Papua Paradise Eco Resort

I would like to thank you very much for the great stay. A big thank you goes to Itay and Micaela who taught me how to dive and showed me incredibly beautiful diving spots. I can really recommend the resort.

Can I go back please? I miss living with the rhythm of the sea. Having my own cute hut with sharks and rays living under it, the diving and going on adventure in the jungle. I miss the company during dinner, the great service and nice food. This resort makes simplicity into luxury.

If you want the best scuba diving (and snorkeling) of your life, THEN GO TO PAPUA PARADISE ECO RESORT! If you want discotheques, loud music and air conditioning, then go to Bali. But you would be making a HUGE mistake!

I have been scuba diving for over 30 years, and the diving in Raja Ampat and the scuba guides at Papua Paradise are the best I have ever experienced. Wobbegong sharks, epaulette sharks, pygmy seahorses, blue ring octopus, turtles and reef sharks too numerous to count-- and all of this was literally at the two House Reefs you can snorkel and dive from the resort dock. Really!
Then the day trips to Kri and Mansuar were just walls of coral covered with every type of tropical reef fish imaginable. Literally best two days diving of my life. Yes, I now totally understand why experts say Raja Ampat has the greatest reef diversity on the planet. And whatever you do, DEFINITELY do the day trip to Fam Islands. The diving was as good as Kri and Mansuar, and the scenery was unparalleled (see photo).

Yes, this is a true "eco" resort; they are environmentally conscious. No, there's no AC but that's not why you are in Raja Ampat. They have ceiling fans and the staff sneaks into your room when your at dinner, turns down the bed, sets the mosquito curtain and turns on some kind of bug deterrent. My wife and I literally didn't get a mosquito bite the entire week, and not once did we need the bug repellent they supplied.

And YES, there is a bar with ice cold beer and cocktails expertly crafted by your friendly bartender Rio. And do not skip the spa! The "one-hour massage" is actually a two-hour experience in truly spoiling yourself by the wonderful masseuses they have. You get hot tea while having your feet bathed, then the massage, and you finish with an invigorating drink on the deck overlooking the reef.

The only thing as good as the scuba diving was the STAFF. Foremost was our dive guide Robby. That guy can find a needle in a haystack. So kind and patient and attentive. He even tolerated me doing 22 dives in 4 days. And there will never be more than 4 people per guide! ***Most trips it was just my wife, myself, Robby, our expert captain Threo and the helpful first mate Septinos in the boat all day. The assistant dive master Nish met us at the dock after EVERY single dive, making sure all went well, and helping with any fish ID questions. Dive master Hugo was also great, ensuring optimal dives and schedules every day.
The entire staff greets you at the dock when you arrive, and they all are there waving good-bye as you leave. So very touching. Manager Dave is very friendly and runs a well-tuned staff!!
Don't stay anywhere else in Raja Ampat! Not even a liveaboard dive boat was better than Papua Paradise Eco Resort.

Wow! What an amazing resort, team and experience! The entire staff are amazing, go above and beyond, and really try to customise the stay to your needs and interests. We felt so welcomed as soon as we arrived - everyone was the perfect mix of friendly, helpful and relaxed.

Second, the location was unbelievable. We had the best snorkelling experience in Raja Ampat. The water is so teeming with sea life. We were lucky enough to see mantas, sea turtles, octopus, dugongs, sharks and so many schools of fish. It felt like a once in a lifetime experience - except we are desperate to go back for more! Thank you to eveyone at Papua Paradise - especially Junita, Pater, Yustina, Michael, Kristina, Harly, Harry and John!!!

A unique location with an unique Resort, extremely friendly staff and great Diving opportunities!

We spent 8 nights at the resort and had an awesome time. The resort is professional managed with high standards of service, food & beverage - which is a big challenge to achieve at an island, far away from any infrastructure.

Who wants to completely calm down, enjoy nature (birds, forest, mangroves and the sea) is here at the right place.

Thanks a lot the whole team for the pleasant stay!

The service was impeccable. Every staff member was attentive and smiles were in tap 24/7. Even before we arrived, the office offered to book domestic flights for us for a very reasonable commission. It took the stress and headache out of a long-haul trip from North America. And the day before we left the resort, they even checked in online for us!

The resort itself is beautifully integrated into the landscape. And there are thoughtful touches everywhere. E.g. a tap at the foot of the bridge leading to each bungalow to wash sand off your feet, beach towels on the verandah as well as bath towels. The shampoo and soap provided smelled wonderful and worked well: I appreciated that they encouraged us to leave our own soap and shampoo at home to avoid using products that may contaminate the sea. I particularly appreciated that we can choose to make good environmental decisions to have fresh bed linens and towels only when needed. The food was also great: we were there for 2 weeks and didn't eat the same meals twice. There aren't too many snacks around available all day but were offered at set times, for which I was grateful.

The diving operations were top notch. You literally just have to show up and dive. All your gear is rinsed at the end of each diving day and hung up to dry. Each morning, your gear is set up and ready on the boat. At the end of the trip, our dive guide personally dried out equipment and brought it to our room to be packed for the trip home. And to top it all off, our dive guide James even printed off the list of all the sites we dove on our trip.

If you're diving with a camera, there is a camera room at the dive centre, so it was convenient not to have to haul my gear to our bungalow each day. That said, our guide did the hauling of the camera gear every day. And he rinsed it off at the end of every day.

The guide to diver ratio is also excellent at max 1:4, but they make sensible groupings based on experience and guest needs. I noticed single divers were often given their own dive guides, which is really amazing. After all, if you're an inexperienced diver, having your own guide is safer. And if you're an experienced diver, not being paired with an inexperienced one is more enjoyable: after all, you're paying good money for this trip. On a budget dive trip, you can't expect the dive operator to be able to afford to do this, but Papua Paradise is a medium-high end operation.

The diving itself was spectacular. Definitely pay the extra for the trip to Fam Islands. Other day trips are no extra charge and well worth it. The two house reefs are also great. The resort is built on mangroves, so there are baby fish all around. There are schools of juveniles under the jetty as well as shorelines, as well as baby reef sharks, spotted rays, and barracudas.

Papua Paradise was a unique and exciting experience, jungle meets the sea. The bungalows over the water were something I’ve always wanted to experience. The bed was very comfortable and mosquito nets were put up every morning and put down again at night. Every night, the frogs would sing loudly and the birds would wake you in the morning. Excellent timing since there was so much great snorkeling to experience. I especially liked all the hooks in the room for hanging clothing, etc, as well as the drying rack on the porch.
The food was plentiful and delicious. There were many choices at each meal, Indonesian and western. Staff were friendly and helpful.
The snorkeling in Raja Ampat and the Fam Islands was incredible! Snorkeling the house reefs was in itself a great experience. The house has a front reef, to the left and to the right of the pier as well as a back reef, a short walk to the other side of the resort. We especially enjoyed the front reef to the left facing the island at the end near the last of the bungalows. The dive team were all helpful and knowledgeable.
Papua Paradise is rustic but well set up. If you’re out to dive or snorkel, I think you’ll enjoy the resort.

My husband & I just spent 8 days at Papau Paradise and it was pure bliss. My heart is so full, I already miss everyone so much and am dreaming of a return trip! I was a little apprehensive about going to a dive resort after 2 years of the pandemic but everything exceeded expectations and was incredible. I have so much to say but these are the highlights:

Access to the iconic Raja Ampat dive sites (Fam Islands eg. Melissa’s garden and Kri eg. Blue Magic, Mike’s Point)

Overall, the service was AMAZING. Everyone is so kind and welcoming

Dive crew: We had our own personal dive guide, Pater, who had an eagle eye for spotting sea life and helped us gain more confidence in our diving. Our dive time started at 32 min and by our last dive, we were at 60 min! Also, the captains were experts at safely navigating through all weather conditions and the deck hand helped us suit up for all 18 dives - setting up our bcd, air and putting on our fins for us!

Food: Delicious fresh food, we enjoyed every meal, especially the soups and fresh fruit juices! We celebrated my husband’s birthday while we were there and the staff made him a birthday cake with our favorite cake flavor and sang/played the birthday song for him!

Spa: The spa is closed for renovations but they offer in room massages, which I highly recommend. We got 4 while we were there. Sri is such a good masseuse and one of the kindest people I have met

Accommodations: Nice villa with ocean views. At night, they do turndown service, light mosquito coils and pull the mosquito nets down. We were surprised with how little mosquitos were at the resort

If you’re looking for a sign to book your trip at Papau Paradise, here it is. Book your trip, you won’t regret it!!

Thank you for making our trip so wonderful & unforgettable, Papau Paradise!

Leaving this place today with tears in my eyes. Firstly, the staff... I can't thank them enough for being so nice and friendly and amazing. This place is magical. Arriving in sorong they provide you with a nice room at the Swiss bell with breakfast and a bed and shower so you can rest until the boat pick u up. Arriving at the resort I couldn't believe my eyes. The service is amazing, the rooms are stunning, the info and trips and dives are amazing. Thank you papua paradise, I'm definitely coming back

Amazing resort. Beautiful clean cabins over the water in a picturesque location. Great diving on the house reefs and surrounding area. Food is delicious and plentiful. Definitely recommend

Loved the resort. Truly a paradise. Caveats: no air conditioning and no window screens. They have mosquito nets around the beds, electric mosquito repellent dispersers, and free mosquito repellent in the rooms. You have to put your toilet paper in a bin; the plumbing can't handle it. Food is buffet style and is okay, but not terrific; mostly Asian dishes modified for western tastes with some western dishes (e.g. pasta) thrown in. Our deluxe bungalow was very spacious and comfortable. Fans kept us cool enough despite no AC. Service was excellent, super friendly and attentive. Setting is idyllic. We could not dive due to head colds, but the snorkeling was awesome, and the sunset cruise to see the hornbills was great. The trip to see the Wilson's bird of paradise was a real adventure. You navigate rough, steep, muddy terrain in the dark (headlamps provided). But the stars on the boat ride over were amazing, and sitting hunched in a rickety bird blind while dawn slowly seeps down through the jungle canopy was an unforgettable experience. The bird appeared on cue, but the light was quite low. We did manage to get a couple of good pics though, so it was all worth it! We need to go back so we can actually go diving. Everyone said the diving was great and the dive masters very professional.

As a diver and photographer I would recommend this resort for diving and also snorkelling. Staff are awesome, diving is great. Check on the visibility with the time of year as this was not great on some reefs. Didn't think the trip to Fam Islands was worth the fee so I don't recommend that but everything else is very good.

My 2nd time here and they topped themselves again! Rooms were improved with bigger open deck. Even better food choices and now a new bar and improved lounge. Diving is utmost professional and dive boats are fast and very comfortable with oxygen onboard. Dive plans were consulted and confirmed with guests for next day before dinner each day. Our dive guide Yolens is very detail-oriented. The place was totally booked for 25 rooms when we were there but everything was super organized and professionally done. Unfortunately dugon Emma didn't visit this time. :( But resident great barracuda Carlo is still there under the jetty. Saw it hunting coming back after a night dive. 😮

I stayed here for my birthday week and the resort was absolutely amazing and all the staff were super friendly happy and good to chat with ! And on my brithday they all supprised me with a cake (made from scratch) and all the staff came to sing it really made my day !!

I love all of you and miss you---especially the great kitchen staff and dive guides. Will never forget getting on the boat and being so happy that we just danced all over the boat. I took this trip alone and snorkeled the whole coral triangle -all great---but PPR was just a cut above in every way. Already saving for my return....and a big thanks for teaching me the back flip into the water ( and I am in my 70's) Both house reefs offered hours of unbelievable fish and corals--big hug to Emma who visited as I was in my hammock with a Bentang------just want to be back in Raj with you loving folks-birds-flowers and fish.

Excellent service. Very pleasant stay. Accommodation was very good and the dive center very well organised and managed. But the personalised service made the whole difference. Johan and Sim Yee and Julian and Alaitz (la vasca) were coordinating a very good group of people to achieve an outstanding level of service. Special mention to pak Teja at the restaurant and Alex our dive master during the stay.

Great resort, fantastic diving and nicest people!!! Thank you Deni, Yani, Denni, Yulens, Reuben, Deja, Alfoncina, Onna, Angga and Martin for the unforgettable memories, experience and patience!

If u want 2see manta - go 2 raja ampat, if u want 2see pigmy sea horse - go 2 raja ampat, if u want also have a great service - go to Papua paradise resort )

I was very happy to spend resort environment because everybody's very kind for me to communicate and see me off at the front door.

Fantastic resort with pristine reefs a lot of fish,very friendly staff and very skillfull diveguides