Bunaken National Marine Park

Beach tourism is the most tourist places frequented by tourists. In addition to offering the feel of a tropical, beach tourism also offers an amazing beauty. If discussing the beach tourism is incomplete if it not discuss the underwater tourism. One of the tourism spot that offer the beauty beneath the sea is Bunaken. Bunaken is an island covering an area of ​​8.08 km ² at Manado Bay, situated on the northern island of Sulawesi, Indonesia. This island is part of the city of Manado, the provincial capital of North Sulawesi, Indonesia. Bunaken island can be traveled by speed boat or a rented boat with about 30 minute trip from the port city of Manado. Around the Bunaken island there is Bunaken National Marine Park. This marine park has the highest marine biodiversity among  in the world. Scuba diving attracts many visitors to the island. Bunaken National Marine Park as a whole covers an area of ​​75 265 hectares that five islands within it, namely the island of Manado Tua, Bunaken Island, Siladen Island, Island Mantehage, and island Naen. Although it covers an area of ​​75 265 hectares, the location of the dive (diving) is limited in each of the five beaches that surround the island.

Bunaken National Park is representative of Indonesia's tropical aquatic ecosystem consisting of mangrove ecosystems, seagrass beds, coral reefs, and land / coastal ecosystems. Potential of the mainland from the island national park is rich in species of palm, sago, woka, silar and coconut. Animal species that live on the mainland and coastal regions such as Sulawesi black macaques (Macaca nigra nigra), deer (Cervus russa timorensis), and possum (Ailurops ursinus ursinus). Plant species in the mangrove Bunaken National Park is  Rhizophora sp., Sonneratia sp., Lumnitzera sp., and Bruguiera sp. This forest is rich with various kinds of crabs, shrimp, mollusks and various types of sea birds such as gulls, herons, tern, and cangak sea. Types of algae found in this park include the type of Caulerpa sp., Halimeda sp., and Padina sp. Seagrass that dominated mainly on the Montehage island and  Nain island are Thalassia hemprichii, Enhallus acoroides, and Thalassodendron ciliatum.

Recorded that 13 generations of  corals live in the waters of Bunaken National Park, dominated by fringing reefs and barrier reefs. The most interesting is a vertical cliff as far as 25-50 meters. Approximately 91 species of fish found in waters of Bunaken National Park, including fish gusumi horse (Hippocampus kuda), white oci (Seriola rivoliana), lolosi yellow tail (Lutjanus kasmira), goropa (Ephinephelus spilotoceps Pseudanthias hypselosoma), ila trunk (Scolopsis bilineatus) , and others. Types of mollusks like giant clams (Tridacna gigas), head of the goat (Cassis cornuta), hollow nautilus (Nautilus pompillius), and tunikates / ascidian.

Bunaken marine park has a 20 point dive (dive spot) with varying depths of up to 1344 meters. Of the 20 point dive, 12 dive spot of which are located around Bunaken Island. Twelve-point diving is the most frequently visited by divers and lovers of the beauty of the underwater scenery. Most of the 12 point dive in Bunaken island lined up from the southeast to the northwest of the island. In this region there is a great underwater walls, also called the hanging walls, or walls of a giant rock that stands vertical and curved upward. These rock walls are also a source of food for fish in the waters around Bunaken Island.

Trips to Bunaken Park was better during the summer, not the rainy season because the weather is less friendly. If interested in visiting the national park of the Port of Manado could use a motor boat and only takes about 30 minutes to reach P. Bunaken. To be able to experience the true underwater diving can use the service that is widely available around the park.