“I cherish the trips I make to Murex”

Ken Kurtis from the Reef Seekers Dive Co. has been visiting Murex Dive Resorts for over a decade now. His first trip was in 2001 and since then he has been visiting Murex every year or every other year. Every time he brings a group of divers with him that thoroughly enjoys Murex Manado and the diving around North-Sulawesi. The group always varies a little bit but some of them came already 4 times with Ken to visit Murex.

I cherish the trips I make to Murex. There are a couple of reasons for that.

The resort itself is very lovely and the setting quite serene. You certainly wouldn’t expect tranquility when you turn off the busy Manado main drag, but that’ds what you get only a few hundred yards in. The various rooms are near running streams and set amidst a lush grove of trees, it’s a short walk down to the communal dining area, and then you’re only steps from the sea. What could be more relaxing?

The diving is simply wonderful and varied. When I bring a group, we plan a number of different options which include diving Bunaken Marine Park (made even more accessible by newer, faster boats), muck sites that ring the shores of Manado Bay, Bangka Island and one of the prettiest soft coral dives ever at Sahaung, and the mighty Lembeh Straits, a 90-minute drive away. By hitting a combination of these areas, we can really experience all that the Manado area has to offer.

But one of the best reasons I like going back to Murex is that it feels like coming home. I’ve made good friends here over the years and so this is not just coming to some other dive resort where it’s assembly-line diving and next week there will be a new slew of campers to deal with. This is a place where you feel like they truly want to take time to know you, enjoy your company both diving-wise and socially, and where everyone cares and strives to make sure your trip is as fabulous as it can be.

And when you put all of those together, you have one hell of a dive experience that you’ll be hard-pressed to duplicate anywhere else in the world.

– Ken