Komodo · Indonesia · Drift · Reef
Mawan
Reef mantas over a shallow drift in central Komodo
Photo: Justin Philbois · CC0
Mawan is a shallow drift dive in central Komodo National Park where reef mantas visit and whitetip and bamboo sharks rest on the bottom. The same reef holds frogfish, orangutan crabs and mantis shrimp for divers who look closely.
Where it is and how deep
8.5555° S, 119.6322° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The drift runs at around 12 meters for most of its length, going down to 24 meters on the steep sandy area when the current allows; the site's deepest point is 30 meters. Reef mantas pass over, whitetip reef sharks and bamboo sharks lie on the bottom, and turtles, cuttlefish and unicorn fish work the reef. Smaller life fills the gaps: scorpionfish, nudibranchs, orangutan crabs, frogfish and mantis shrimp.
Marine life and season
- Manta rays
- Reef sharks
- Sea turtles
- Octopus & cuttlefish
- Frogfish
- Nudibranchs
- Macro critters
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prime | Prime | Good | Prime | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Prime |
Season follows Komodo: Liveaboards run all year: April is often rated the best month, July to September is the big-fish peak, and the rainy months bring the best visibility and the mantas.
Dive videos
Mawan in Komodo. Aliens and Giants. Scuba Diving Komodo Islands. · Reef Nomad on YouTube
Questions divers ask
How deep does the Mawan drift go?+
Most of it runs at about 12 meters. The steep sandy area is dived down to 24 meters only when the current allows.
Sources
- Mawan, Komodo — Dive Concepts
- Komodo dive sites — Pinta Liveaboard
- Mawan dive site — Scubago
- Komodo dive sites — Komodo Dive Center
Photo credits
- A grey whitetip reef shark seen from above, swimming over pale rubble and low coral. by Justin Philbois, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
More dive sites in Komodo
A holed rock at the surface, a coral-covered pinnacle below
Reef
Big-fish habitat in a current that usually runs strong
Soft coral and macro on a rock in the cold south of the park
A submerged pinnacle where the sharks hold in the current
Coral garden
The sheltered coral garden at the end of the Cauldron ride
A calm northern bay for skills practice near Crystal Rock
Soft-coral mound with sharks holding in the flow
Reef
A sloping northern passage dived on generally strong current
Similar dives elsewhere
A long drift over a coral plateau at 12 to 18 metres
A current-washed plateau at 25–30 m, pelagics one day, pygmies the next
A drifted slope of soft and black coral off Pamilacan's tip
Drift
Devils' Highway
Florida & Russell Islands · Solomon Islands
Up to a dozen mantas feeding in formation along a channel reef