Bunaken

NORTH SULAWESI

Bunaken

CORAL WALLS & SEA TURTLES

Bunaken

Bunaken is not a beach destination dressed as a marine park. It is an island of 8 square kilometres off Manado, inside Bunaken National Park. The park has no continental shelf: the reefs drop straight down the continental slope, and the sea between its islands is 200 to 1,840 metres deep.

A vertical wall covered in fan corals and sponges runs around most of the island, and green turtles swim along it. In the dry season, visibility is usually 20 to 30 metres.

Most dive sites around the island are on the same wall, a short boat ride from its resorts. Fukui, on the north side, is a slope of sand and coral rather than a wall. From resorts on the Manado mainland, the boat ride takes 40 to 60 minutes.

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Bunaken National Park, off Manado in North Sulawesi: coral walls close to shore, green sea turtles, and wall dives a short boat ride from the city.

When to go and how to get there

Rain in Bunaken, month by month, and the journey in from the nearest airport.

Driest months

Jul – Sep

August is the driest month, with 117 mm of rain on average. January is the wettest, with 451 mm. Every month here averages more than 100 mm of rain.

  • Driest months
  • In between
  • Wettest months

January: 451 mm, February: 354 mm, March: 311 mm, April: 251 mm, May: 200 mm, June: 207 mm, July: 152 mm, August: 117 mm, September: 141 mm, October: 225 mm, November: 330 mm, December: 349 mm

Rain: CHIRPS v2.0, Climate Hazards Center, UC Santa Barbara, average of 1991-2020. See the weather in Sulawesi by month

Getting there

  1. 01 · Fly

    To Manado (MDC)

    Daily direct from Jakarta (~3 h) and Makassar (~1 h 40 m).

  2. 02 · Transfer

    Airport → Marina

    Resort driver or private car, about 40 min from the airport to the Manado waterfront.

  3. 03 · Speedboat

    Marina → Bunaken

    Resort speedboat 25 to 35 min. The sea is usually calmer in the morning.

Bunaken weather by month

The average rain, temperatures and sea of each month, measured over many years.

MonthRain (mm)High / low (°C)Sea (°C)Rough for small boats (% of time)
January45129 / 2528.53
February35428 / 2528.34
March31129 / 2528.41
April25129 / 2528.90
May20030 / 2529.30
June20729 / 2529.40
July15229 / 2529.10
August11729 / 2428.90
September14130 / 2529.20
October22530 / 2529.30
November33030 / 2529.30
December34929 / 25292

Rain: CHIRPS, 1991-2020. Temperatures: NASA POWER, 2001-2025. Sea temperature: NOAA Coral Reef Watch, 1991-2020. Waves: NOAA WAVEWATCH III, 2017-2026, in the open sea about 33 km away. Bays and straits are calmer. Rough means waves of 1.25 m or more, BMKG's warning level for small boats.

See Bunaken on the live weather page

Bunaken travel guides

The Sulawesi.com guides that cover Bunaken.

Tours that go to Bunaken

Every published trip that reaches this part of the island.

Experiences in Bunaken

Day trips and activities in and around Bunaken. Each one has its own page.

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Where to stay

See all 40 places to stay in Bunaken

Local businesses in Bunaken

Contact each business directly.

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