A Remote Island Escape in North Halmahera

It was a long journey from the Netherlands to the Metita resort. At the airport, we were picked up by two incredibly friendly people from the resort: Fajar and Arnold. They took us to the boat, and from that moment on, the real enjoyment began.
Metita Island loomed in the distance, and it became increasingly fairytale-like.

Ronnie gave us a warm welcome with a delicious sandwich and coconut milk. We enjoyed this treat while he gave the briefing.
After we had enjoyed the treats, Ronnie took us to our accommodation, where we looked in disbelief at the beautifully furnished “cottage” with an idyllic view of the ocean. The outdoor shower is also worth mentioning. It is wonderful to be able to shower in nature.

It is worth mentioning that they have a great chef who loves to cook your favorite food, and it tastes fantastic.
Every day, a 4-course dinner is cooked where you can choose from 3 main courses and two or three desserts. Plates are always served with care by two real stars, namely Messi and Albert.

Another nice feature is that you can walk barefoot everywhere because there is sand all over. So you don’t have to worry about which shoes to wear.

The resort features a camera room right next to the dive school.
All kinds of equipment in good condition are available for rent at the dive school.

The boats used for the dives are very comfortable. Towels are provided for use between dives. There is coffee, tea, and some treats… Always lots of treats. The dives are very varied, with many beautiful fan corals but little macro. Shark Point is very attractive with the blacktips and is therefore a “must go”. Special thanks to Fajar, who, together with him, made the diving a real treat for us.
That being said;

From the moment you sail onto the boat to Metita Island, you arrive at a paradise island where Ronnie and Katharina, together with “their” crew, do everything they can to make your vacation unforgettable.

Arrival: We chose the overland route for the outbound journey. Everything was perfectly organized and all the gears meshed together. Although the journey is relatively long, it goes right across Halmahera, which was very beautiful in terms of scenery. Upon arrival, we were warmly welcomed with fresh coconuts and sandwiches.

Bungalows: Very tastefully furnished, very well-maintained, with a view of the sea and a very comfortable outdoor bathroom.

Food: the menu for lunch and dinner consists of an appetizer, first course, main course, and dessert. For the main course, there are options for meat, fish, and vegetarian dishes. The cuisine is very refined, and our wishes were explicitly taken into account. The food was overall excellent and offered a very good selection of fresh vegetables, fruits, proteins, and healthy carbohydrates from the regional cuisine.

Excursions: Here too, our wishes were taken into account, and we explored the underwater world while snorkeling. The house reef itself is already very worthwhile. Jekhi, our dear guide, took us to a snorkeling spot at our special request, where we could see seahorses. The return trip from our last snorkeling adventure unexpectedly provided us with a wonderful conclusion when we encountered a group of dolphins and pilot whales. That was the icing on the cake of our stay.

Staff: All of them were extremely dedicated, very warm, and accommodating. It couldn’t have been better. The day of arrival was my husband’s birthday. During dinner, the lights were suddenly dimmed, and as a wonderful surprise, the entire crew came around the corner singing in Indonesian – accompanied by a ukulele – with a birthday cake (lactose-free for my husband!) in hand. That was simply incredible and made the evening very special. We would also like to mention that everyone (!) was very kind to us and very attentive to our six-year-old daughter. Thanks especially to Stery! My daughter and I will always cherish the stand-up paddling with you in Dodola as a beautiful memory.

Yes, the journey from Germany was long. But the moment we were greeted by the hotel staff at Morotai Airport and taken by boat to the island, our happiness levels soared.

We received a very warm welcome from Katharina, Ronny, and their crew. Over a fresh coconut and a delicious sandwich, they explained the island to us. Afterward, we were taken to our bungalow and given an orientation.

The view of the sea and the surrounding nature was simply magnificent. The bungalow itself had everything we needed. We didn’t miss having a TV at all; we simply didn’t need one here in paradise 😊. There was air conditioning, a ceiling fan, a minibar, fresh water, and a super-good mosquito net around the incredibly comfortable bed. And there was plenty of mosquito repellent. You really need it there.

You can go barefoot everywhere. I absolutely love that; it saves a tremendous amount of space in your suitcase, and you don’t have to spend ages deciding which shoes go with your outfit 😊.

I think the food deserves special mention. A handwritten menu is displayed on a chalkboard for lunch and dinner each day. It includes an appetizer, a first course, a main course with three choices, and dessert (also a choice of two: fruit or something sweet). The food is freshly prepared for each guest, always absolutely delicious, and presented with such care! They are happy to accommodate special requests. The waiters provided excellent service. Never intrusive, always modest and discreet, and always friendly with a smile. A special thank you to Messi and Albert.

Activities: You can enjoy walks, relax on the beach, swim, snorkel on the house reef with Black Tip Shark Point (my personal highlight), and of course, dive 😊 The crew, led by our dive guide Jekhi, took excellent care of us at all times. We practically didn’t have to do anything except breathe on our own. Our equipment was washed, dried, and stored. The onboard supply of water and snacks was outstanding. I can’t remember the last time I was “forced” to drink water 😉 Staying hydrated is very important when diving! Thank you for taking care of that.

For me, it was a big plus that the ladder on the boat had proper steps. It’s much more comfortable than climbing onto the boat using rungs while carrying all the diving equipment.

We would have loved to take a trip to Morotai Island in the jungle. Such a trip wasn’t offered yet, but Katharina, Ronny, and their team are working on it. Instead, we were able to take a short jungle tour on Metita Island. That was also very interesting for us. The feeling of clearing a path with a machete, having a coconut freshly picked from the palm tree and opened – wonderful!

The dive sites we visited were mostly more suited to dedicated macro enthusiasts. We had quite a few of those on board during our stay. We certainly would have preferred to see lots of fish, and perhaps some larger pelagic fish. Nevertheless, the underwater world is truly beautiful and pristine.

Katharina and Ronny took over the management of the island almost immediately after our arrival. I’m sure you can discover even more of this beautiful island. We always felt warmly welcomed and well cared for. You were always present and available. We laughed a lot and truly felt like we were “on holiday with friends.” Thank you so much; you all made our stay incredibly wonderful.

We had an absolutely wonderful stay at the Metita Dive Resort!
Where to start … our room was really beautiful, spacious and decorated with great attention to detail, including air conditioning, a beautiful outdoor bathroom, toiletries, a mosquito net, a mini bar with water and drinks, and (best of all) a direct view of the sea and sunset from the bed. The porch features a hammock and a integrated outdoor bed, again with sea view – so stunning!

The common areas are equally beautiful, with comfortable chairs and sofas, and the pool is amazing – warm water with a view of the beach and sunset. The island itself is small, you can walk around in less than an hour, and there’s really only the resort, but that’s all you need 😎Beware of sand flies, and bring repellent!

The food was absolutely outstanding – every day we enjoyed a four-course menu that perfectly blended Western and Indonesian dishes. The chef really outdid himself again and again (the chocolate mousse! the creme brulee!), and there’s 4 meals a day, from breakfast to lunch and afternoon tea with cake to dinner – you’re never hungry.

The on-site dive center is top-notch, with fantastic guides and breathtaking dive sites. We‘ve hardly ever seen so many healthy reefs, the corals are truly amazing, in all colors and shapes, and there’s reef fish, turtles and so many sharks – almost every dive had sharks, from grey reef sharks to white and black tips. However, if you’re primarily looking for pelagic, this might not be the best place. But if you’re happy with the most amazing coral reefs and walls, this is perfect.

Jekhi, the dive master, planned wonderful dives for us every day. We did most dives with Will (who also works at Laconna Dive Center in Ternate, great place, also recommended), and he’s a perfect guide who found us all the small and big stuff, even the famous walking shark!
It was always just the 2 of us with a dive guide, no big groups, and apart from the Metita boat, there were never any other divers – you really have all the reefs to yourself.

A special shout-out to the resort management: Florian and Nancy went above and beyond to make us feel welcome, always being available for any questions and making us feel truly at home. We highly recommend the Metita Dive Resort and can’t wait to return!

What a fantastic place! Just half a dozen beautifully-designed, roomy and very comfortable bungalows sitting at the edge of a sandy beach, linked via walkways through the tropical gardens to an equally beautiful restaurant/bar; and with the dive centre close by. Delicious food – mostly Indonesian (with spice levels dialled down), and making the most of locally-caught fish.
The managers and dive guides went out of their way to make sure that everyone was well looked after; and everyone in the staff team was very friendly and helpful. At the time I was there, I seemed to be the only person who was keen to do three or four dives per day – and there was no hesitation in organising the boat, crew and a dive guide for afternoon or evening dives with just one guest.
As for the diving – during my two weeks there, I didn’t see any dive boats other than from this resort, so exploring the reefs with just a few other divers (sometimes just me and a dive guide) felt like a real privilege. There were sharks on just about every dive, plenty of turtles (though shy), eagle rays, blue-spotted rays, occasional sightings of bumpheads, and a fantastic variety of reef fish; also some really good macro life. And the coral is jaw-droppingly beautiful – unbelievable variety of hard and soft coral, in perfect condition on most of the dive sites, jostling for every available inch; and on the wall dives, stunning sea fans and sponges and incredible colour in the overhangs and crevices.
There are easier places to get to – but this is soooooo worth a longer journey!

I recently spent a week at Metita Dive Resort near Morotai and thoroughly enjoyed both the resort and its beautiful surroundings. Nestled on a small, remote island in North Halmahera, the resort offers a rare combination of comfort, tranquillity, and wonderful access to nature.

From the moment I arrived, I felt welcome. The team was warm, friendly, and their genuine hospitality was evident throughout my stay.

The resort strikes a perfect balance between luxury and island charm. One of the highlights of my stay was the dining experience. The food was absolutely delicious, with an excellent à la carte menu offering a wide variety of fresh and flavourful dishes. There is something special about enjoying high-quality meals with your feet in the sand, surrounded by tropical scenery and the sound of the ocean. It perfectly captures the laid-back elegance that makes Metita so unique.
The room was spacious and very comfortable and had a large verandah, perfect to relax.

I also appreciated the fact that they are mindful of plastic pollution on the island. There is a large water dispenser in the dining area and on the dive boat, and every day the staff refilled my two glass bottles in my room. I also loved the selection of organic loose-leaf teas. They taste so much better than tea bags and avoid all the unnecessary individual wrappers and packaging. The team also cleans the resort beach every day and do clean ups of the island and the reef when they can.

The diving around the resort was lovely. The corals on the house reefs are gorgeous, healthy, vibrant and very pristine. Because these reefs are accessible directly from the island, they are perfect for both diving and snorkelling. It is also quite common to see blacktip reef sharks near the old jetty, which is always a treat. I often went there for a snorkel between dives.

There are several dive sites nearby, and I got to see two species I had never seen before: the Lembeh sea dragon and the Halmahera walking shark (I’m still very excited about that!).
We also did a day trip to Galela Jetty, where we completed three dives. This is a muck-diving site, and there is lots to see there: octopuses, seahorses, mantis shrimps, scorpionfish, numerous nudibranch species, hairy squat lobsters, sexy shrimps, and one of my favourite critters, the emperor shrimp.

What makes Metita particularly special is how effortlessly it combines comfort and luxury with a relaxed atmosphere. Whether diving, snorkelling, or simply enjoying the surrounding nature, every day felt relaxing.
The resort’s remote location is, to me, one of its greatest strengths, along with its small size. It is incredibly special to be the only divers at a site and not have to deal with crowds. It also means that the area feels pristine and largely untouched. I enjoyed walking around the island among lush tropical greenery, spotting beautiful insects and even the rare Maleo bird.

That said, its remoteness also means that getting there can be a bit of a logistical exercise. As flights can sometimes be unreliable, I would strongly recommend asking about the land transfer options. The journey involves a couple of fast-boat transfers and a car ride, but the resort can organise everything for you, and the whole process runs very smoothly. It is also a great opportunity to see some of the local towns and villages along the way.