Best Of Solomon Islands
March to December | Honiara to Honiara
7 nights: Russell Islands, Florida Islands, Mary Island
9 nights and longer: Russell Islands, Florida Islands, Mary Island, Marovo Lagoon
Itinerary Highlights
One of the very few liveaboards exploring the Solomon Islands, Bilikiki gives an exclusive exploration of this beautiful and fascinating country
- Abundant and varied marine life from sharks and eagle rays to pygmy seahorses
- Fascinating World War II wrecks including an old American base, a bombed Japanese cargo vessel and a ‘Mavis’ Japanese seaplane which remains impressively intact
- A huge variety of diving experiences like muck, walls, caves, coral gardens, wrecks, sea mounts and dive to the soundtrack of an underwater volcano.
- Visit local villages to see a traditional way of life, join in with singing and dancing and buy traditional carvings
Itinerary Description
In the midst of the South Pacific, the Solomon Islands is part of the Coral Triangle and home to some of the best – and least visited – scuba diving in the world.
The beauty of sailing Emperor Bilikiki is no two trips are the same. There is no fixed itinerary as we head for the best sites at the best times. Wherever the journey takes us, you are guaranteed exceptional diving experiences.
Visiting places such as the Russell Islands, the Florida Islands and Marovo Lagoon you will be immersed in so many sensory experiences from breathtakingly beautiful corals to fascinating war relics, cave dives and jungle-covered dives with marine life ranging from the massive to the macro.
You can dive Kicha – where friendly batfish follow divers around while giant bumphead parrotfish chomp on coral – all the time hearing the sounds of underwater volcano Kavachi.
There is Karumolun Point, where the local chief has banned all fishing for years creating a protected marine area that will blow your mind with the variety of life and its beauty all around.
And, of course, there’s Mary Island. This is the place often referred to as the ‘best dive of a trip’ where we often stay all day to enjoy the schools of fish, sharks, turtles and bumphead parrot fish.
In modern history, the Solomon Islands saw some of the fiercest fighting in the Pacific during WW2. Both land and sea have their share of war relics and we will take you on some incredible wreck dives.
We will also get you off the water to sample Solomon Island life. With around 990 islands inhabited by just 700,000 people, ways have changed little and most of the population still live traditional, community-based lives in villages far from the modern world. Taking in the local culture is a must.
So why not go somewhere few other divers have ventured and have one of the best, and most-varied, experiences of your life?
Dive Sites
Click dive site markers for detailed descriptions.
Your holiday will be different to any other. We tailor our trips individually according to weather conditions, sightings and seasons.
Here is a sample of the sites we might visit.
Specific dive sites and areas we may visit are not guaranteed. They are at the discretion of our cruise director/captain, based on weather conditions, to ensure we provide the best possible sightings and prioritise your safety.
Florida Islands
Here are some possible sites you may visit:
- Devil's Highway -
The best place in the Solomons to dive with manta rays. A channel between two islands funnels water to form a strong currents and an adrenaline filled dive. Drift along the reef top, duck under the reef wall and watch as up to a dozen mantas swim close by in formation to feed. They are often joined by sweetlips, jacks and bumphead parrotfish.
- Japanese Mavis Seaplane -
A Japanese seaplane sunk during WW2 which sits upright on the bottom at 30m, it is an impressively large, mostly intact plane. This site is also excellent for macro subjects with reef top pipefish, twin spot gobies and spine check anemone fish.
- Maravagi Bay -
A macro diver’s delight! A calm protected bay offering all sorts of great macro subjects such as nudis, demon stinger, scorpion fish, cockatoo wasp fish, various pipefish, cuttlefish, juvenile batfish, various anemone fish, shrimps and crabs. Plus a few of giant clams and a small wreck packed with batfish and bream.
- Twin Tunnels -
This large sea mount, in the middle of the channel between Guadalcanal and the Florida Islands, has two tunnels which drop vertically straight down from 12m and exit in a cave at 35m. Swimming out of the cave to the sheer wall there are schools of fusiliers with grey reef sharks cruising by. It is also home to some amazing coral, cuttlefish, octopus and mantis shrimp plus schools of snapper, tropical fish and an amazing array of anemone fish.
Marovo Lagoon Area
Here are some possible sites you may visit:
- Japanese Maru 2 -
A Japanese cargo vessel sunk by American bombers in WW2 this is a stunning photogenic wreck covered in black corals. A deck gun lies hanging over the side of the ship and trevally and groupers hunt the decks.
- Kicha -
Not only is this dive site a truly stunning example of hard corals and sea fans, it is teeming with fish life. Friendly batfish follow divers around, schools of jacks and barracuda circle around the point while giant bumphead parrotfish chomp on coral. All this amazing colour and beauty passes by to a sound track provided by the underwater volcano Kavachi which is only 15 miles away.
- Mbulo Caves -
A series of interconnecting caves and swim throughs with beautiful sun beams and a magical atmosphere. There is also staggering hard coral and tropical fish on the reef outside.
- Wickham Island -
There are a lot of amazing dive sites around this island. It has something for everyone with soft coral points, huge sea fans, sharks and rays. Plus great places to look for the small stuff such as pygmy seahorses, cuttlefish, crocodile fish, snake eels and many different species of anemone fish.
Mary Island (Mborokua)
Divers often refer to Mary Island as the “best” dive of a trip. It is an uninhabited island with a stunning amount of hard corals and fish life. The schools of fish are amazing here especially when joined by sharks, turtles and bumphead parrot fish. We usually stay here for the whole day.
Russell Islands
Here are some possible sites you may visit:
- Karumolun Point -
The chief of Karumolun Island has banned all fishing and collecting on this dive site for five years creating a local marine protected area. This point has great soft coral, a big school of jacks, barracudas and lots of sharks, often eagle rays are seen here too. The macro side of this dive site is fantastic as well with disco clams (electric file shells), nudis, cuttlefish, crocodile fish and ghost pipefish among the things seen.
- Leru Cut -
A channel back into Leru Island forms a breathtakingly beautiful reef formation which when dived at the right time of day has amazing beams of light and fantastic photo opportunities. Surface at the end and see the vine covered cliffs and jungle before descending and exiting onto a sheer wall of fans and soft coral.
- Mirror Pond -
A stunning pond reflecting the jungle overhead. Outside on the reef is a sheer wall where snappers and travelly hunt and pygmy seahorses hide in gorgeous gorgonian fans. The shallows host a stunning coral garden where crocodile fish, cuttlefish and anemone fish live.
- White Beach -
The site of an American WWII base where trucks, bombs and ammunition was dumped into the sea. Both a fascinating historical dive and a fantastic macro site in an unusual mangrove location.
Honiara Airport
Also Important
Check Dive & Depart Honiara
Once onboard there will be a safety briefing, crew introduction, complete and check dive paperwork, cabin allocation and boat orientation. The first dive is a check dive on the first full morning and not on day of boarding.
Return to Honiara
On the last diving day, 2-3 dives are available in the morning whilst observing the rule of no diving within 24 hours of reaching altitude. The final evening is a drinks and gala dinner night with bills settled the following morning from 6:30am with departure at 8am.
Itinerary Experience
All experience levels including snorkellers and non-divers
This is a great itinerary for everyone regardless of your experience level with exceptional snorkelling opportunities available. You don’t need a minimum number of dives to join this trip – however divers do need to be certified as we don’t do beginner courses onboard. The water is warm, clear and flat for the majority of the time. There are a few dives with currents, like Devil’s Highway, but generally the currents are very mild and our dives are planned with them in mind. Although the diving is easier than some other locations it is also spectacular making it great for the most experienced divers.