Southeast Asia Travel

Meals Review

Great food and great crew!

Traveler Advice

Sea was a bit choppy the first couple of days, but not much you can do about that!

AdventureSmith Explorations Review

They helped us organize all our flights.  Even reached out to check in on us when there was an airport closure due to volcanic activity. 

Accommodations Review

The ship (Ombak Putih) was a beautiful, traditional, completely dialed Indonesian sailing vessel. The quarters below were not huge, but very clean, comfortable and as beautiful as the rest of the ship. Just the amount of hard work that went into this boat was breathtaking. We were lucky to have a small group (9), so there was plenty of deck space around to relax and not feel cramped. Even though this boat was equipped to sail if need be, we motored 99% of the time. We sailed 1 afternoon for fun, but there was no way we were going to cover the ground (almost 1000 miles) sailing the whole time.  Motor noise/exhaust was no issue at any time, night or day.

Meals Review

I couldn’t even think of anything I would change food wise. Amazing. Every stop we made, or local fisherman we saw, fresh fish and local goods were acquired. No food illness, water was processed on the boat etc. Beer was very reasonably priced. Cheaper than Mexico.

AdventureSmith Explorations Review

Unless you have months on your hands to stumble around foreign countries and really figure it out on your own, a quality specified travel agency like Adventuresmith is absolutely necessary for a trip of this caliber. Having firsthand knowledge of the ins and outs of small ship/remote world travel you’re in good hands. All connections and logistics where handled and everything operated smoothly. No problems.  Having spent so much of my life on the ocean, I love boats, marine life and accessing coastlines via a small boat or ship.  To me it really is the best way to travel. Whether you tie up in a large bustling port city, or anchor off a remote beach, it’s a whole different perspective than land travel. I look forward to another amazing boat trip with Adventuresmith in the future. 

Crew & Guides Review

Ari was our main guide. He was exceptional. An Indonesian and Sulawesi local. Though we had people from all over the world on the boat, English was primarily spoken and Ari was absolutely fluent. No missed communications, or misunderstandings, he was 1 step ahead all the time, with the safety of the group the priority. There were times we didn’t swim, go ashore, or go to certain areas because the Captain and Ari deemed it unsafe, mostly due to ocean conditions. Spending most of my life around the ocean, I understood and respected what they were talking about. This was very comforting to know how attentive they were.  Due to our remoteness on this trip, there was no margin for error or injury.  This isolation became evident not long after we set out, and the crew operated accordingly.  There was no hot dogging or showing off, it was all business.  One instance in particular we were snorkeling around a deep water reef with a lot of current.  We had 2 zodiacs in the water tending to the swimmers.  A large, Rogue dive boat trying to track across the channel started to get swept toward us under full power.  Ari in the zodiac recognize this immediately, drove the zodiac in front of the dive boat and started screaming at the captain.  The boat turned, got swept down current and had to come up the long way to the anchorage.  Without his quick response the boat would have come very close to us.  I was watching it all unfold and would have swam out of the way, but I can’t say that for the rest of the snorkelers, focused on the sea turtles!  Kees was also another exceptional guide.  Having moved to Jakarta from Europe 20 years ago he knew the culture quite well.  His expertise in birding was an eye opener for me.  Most nights he put on informative presentations regarding the next day’s adventures.  Another very smart, professional guide we enjoyed very much.   

Accommodations Review

The Ombak Putih is a rad ship! We felt like we were pirates exploring the islands. I also feel that the traditional pinisi boats (as there were a few around) just fit right into the landscape, whereas the more yachty or modern boats seemed out of place.

Meals Review

Lots of variety. Loved the lemongrass flavorings. Could have more Indonesian foods, felt odd seeing a lot of red meat, cheese and smoked salmon when we can tell these items had to travel far to get there.

Crew & Guides Review

Great people. Fun to be around. Could fine tune their presentations and become stronger speakers for the evening presentations, but did a great job making everything run smoothly and keep us occupied.

Transportation Review

Our internal flights were arranged for us, as well as transfers to and from the ship which made our Indonesia domestic travel flawless.

AdventureSmith Explorations Review

The packing lists, online forms and the arrangements made were all excellent and timely. My friends and family would love to experience the magic of small ship travel that AdventureSmith offers.

Traveler Advice

If you get cold in the water bring a wet-suit top at least. The water is warm, but for us who tend to be cold just a little extra layer can make it so much more enjoyable. Also some people had long, thin rash-guard pants which were great protection against the annoying sea lice and jellyfish that we would encounter.