Lumba Lumba Diving Centre & Beach Resort — Hotel in Sabang

My memories of Lumba Lumba has just been nothing but the best!

-The Crew- This is the heartbeat of the centre. This is where my 5 stars go to! All staff on board were very friendly as you get a feel of being with your family when you spend your days with them. Communication with them prior to the trip is also easy as they will help to arrange transport and it makes your trip so seamless from arrival to the end. No stress coz it's a holiday!

On my first trip, my friend and I did my advanced OW lesson with Lumba2. Previoisly, we had a very bad experience with my OW instructor so I was starting this advanced lesson with some unease. However, our dive instructor put our nerves at ease with his easy going nature and the way he had conducted his lessons. There was no stress and no scolding. The only "scolding" he did was about safety. My friend and I enjoyed learning from him. Thanks, Prabu!

We also had our other friends do the OW course with other instructors. They had nothing but good reviews! This shows that the there is quality in who the centre hires!

On our second trip, it was a leisure one. What a trip! The dive masters that took us to the dive sites knew where to find the great spots. Safety is very important to them with all the checks conducted. They knew what fish to spot and where. They were attentive to our needs. What more can one ask when you are well taken care of on your diving trip!

Kudos to the Lumba2 crew!

-The Beach- I simply loved the quaint beach there as there were not too many people so you get to enjoy the serenity of it all as you stroll along the beach. One good thing was that no one would beg you to buy anything as compared to those touristy beaches.

The Dive Centre - Cute little place and operations ran smoothly. Reception is always friendly and there is a chill out (dry area) where you get to hang out and people watch or chill with friends. I love that cosy corner. They also run on an honest system whereby you take a drink from the fridge and you only need to write the item on your bill. You only need to pay once you settle the bill on the last day of your stay.

As I used our own equipment, I can't comment much on their equipment. However, they provide a box and space for you to keep your belongings at the dive centre. The place is always kept clean very clean.

One thing I noticed is that the diving cylinder is always filled to the max 200. Not like some other places where it's 180 or less..

-The Lodging- On my first trip, we stayed in the cottage nearer to the dive centre. A very rustic setting fitting of the island. It is simple and clean. There is also a mosquito/fly net over the bed. There was no aircon but it was cooling at night. They even had a hammock at the balcony for you to take a siesta and enjoy the seabreeze and the sound of the waves.

On my second trip, we were pleasantly surprised. They installed air conditioning in the cottages! Woo Hoo! Rooms were still as clean as ever.

-The Food- Food is delicious, however, do order in way in advance for your meals. It takes a really long time for them to prepare and you wouldn't want to miss your dive because of that.

-The Dive Sites- At the house reef, there were so many things to spot both in the day or at night! It is close to the beach and you could even go on your own to explore as many times throughout the day.

I have bad motion sickness so I'm gratefully thankful that most of the dive sites are within minutes of getting there by boat. On days where the visibility is good, you can really spot awesome life down under. On my last trip, the huge sea fans were the ones that caught my attention. Not only that, on every dive, there is always something waiting to be spotted. That's the beauty of diving and also how great a location that Lumba Lumba is to these amazing dive sites.

-Overall Satisfaction- Priceless. Even though there are so many great dive centres/sites in South East Asia, I still look forward to being there at...

Stayed 5 nights for PADI aow and rescue courses. Information on this island was very limited at the point of my research stage.

Overall : I would hang the Red flag here. The signs of vicious cycle of the business were quite noticeable in my opinion. There were much better choices out there in almost every aspect.

Service : in short, literally moral hazard. Sample story, 1. Enquiries on inconsistency or clarification put them under very unhappy status. 2. I used PADI app for a trip reservation which made them unhappy. And they requested me to cancel the booking and to prepare cash or bank transfer for direct payment. 3. I asked PADI if the booking can be cancelled since they kept not only the cancellation policy opaque but suspicious. PADI nailed their cancellation policy on their db at this point. 4. Why PADI involved? Long story short, it was like a scam such as virtual names identified, momentarily changing policies and diluting on multiple subjects, aggression on requested clarification plus very rude and evading attitude on the phone.

I was charged for beers checking out. Until then, I thought alcohol was illegal in Aceh. I did not pay for them in the event being said that is because she didn't count inventory confirming she saw me taking and drinking them multiple times again. At the same time she taught me how to drink beers here. To be honest, It looked like somebody wanted to allege their perfection by blaming somebody else to cover their own mistakes, in my opinion. Or maybe hallucinations or real scam.

Actually the majority of staff were assistive just trying to stay away from the trouble done by the ones wielding blinded sword and begging for admittance from a certain type of people. Vivid hierarchial small community.

Courses? Doable. All thanks to this dive shop's magic nano quantum beers that I allegedly have taken before my dives. An imaginary cognition booster that guarantees to understand hundreds of pages in foreign language and exams in a couple of hours! Mastering something new in a couple of hours and concerns on DCI? Don't you worry. Simply order the beer from them. Their email will do.

Value for money : about 125% to local fair value. Taking opportunity cost into account, well...was not the best choice. The higher price for the lower quality and being offended.

Others : free tea. Two dogs in their yard were so kind as they escorted me until I got to the next destination!

Bottom line : Very unpleasant stays. A few but dominant and prudently rude employees. Criminal accusation for no reason. Pay for beers? Seriously? Send me your invoice...

It took a few days but we really fell in love with Lumba Lumba. It's a very friendly and well-run dive shop. Compared to the other dive shops in Gapang it is easily the largest and most popular. The place is bit chaotic at times -- their wetsuit storage system needs an overhaul, for example -- but once you get into the rhythm of diving with them it's very manageable. The DMs and instructors are almost all of a high quality and prioritize the safety and well-being of guests; as an experienced diver I can say they earned my trust and respect as professionals. Shout outs to Azian and Jon my instructors -- you guys were the best!

The diving was mostly good. Usually excellent visibility, especially at 18+ meters depth, lots of interesting fish and unique rock formations, not much soft coral or big stuff other than the occasional turtle or reef shark. Some current at times but nothing that was unmanageable, even for OW divers, and this is partly because the DMs studiously avoid taking groups to sites (or parts of sites) with stronger current. Lumba Lumba is right in the middle of the best dive sites and if you stick around long enough you'll get the chance to dive most of them. Batee Tokong, Seulako, Limbo, and The Canyon were probably my favorites. Boat trips are typically 5-15 minutes from the shop with shore breaks between each dive.

Accommodation at Lumba Lumba is basic but nice. Breakfast NOT included. Our Eco room had a fan but no aircon which was fine for the weather. Bathrooms are the typical Indonesian style with no separate stall for shower so you will soak the whole bathroom when you bathe. Shower had hot water and good pressure. There is no shampoo or body wash provided, only hand soap, and options for buying are limited, so bring your own. Rooms cleaned every day and towels changed weekly. All rooms face the sea and have a hammock on the terrace. Our room had an ant problem, but as long as we kept things fairly tidy (no food waste lying around) it wasn't an issue. No trouble with mosquitos as the bed has a large net covering it. Laundry service was quick and cheap.

Staff, especially Tari, are incredibly diligent and hardworking and really do their best to make your stay comfortable and pleasant. Thanks for everything Tari!

Gapang generally speaking is quite far from town and it feels kind of isolated unless you have transportation, which you can rent at the front desk, or they will call you a cab.

Overall I would not hesitate to recommend Lumba Lumba -- we'll...