Indonesia’s best-kept secret is Raja Ampat, a jungle-covered archipelago replete with wildlife and surrounded by coral reef – easily the world’s last unspoiled destination, writes Paul Walters There are times when finding paradise will often involve taking a journey slightly off the beaten track, and so it is with Raja Ampat. In order to reach this jewel if you are travelling via Bali , it will entail an inconvenient overnight stay in Makassar on the tip of the island of Sulawesi. But the unique experiences that await are worth every diversion.
From there, it’s an early morning flight to the rather non-descript city of Sarong in West Papua, the gateway to one of the majestic wonders of the world, the Raja Ampat Marine Protected Area. Here 1500 mostly uninhabited islands, sit within the very heart of the Coral Triangle. READ MORE: The first-timer’s guide to Indonesia’s Komodo Islands.