The manta snorkelling trips below go to two sites off Nusa Penida, Manta Bay and Manta Point, and the price of seeing them depends less on the site than on where you sleep. From an office on Nusa Penida, 2 hours on a shared boat cost IDR 200,000 (≈ $12) per person. From your hotel on mainland Bali, a full day with pickup, the fast boat from Sanur and lunch costs IDR 1,200,000 (≈ $71) per adult. In between sit a private day at IDR 1,100,000 (≈ $65) per person for a group of five, an island day on Lembongan at IDR 600,000 (≈ $35) and a Manta Point trip at IDR 1,550,000 (≈ $91).
- Manta Bay and Manta Point: what the operators say about each
- A day from Sanur: what each price includes
- Short trips from Lembongan and Nusa Penida
- What the operators promise about sightings
- Fees, transfers and children
Important
None of these operators guarantees mantas, and only two say what happens if they do not show up. Read the paragraph on guarantees below before paying for the more expensive trip in the hope of better odds.
Manta Bay or Manta Point: what is the difference?
Manta Bay is a feeding area off the north-west coast of Nusa Penida; Manta Point is a cleaning station, where mantas come to be cleaned by small fish. Two operators describe them in opposite terms, and both versions are worth knowing. Ceningan Paradise Adventures, which sells a Manta Point trip at IDR 1,550,000 (≈ $91) per person, calls Manta Point the place with the highest chance, especially in the morning, about 45 minutes by boat from Lembongan, and writes that Manta Bay, 15 minutes away, has less consistent sightings.
Manta Snorkeling Penida, which sells Manta Bay from its office at IDR 200,000 (≈ $12) per person, calls Manta Bay its most reliable site. Its reason is the coastline: the bay sits in a sheltered corner of the north-west coast, so it keeps running when swell closes the south coast, and the mantas feed near the surface at a depth of 3 to 8 m, so you float on top and watch them below.
A third operator uses both. On Lembongan Trip’s day from Sanur, at IDR 1,200,000 (≈ $71) per adult, the first stop is Manta Bay, and if there are no mantas there, the boat goes to Manta Point at no extra cost when the weather allows. For divers, Bali Fun Diving adds that Manta Point faces the Indian Ocean and that the swell decides on the day whether anyone can get in.
A day from Sanur: what each price includes
If you stay on mainland Bali, you cross the Badung Strait from Sanur, and the four days below differ in what they leave to you. The Lembongan Trip day is the complete package at IDR 1,200,000 (≈ $71) per adult: pickup between 7:00 and 8:00, the 9:15 fast boat from New Sanur Port, 3 snorkel spots, an Indonesian lunch, 30 minutes in the Lembongan mangroves by traditional boat and the 16:00 boat back. Children aged 4 to 12 pay IDR 875,000 (≈ $51), and the minimum is 2 people.
The Kinara Nusatour private day on Nusa Penida is IDR 1,100,000 (≈ $65) per person for a group of 5 or more and IDR 1,800,000 (≈ $106) each for a couple. It adds your own snorkelling boat for 2.5 to 3 hours at Manta Bay, Gamat Bay and Wall Bay, the island entry fee, and a car with driver to Kelingking, Paluang Cliff and Broken Beach in the afternoon.
| Operator and format | Per person | Hotel pickup | Fast boat and island fee | Lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lembongan Trip, shared day | IDR 1,200,000 (≈ $71), child 4–12 IDR 875,000 (≈ $51) | free in Kuta, Legian, Seminyak, Petitenget, Jimbaran, Nusa Dua, Sanur, Denpasar; elsewhere a surcharge, amount not published | fast boat included | included |
| Kinara Nusatour, private day | IDR 1,100,000 (≈ $65) from 5 people, IDR 1,800,000 (≈ $106) for 2 | Kuta, Seminyak, Canggu, Nusa Dua, central Ubud, Jimbaran, Sanur; elsewhere a surcharge, amount not published | both included | in the schedule, not in the list of inclusions |
| Manta Snorkeling Penida, Sanur option | IDR 400,000 (≈ $24) | none, meet at Sanur port at 7:30 | fast boat included; island entry fee paid on arrival | not listed |
| Lembongan Island Tour, Bali option | IDR 900,000 (≈ $53) | on request at extra cost, amount not published; otherwise meet in Sanur at 8:30 | fast boat included | included, set menu |
The table is why the cheapest line is not automatically the cheapest day. The IDR 400,000 (≈ $24) option leaves you to reach the port and to pay the island entry fee, whose amount the operator does not print, and it lists no lunch; the IDR 1,200,000 (≈ $71) day includes all three. The Lembongan Island Tour version from Bali has its own catch: the operator gives the return boat at 14:30 while its island tour runs until 15:30, so ask how much of the car tour you get.
If you are already on Lembongan or Nusa Penida
From the islands the manta trip becomes a morning, or 2 hours. The shared boat from Banjar Nyuh harbour costs IDR 200,000 (≈ $12) per person with guide, mask, snorkel, fins, life jacket, water and the marine park fee. Departures are at 9:30 and 14:00, you meet at the office 15 minutes before, the boat takes up to 20 guests, and after Manta Bay the captain picks 2 or 3 stops among Crystal Bay, Gamat Bay and Wall Point by the current.
On Lembongan, the Ceningan Paradise trip to Manta Point costs IDR 1,550,000 (≈ $91) per person for up to 3.5 hours, with a minimum of 2 guests, pickup in the Lembongan area about 30 minutes before the start, and underwater photos and video. The start time is agreed when you book, and the operator recommends the morning. Lembongan Island Tour sells a whole island day for IDR 600,000 (≈ $35) per person: pickup at 9:30, snorkelling at 3 spots from 10:30 to 13:00, lunch, the mangroves by traditional boat and a car tour to Panorama Viewpoint, Dream Beach and Devil’s Tear.
The Utopia morning cruise costs IDR 1,600,000 (≈ $94) per person and is a different kind of day: 5 hours on a catamaran with at most 20 guests, breakfast and lunch buffets, paddleboards and floating beanbags. Its route map names Mangrove Point and SD Point rather than a manta site, and the operator talks about turtles and dolphins, which depend on the day. Book it for the boat, not for the mantas.
What the operators promise about mantas
Each of them says mantas cannot be guaranteed, and each phrases it differently. Lembongan Trip says sightings are very frequent but cannot be guaranteed, and publishes a plan B: Manta Point at no extra cost if Manta Bay is empty and the weather allows. Manta Snorkeling Penida writes that no one can guarantee wild animals and that, without mantas, the crew spends longer at the reef sites.
Ceningan Paradise is the case to read twice. The trip is called “98% Guarantee”, while the operator’s own notes say wildlife sightings can never be guaranteed 100%, and it publishes no refund for a trip without mantas. Kinara Nusatour calls mantas a chance and switches spots when the weather is not suitable; Lembongan Island Tour says its crew watches the ocean and heads for the best-known places.
Fees, transfers and payment: what comes on top
The island entry fee is the first thing to check. Kinara Nusatour includes it; the shared boat from the Banjar Nyuh office includes the marine park fee; on the Sanur option of the same boat you pay the island entry fee yourself on arrival. The second is the transfer: Lembongan Trip and Kinara Nusatour charge extra outside their pickup zones without printing the amount, and Lembongan Island Tour arranges hotel transfers on Bali on request, also at an unpublished price. Ceningan Paradise and Utopia start on Lembongan, so the crossing from Bali is yours to arrange.
Payment adds small percentages. Lembongan Island Tour takes cash on arrival with no surcharge and adds 3% for cards; Utopia adds 3% for cards at its ticket office and charges for bar drinks; Kinara Nusatour charges a card surcharge it does not specify. Lembongan Trip accepts online payment, bank transfer or cash in rupiah on the day.
With children, and for weak swimmers
Lembongan Trip prices children aged 4 to 12 at IDR 875,000 (≈ $51), so two adults and two children pay IDR 4,150,000 (≈ $244) with transfer, boat and lunch. Lembongan Island Tour takes IDR 50,000 (≈ $3) off per child aged 3 to 10, children under 3 go free, and its insurance covers guests aged 3 to 65. Manta Snorkeling Penida gives two minimum ages on its own page, 11 in the trip header and 10 in the booking terms, and welcomes non-swimmers with life jackets and a guide in the water; it does not recommend the trip for pregnant travellers or people with heart conditions or severe asthma. Utopia welcomes children with parental supervision.
