Palau Seribu means thousand islands and is the name to a group of many small islands off the north coast of Java. Access to the islands is easy by speedboat from the mainland and resorts on the islands offer diving daytrips. The fringing reefs around these islands are healthier than in other areas. Divers can see turtles, stingrays, moray eels and schools of reef fish here. There are also some wreck dives in this area.
Karimunjawa is a 27 island archipelago off the north coast of Java, a three hour ferry ride from the mainland. The area is divided into seperate conservation zones to help preserve the environment. Fringing reefs are healthy with clear water, colourful corals and good fish life.
Hawksbill turtles can be seen at Hawksbill Point on Menyawakan Island. Bumphead parrotfish can be seen at Torpedo Reef as can white tip reef sharks. Whale sharks are occasionally seen at Krakal Kecil and Krakal Besar.
There are also some wrecks around the islands including the Indonur, a large Dutch steamship that hit a reef in 1963 when her captain mistook a fire on a beach for the lights of Semarang. Large groupers can be seen on the wreck as well as moray eels, lionfish, scorpionfish and octopus.
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