Budget Accommodation and Diving on Bunaken Island

Introduction

Formerly known as Panorama Cottages, Panorama Backpackers is one of the oldest and most experienced resorts on the island of Bunaken. Recently refurbished, it was originally established just as travellers began to reach the island. We have always been a family-run, local enterprise and our staff, all of whom are family and friends, will take pride in caring for you during your stay here. If you want a friendly, casual, backpacker-style retreat, with a genuine home-stay atmosphere, then Panorama could just be what you're looking for.

Our focus here at Backpackers is on the traveller experience, giving you a great bar and chill zone to hang out in between dives and the space to mix and share with like-minded souls. We see people from all over the world, all with that love of nature and exploration in their eye. We simply want you to enjoy yourself - with the live acoustic music, having a few beers, playing cards, reading at the book exchange - we're here for you.

Our place lies on a small promontory, overlooking and spilling onto Liang beach on the west coast. Named Panorama because of the amazing view across the reef to the Sun setting on nearby Manado Tua Island, and for the spectacular volcanoes clearly visible on the coast of nearby North Sulawesi. It is well-known as a great destination by many travellers, divers and snorkellers the world over.

* Contrary to some reports you may have read, all the beaches on Bunaken can have equal problems with plastic debris - it isn't confined to Liang Beach alone. The problem is by far at its worst in the rainy season between January and March when storms and currents wash debris across from the mainland. At all times of year however, our staff tend to the beach daily to keep it as clean as possible and help give you Bunaken's best experience.

Diving

Enjoy one of the very best dive spots on the planet, guided by professional, experienced dive guides. With even more bio-diversity than the Great Barrier Reef, many regard Bunaken to have the best diving experience in all Indonesia. We wouldn't disagree, but then we love our island.

Renowned for its huge reef walls, it lies right in the middle of the coral triangle with a high diversity of corals and is home to a vast number of fish species. Many of our very best dive sites are between 5 to 25 minutes from our resort allowing you to get straight down onto the reef without lengthy boat trips.

From the very small things like Pygmy Seahorses, Ghost Pipe Fish or Nudibranches, to huge Napoleon fish, schools of colourful reef fish alongside sharks or Eagle Rays - you can discover everything right here in Bunaken, the variety is simply staggering. Check out all of this aquatic life here in our gallery. All of these pictures have been taken directly from the very sites you will be diving for yourself - such is the vast range of wildlife here.

Our dive centre in neighbouring Panorama Dive Resort is run by a highly experienced European instructor who is very passionate about the reef. He strives to deliver the very best dive experiences, setup your gear and provide you with skilled and professional dive guides who can show you all of the amazing creatures that thrive in the sea around Bunaken.

Rooms

We continually seek to keep costs down and pass that saving onto you, our guests. With some of the least costly rooms on the island, we always try to give you the very best deal we can while providing everything the veteran traveller is looking for.

Clean and comfortable, each of our rooms has a double bed, and a couple with an accompanying single bed. All rooms include a fan, mosquito net and have an en-suite bathroom with western-style toilet and shower. There is also a hammock on each balcony if you fancy a spot of relaxation after diving.

If you're on a tight budget then we offer our best value rooms in the garden area, close to the heart of the family where you're certain to make new friends. If you have a little more to spend then we can also offer you a great sea-view room - but still at a price to put a smile on the face.

When you book a room with us, don't forget that you get three good meals a day all included. For those in-between times, there's all the coffee you can drink and fruit you can eat - free, gratis, on the house!

Mains electricity can be unreliable throughout all of Bunaken which can at times be quite frustrating, but fear not as we are able to provide you with a backup supply when required.