let us not forget the Nature side of this beautiful province
Apart from all those good things that the Indonesian Government are doing for Papua and its citizens, let us not forget the Nature side of this beautiful province.
Indonesia, 17 500 plus islands! That is a lot of islands. If you had to visit 1 island every day, it would take you about 47 years to visit them all and only about 6000 of these islands are inhabited! Of all these islands, approximately 610 of these islands can be found in the regency of Raja Ampat, part of the West Papua province. I like to refer to Raja Ampat as the jewel of Indonesia.
Located to the east of the province of West Papua, Raja Ampat boasts unrivalled coral reefs and many underwater biodiversity’s. There are hundreds of different fish species and coral species, some only known to be found in the magical regency. Raja Ampat is loved by divers from all around the world because of it unimaginable beauty. This archipelago consists mainly of sea.
Of the approximate 610 islands of Raja Ampat, only 35 are inhabited.
The Regency of Raja Ampat was formed around 2003/2004, previously part of the Sorong Regency. Travelling to Raja Ampat is a challenge as there are no commercial airports in Raja Ampat. A trip to Raja Ampat can up to 2 to 3 days from Jakarta, depending what options you may choose! The visit to these beautiful islands is very well worth the trip though, so do not let the lengthy travel time discourage you.
One of the most popular places to visit in Raja Ampat is Wayag (Wajag Island). This must be one of the most photographed areas in the Raja Ampat regency.
In addition to this Jewel, there are other areas surrounding Raja Ampat that will also literally blow your mind. From the North to the South as well as going east
Further east you will find Sulawesi which too have some very impressive islands and places to visit. So do bare this in mind when travelling in the area.
With infrastructure being developed throughout the province of Papua, in the very near future most citizens will have the access to visit this jewel, Raja Ampat!
