Heaven under Wakatobi

WAKATOBI is the name of an archipelago located in an area of Sulawesi Tenggara (South Eastern), Indonesia. The name Wakatobi is derived from the names of the main islands that form the archipelago: Wangiwangi Island, Kaledupa Island, Tomea Island, and Binongko Island. The group is part of a larger group called the Tukangbesi Islands.

Wakatobi National Park has the configuration started from the flat area to the sloping area towards the sea, and some steep gull areas. The water depth varies, while the deepest reaches almost 1044 meters with sandy and rocky bottom area. This 18,377.31 marine area has 25 clusters or coral reef surrounded by beaches from coral islands with 600 km in length. Over 112 types of corals from 13 families can be seen here. The undersea wonders of Wakatobi has been known worldwide since The Wallacea Expedition from Britain in 1995.

The indigenous people who live in the area is Suku Laut or the Bajau tribe. According to the records of ancient Chinese and European explorers, said that from the whole human boating in Southeast Asia that still have traditional boating culture is the Bajau tribe. Seeing their daily life is interesting and unique, especially diving into the ocean without any equipment to spear fish.

How to get there

From Kendari to Bau-bau with regular speed boat, 2x a day abt 5 hours, or with an ordinary traditional boat 1x a day for 12 hours. From Bau-bau to Lasalimu get a four-wheeled vehicle ride for two hours, then climb onboard a express ferry Wanci - Lasalimu for an hour or Lasalimu-Wanci wooden boat for 2.5 hours. Wanci is the first gate into the Wakatobi National Park area.