Raymond's

Raymond’s is an advanced wall dive on Bunaken Island’s north-west coast, named after a well-known local dive guide, featuring a particularly rugged wall face with deep overhangs and strong pelagic activity.

Overview

Raymond’s sits close to Mike’s on the island’s north-west corner, where the reef wraps around a point and the wall’s character becomes more dramatic. The site is named after Raymond, a celebrated Bunaken dive guide whose intimate knowledge of this section of wall earned the site its name. Like its neighbour Mike’s, this site is subject to stronger ocean currents and swells than the south-coast sites, giving it an adventurous character that appeals to experienced divers seeking something beyond the standard tourist circuit.

What to Expect

The wall crest sits at around 5 metres and the face drops precipitously to beyond 40 metres. The defining feature of Raymond’s is its deeply undercut sections between 15 and 30 metres — massive overhangs where the rock face retreats a metre or more, creating cave-like environments packed with bright orange and red soft corals, feather stars, and encrusting invertebrates that thrive in the low-light conditions. Torch light transforms these recesses into galleries of vivid colour.

Sharks are a reliable feature: whitetip reef sharks rest on ledges and in sand pockets at depth, while grey reef sharks occasionally patrol the open water alongside the wall. The stronger currents at Raymond’s draw baitfish schools, and the subsequent predator activity — trevally, barracuda, and Spanish mackerel — makes the open water around the point exciting. Turtles are present as at all Bunaken wall sites, though they tend to appear more briefly here and spend less time resting, perhaps responding to the more energetic current conditions.

Conditions

• Depth range: 5–40+ m
• Visibility: 15–30 m
• Currents: Moderate to strong; site exposed to prevailing north-west swells
• Water temperature: 26–30°C
• Best season: May–October

Tips

The overhangs are the highlight of Raymond’s — bring a good torch and slow down in these sections. Positioning in these recesses requires careful buoyancy management to avoid disturbing the invertebrate growth on the ceiling. Surface conditions can make boat pickups challenging; discuss the plan with the skipper before descent and ensure everyone has their SMB ready for the ascent.

Sources: Murex Resorts - Diving Bunaken Guide, Two Fish Divers - Bunaken Dive Sites, Bluewater Dive Travel - Manado Bunaken, Dive The World - Bunaken Manado, ZuBlu - Beautiful Bunaken Guide, Murex Resorts - Diving Bunaken, Tasik Ria Dive Sites Bunaken, ZuBlu - Best Dive Sites in Bunaken, Dive The World - Bunaken National Park, Underwater Asia - Bunaken Diving Guide. Last updated 2026-04-04.