Coral Triangle · Indonesia
Belongas Bay & South Lombok
Schooling scalloped hammerheads on the open-sea pinnacles of Belongas Bay
Lombok's south coast pairs two kinds of diving. In Belongas Bay to the south-west, exposed pinnacles such as The Magnet, The Cathedral and Gili Sarang take strong current, surge and schooling scalloped hammerheads from the middle of the year to November. Closer to Kuta, slopes and sheltered reefs at Gerupuk and Mawun give calmer dives on hard and soft coral. Most dives run from 2 m on the inner reefs to about 30 m on the walls.
About diving in Belongas Bay & South Lombok
Most divers book Belongas through a Kuta dive centre as a full day out: a road transfer via Praya, the last stretch on a very bad road, then a boat from the bay that reaches the offshore pinnacles in roughly 15 to 30 minutes. The day runs to about seven hours with two or three dives. Big swell cancels boats, so several days in the area give a better chance than one. Closer to town, half-day boat trips around Kuta, Gerupuk and Tampah take in two or three sites, chosen by level and the day's conditions.
The Belongas pinnacles rise from open sea. At the Magnet divers enter negatively buoyant and drop fast to 20-25 m, where the action starts. Scalloped hammerheads are the headline, with schooling barracuda, tuna, giant trevally and Spanish mackerel behind them, while white-tip, black-tip and grey reef sharks cruise the walls and eagle and mobula rays pass through. The Cathedral, at the islet of Anak Ewok, drops to around 50 m as a steep wall of soft corals, sponges and tunicates with sea snakes. Inside the bay, the sheltered Wollis Pinnacle holds nudibranchs, frogfish and ribbon eels.
Belongas is for experienced divers. Strong current, sudden downcurrents and heavy surge make the Magnet one of the most demanding dives in Indonesia, and thermoclines bring the water down to about 21 to 24 °C at depth. Newer divers can stay inside the bay on Coral Garden and Wollis Pinnacle, or dive the Kuta side, where the right-hand reef at Mawun Inside starts at 2 m and stays above 9 m over white sand, and the Gerupuk coral garden is protected from waves and current.
Best time to dive Belongas Bay & South Lombok
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Fair |
December to February falls in the rainy season, which runs from November to April, and sits outside every recommended window for Belongas. From March to mid-June the water around the pinnacles is relatively calm, and the first half of the dry season also brings the best conditions on the Kuta reefs. Hammerheads can arrive at the Magnet from late June, and sightings are most frequent from August to November, when October and November also bring calmer water again. The Kuta sites can be dived year round.
Dive types & marine life
Scalloped hammerheads can school around the Magnet from late June to early November, with sightings most frequent from August to November. Reef sharks, barracuda, tuna and trevally work the pinnacles, and eagle and mobula rays pass through. Nudibranchs, frogfish and ribbon eels live on the sheltered Wollis Pinnacle inside Belongas Bay.
- Pelagic & blue water
- Wall
- Cave & cavern
- Coral garden
- Hammerheads
- Reef sharks
- Barracuda
- Tuna
- Trevally & jacks
- Eagle rays
- Mobula rays
- Napoleon wrasse
- Nudibranchs
- Frogfish
- Sea snakes
Best dive sites in Belongas Bay & South Lombok
- 1
The Magnet
Offshore pinnacle with a lighthouse rock that drops about 80 m, the main hammerhead site.
- 2
The Cathedral
Pinnacle east of the Magnet with a massive cave at 40 m.
- 3
Gili Sarang
Open-sea rock closer to shore than the Magnet, with dives down to 35 m.
- 4
Blue Hole
Cave entered at about 17 m that opens into a large cavern; carry a torch.
- 5
Boulder City
Wall to 30 m with Napoleon wrasse and sweetlips.
- 6
JJR
Two steep pinnacles set close together, forming a labyrinth.
- 7
Mawun Slope
Slope from 8 m into a soft coral garden down to 25 m.
- 8
Gerupuk Slope
Wall of hard coral formations that bottoms out at about 30 m.
Site guides
Cave & cavern
A cave entrance that opens into a huge dark cavern
Wall
Hard coral formations along a wall near Kuta
Pinnacle
Giant trevally working the current lines over open-sea pinnacles
Coral garden
A soft coral garden at the foot of a reef slope
Wall
A massive cave in the wall of a small island east of the Magnet
Pinnacle
Hammerhead schools around a surge-washed rock in the open sea
How to get to Belongas Bay & South Lombok
Fly into Lombok International Airport at Praya and drive about 30 minutes south to Kuta, where the dive centres are. Belongas Bay is at least 2 hours from Kuta by car. One small resort sits in the bay itself, 10 minutes by boat from Sepi.
Photos from Belongas Bay & South Lombok
Tanti Ruwani from Jakarta, Indonesia · CC BY 2.0
Dive videos
Scuba Diving Belongas, South Lombok - Mantas, Sharks, Sunfish! · Wild Scuba Indonesia on YouTube
Diving Kuta and Belongas, Lombok, Indonesia with Scuba Froggy · Guillaume Scubafroggykuta on YouTube
Questions divers ask
What certification is needed to dive the Magnet in Belongas Bay?+
Advanced certification and at least 50 logged dives. The pinnacle has strong current, sudden downcurrents and heavy surge, and divers enter negatively buoyant to drop straight to 20-25 m.
When is the best time to see hammerheads at Belongas Bay?+
Hammerheads can school around the Magnet from late June to early November, and sightings are most frequent from August to November.
How do divers get to Belongas Bay?+
Most book a day trip with a Kuta dive centre; Kuta is about 30 minutes from Lombok International Airport. The drive to Belongas takes at least 2 hours via Praya, then a boat reaches the pinnacles in 15 to 30 minutes.
Is there diving near Kuta Lombok for beginners?+
Yes. The right-hand reef at Mawun Inside starts at 2 m and stays above 9 m over white sand, and the Gerupuk coral garden is protected from waves and current. Inside Belongas Bay, Coral Garden and Wollis Pinnacle are the sheltered sites.
Sources
- KUTA Mandalika & South Lombok — Scuba Froggy
- Dive spots Lombok, Kuta, Gili Islands — Scuba Froggy
- Diving at Magnet Point — Belongas Bay Retreat
- The South Coast — Bottles Up Diving
- Belongas Bay Diving: Hammerheads of South Lombok — Scubalo
Photo credits
- Shallow turquoise bay at low tide with exposed reef flat, two people wading near the sand and dry rocky hills on the far shore by Tanti Ruwani from Jakarta, Indonesia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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