Level: Free shore access This spot have a free shore access: you can go snorkeling there freely and without having to book a tour or pay an entrance fee.
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Last updated on February 28, 2024
In the heart of Raja Ampat, Arborek is a beautiful snorkeling and diving location with a healthy reef, abundant fish, and some of the biggest clams in the area. These latter are the highlights of scuba dives in Arborek, but they can also be observed from the surface.
Arborek Island is mainly accessed from Sorong, the gateway to Raja Ampat. From Sorong Airport (West Papua), transfer to the harbor and board a ferry to Wasai.
You have several options to visit Arborek Island:
The current here is usually strong making Arborek Jetty a drift snorkeling location. The current is most of the time in an east-to-west direction.
If you are on the island, you can enter the water from the shore, preferably from the eastern tip of Arborek Island (snorkel entry 1, see map). Alternative snorkel entry is from the jetty, in particular at low tide.
If you are visiting during a boat tour, the boat will usually drop you on the reef, at the eastern tip of the island (snorkel entry 2). You will sometimes have to fight a strong current pushing you against the reef until you find the right pattern that will start to drift you westward.
This snorkeling location is along the reef drop which fringes the northern shores of Arborek Island. It comprises the surroundings of the island’s main jetty.
Once you are in the water at the tip of the island, start to snorkel westwards. Enjoy the ride and the view on a fantastic reef covered with corals and accompanied by the occasional sea turtle until you reach the jetty where the current becomes milder.
Around the jetty, the fish are extremely abundant and seem to particularly enjoy these artificial structures. You will spot many sergeants, batfish, wrasse, sweetlips, and surgeonfish.
The best area to snorkel is alongside the drop-off (↕16 feet/5 meters), where the best coral, including large colonies of staghorn corals, is found (snorkel itinerary 1 on the map). You may also venture toward the island for a few meters until the water quickly becomes too shallow to be able to swim safely without touching the corals (snorkeling area 2 on the map, ↕6 feet/2 meters).
About 30 meters west of the jetty you will find some Gigas clams which are the highlight of the spot. These clams (up to 40 inches/1.4 meters) are considered to be amongst the biggest on Earth and rest at a depth of about 13 feet/4 meters.
If you happen to see a diver next to it you will realize their true massive size! In the same area, you may also spot a couple of giant morays.
If you are on a boat tour, follow the instructions of your guide or captain regarding your collection point. You may end the snorkeling session at the jetty or the boat may pick you up further west. If you snorkel the location from the shore, a good exit point at low tide is the boat channel found some 50 meters west of the jetty.
Arborek Island has a choice of homestays, all of them being within walking distance from the jetty.
These spots are accessible to anyone with basic snorkeling skills, and feeling comfortable in the water and with his snorkeling gear. You will enter the water from the shore (beach, pontoon, ladder, rocks) or from a boat. The water height in the sea entrance area is reasonable, but you will not necessarily be within your depth. Moderate currents can occur in the area, even when the sea conditions are good. The distance to swim to reach the most interesting snorkeling areas of the spot does not exceed 200 meters. This level only apply when the spot experiences optimal sea and/or weather conditions. It is not applicable if the sea and/or weather conditions deteriorate, in particular in the presence of rough sea, rain, strong wind, unusual current, large tides, waves and/or swell. You can find more details about the definition of our snorkeling levels on our snorkeling safety page.
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Snorkeling spots are part of a wild environment and their aspect can be significantly altered by weather, seasons, sea conditions, human impact and climate events (storms, hurricanes, seawater-warming episodes…). The consequences can be an alteration of the seabed (coral bleaching, coral destruction, and invasive seagrass), a poor underwater visibility, or a decrease of the sea life present in the area. Snorkeling Report makes every effort to ensure that all the information displayed on this website is accurate and up-to-date, but no guarantee is given that the underwater visibility and seabed aspect will be exactly as described on this page the day you will snorkel the spot. If you recently snorkeled this area and noticed some changes compared to the information contained on this page, please contact us.
The data contained in this website is for general information purposes only, and is not legal advice. It is intended to provide snorkelers with the information that will enable them to engage in safe and enjoyable snorkeling, and it is not meant as a substitute for swim level, physical condition, experience, or local knowledge. Remember that all marine activities, including snorkeling, are potentially dangerous, and that you enter the water at your own risk. You must take an individual weather, sea conditions and hazards assessment before entering the water. If snorkeling conditions are degraded, postpone your snorkeling or select an alternate site. Know and obey local laws and regulations, including regulated areas, protected species, wildlife interaction and dive flag laws.
