Indonesia
Morotai
Sunken WW2 fighter planes resting on shallow coral reefs reclaimed by anemones and glassfish.
The fighter plane rests upside down on the seafloor, its propeller bent, its cockpit open to the current. Anemones have colonised the engine cowling. Brain coral covers the fuselage. In 1944, Morotai was General MacArthur's staging base for the recapture of the Philippines — 60,000 Allied troops lived and fought on this small island. When they left, they left everything. Sunken landing craft, tanks, and aircraft now serve as artificial reefs in warm, clear water, their war-metal surfaces transformed into gardens of marine life.
Morotai is an island in North Maluku that served as a major Allied military base during WW2's Pacific campaign. General Douglas MacArthur established his headquarters here in September 1944, and the island hosted airfields, harbours, and tens of thousands of troops. The surrounding waters contain numerous WW2 wrecks — aircraft (including P-47 Thunderbolts and Japanese fighters), landing craft, and transport vessels — now encrusted with coral and frequented by reef fish, making them both historical artefacts and dive sites. Nakamura Teruo, a Japanese soldier, famously hid in Morotai's jungle until 1974, unaware the war had ended. Above water, the island offers white-sand beaches, clear lagoons, and coconut palm forests with almost no tourism infrastructure. Access is via flights from Ternate to Leo Wattimena Airport on Morotai. Accommodation is limited to basic guesthouses and a government-built eco-resort.
Solo
Diving sunken WW2 fighters reclaimed by coral, then exploring an island where a soldier hid for 30 years — Morotai is solo adventure steeped in haunting history.
Friends
Group wreck dives across multiple WW2 sites, combined with beach exploration on an island most Indonesians haven't visited — a genuinely off-grid friends' expedition.
- Sunken WW2 fighter planes and landing craft rest on shallow reefs, colonised by hard coral and tropical fish.
- Japanese soldier Teruo Nakamura hid in Morotai's jungle until 1974 — 29 years after the war ended.
- The island was a major Allied staging base for the Pacific campaign, with remnants scattered through the jungle.
- Pristine, uncrowded diving on war wrecks combined with tropical reef makes a uniquely layered underwater experience.
Gohu ikan—raw tuna tossed with calamansi, shallots, and kenari nuts, aggressively fresh.
Halmahera robusta coffee brewed thick, served alongside fried breadfruit.
Central Island
Kenya
Three volcanic crater lakes in three different colours on an island ruled by Nile crocodiles.
Lago Strobel
Argentina
A plateau lake where rainbow trout grew to record sizes, its existence a secret for decades.
Nahatlatch River
Canada
Class IV rapids through a canyon so narrow the walls brush both sides of the raft.
Katmai National Park
United States
Brown bears shoulder-deep in rapids, catching salmon mid-leap at the most primal scene in America.
Mentawai Islands
Indonesia
Tattooed shamans sharpening arrows in rainforest clearings while heavy surf breaks on the outer reef.
Seram Island
Indonesia
A jungled mothership island where the Naulu tribe still hunts heads as rite of passage.
Ijen Crater
Indonesia
Miners haul sulphur through toxic smoke beside a turquoise acid lake burning with blue fire.
Anak Krakatau
Indonesia
The smoking child of the volcano that darkened the world, still growing from the sea.