North Maluku dive sites

Ternate is served by Sultan Babullah Airport with daily flights from Manado, Makassar, and Jakarta. From the airport, the town is a short drive. A small number of dive operators run from Ternate, offering day trips to sites around Hiri Island, Tidore, and other nearby volcanic islands. The dive industry here is minimal compared to established Indonesian destinations, so advance contact with operators is essential. Most divers visiting North Maluku combine Ternate diving with trips to the more remote Halmahera reefs.

The volcanic geology creates underwater topography unlike typical Indonesian reef diving. Walls of black basalt and lava rock drop vertically from the shoreline, providing substrate for coral and sponge growth that contrasts dramatically with the dark background. The nutrient-rich waters around the volcanic islands support healthy reef communities despite being far from the Coral Triangle's traditional hotspots. The combination of dramatic wall structure, rich marine life, and the near-total absence of other divers gives Ternate diving a genuine exploratory character.

Ternate was the epicentre of the global spice trade for centuries, and the island is dotted with Portuguese and Dutch colonial forts, ancient sultanate palaces, and clove plantations. The underwater landscape occasionally reveals historical artefacts — old anchors, ballast stones, and ceramic fragments from centuries of maritime traffic in these waters. Above water, Fort Oranje and Fort Tolukko offer panoramic views over the dive sites, and the local markets sell fresh cloves and nutmeg grown on the island's volcanic slopes. It is one of the most historically significant and least-visited corners of Indonesia.

Morotai was a major staging base for General MacArthur's campaign to retake the Philippines in 1944. The island hosted over 60,000 Allied troops and became one of the largest air bases in the Pacific theater. Dozens of aircraft were lost to operational accidents in the surrounding waters, and Japanese defensive positions left their own underwater debris field. The most famous story from Morotai is that of Private Teruo Nakamura, the last Japanese soldier to surrender in 1974, having hidden in the jungle for 30 years.

Fly from Ternate or Manado to Morotai's Pitu Airport on small regional aircraft. Flights operate several times per week but schedules can be irregular. From Daruba, the island's main town, local boat operators can arrange dive trips to the wreck sites. Dive infrastructure is minimal, so bringing your own equipment or arranging everything through a liveaboard is advisable. The island is being developed for tourism but remains very remote.