
1995The arduous task of building the resort could then begin. The first building was erected (the Longhouse), which laid the grounds for what years later would be called the premier coral reef diving destination.
1996Start of Diving and Hotel Operations. In the beginning the resort had a capacity of only 12 guests, all housed in the Resort's Longhouse. An ingenious building that was a bit like a live-aboard on the beach. This largest traditionally built house on these islands contained guest rooms, kitchen, dining area, staff quarters, dive center, bathrooms and storage. The concept was developed so that if the resort wasn't a success the building could be folded up and be moved elsewhere!Back in those days it was very hard to get to the Resort. The journey involved international flights, two or more domestic flights, an overnight in a transit town, several boat and van transfers. This brought the total traveling time from gateway towns like Singapore to somewhere around 30 hours! Yet somehow determination managed to attract a hard-core bunch of diving enthusiasts, and the resort was on its way.
Our first boat, the Wakatobi Satu1997An 'Undercurrent' article published in the USA opened the Wakatobi Destination to avid American Divers.Locally hired boats were used for dive operations.
1998In September 1998 the first custom built transfer boat 'WAKATOBI SATU' brought the guests directly from the nearest airport (Kendari, capitol of Southeast Sulawesi) to the Wakatobi Resort, 250 km away. WAKATOBI DUA speed boat enters service
1999The decision was made to build an own runway out on the islands to enable direct flights from Bali to the Resort. This way the transfer time would be brought down to a mere fraction of what it used to be! (2.5 hrs vs. 30 hrs). WAKATOBI TIGA provides a convenient dive platform with an always cheerful crew.
2000A larger vessel, the CISKA got chartered to transfer the maximum 18 guests until the airstrip opened.Works started at the airfield, Wakatobi Resort managing a team of up to 1000 people during the runway construction.
2001Wakatobi Resort inaugurates the 1506 m long Wakatobi Maranggo Runway, probably the largest hotel owned airstrip in Asia. Planes with 18 - 44 seats bring visitors in style from all over the world to the extremely remote Wakatobi Resort.
2002The company gets restructured, moves office to the current location in Kuta Bali.
2003
Community launch of the locally built Wakatobi VWAKATOBI EMPAT, custom built locally, proves to be extremely convenient for diving and is the first of 4 new dive vessels to enter service over the next 3 years.Divers are a hungry bunch and the newly introduced Kitchen Team from a Bali 5* Hotel creates a new level of F & B services.
2004Over the years capacity has gradually been brought up from the initial 12 to 34 guests. WAKATOBI LIMA is added to the dive fleet
2005The resort housed 44 guests in all Bungalow-style accommodations and one Cliff Villa, with the original Longhouse having been converted entirely to house the dive center and other common guests facilities such as library and bar, souvenir shop and Multimedia room.
A Jetty Bar is added, offering drinks and snacks with spectacular sunset views.
With WAKATOBI ENAM the resort has 4 large, convenient, safe dive platforms to reach as well farther away dive spots such as Ndaa island and Binongko.
2006Due to the increased capacity of 48 guests in 22 Bungalows and 2 Cliff Villas, the new restaurant in the beach corner takes over from the longhouse.
Our first wooden dive vessel WAKATOBI TIGA is replaced by a new vessel with the same name.
Overcoming the infrastructure and logistic challenges in this remote area with his pioneer spirit and multiple skills he developed a resort that is now by many ranked the No. 1 Land-Based Coral Reef Diving Resort in the world.