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Practicing sustainable diving in Indonesia, especially in an area like North Sulawesi, comes with its own set of responsibilities. This is why we find it so important to be more than just a resort. We want our people to grow and step beyond their imposed boundaries. As a PADI AWARE resort, education is a core value of ours: we built a school, we train our guides in-house, and we encourage our team to outdo themselves.
I did my first dive in 1978, and I was instantly hooked. In 1987 I opened the Thalassa Dive Shop in Amsterdam. But when I was given the chance to start a dive center here in beautiful North Sulawesi, I didn’t have to think twice — I moved to Manado in 1996.
Thalassa Dive Center opened in 2001 as a joint venture with a luxury resort, and we certified many divers in that time. Eventually I discovered the Barracuda, an old, abandoned resort on a beautiful estate near Manado. I managed to strike a deal with the land owner, and this is how Thalassa Manado was born in 2013.
We place a lot of value in our people. This is why we are always looking for new ways to involve personnel with our idea of “giving back”. For instance, we organize beach clean ups, marine lectures, or simply have a dance party with guests.
These experiences are meaningful and valuable, with self-actualization as the goal. It’s often easier said than done, but it’s just one of the reasons guests return as friends — just to see how everyone in the company is getting on.
Thalassa Dive Center begins operations as an independent dive center under the roof of a large luxury resort. Our divers discover the beauty of the Bunaken National Marine Park, still a highly underrated diving destination at the time.
The idea started to form to build a vocational junior high school. Building began in 2006, and upon completion, the school proved to be a great success. This is why local kids now find a job as a dive guide or resort/hotel staff.
Building upon the former glory of Barracuda Resort, Thalassa Dive Resort Manado became a reality. The first small steps were taken by renovating the old wooden Cottages. Similarly, construction of the dive center and pizza bar was started as well.
The arrival or our new dive center finally made Thalassa a “proper” dive resort. In the mean time, the number of rooms was expanding and new guests kept coming.
The last big construction project was the building of nine luxury bungalows, so we could offer guests four different room categories.
To offer more muck diving, as well as a different resort experience to our guests, we started building Thalassa Lembeh. The first brick was laid in a muddy hill in May 2017, and on October 1st 2017 we officially opened the resort!
PT Taman Bambu
Jl. Molas Tongkaina, Kecematan Bunaken
95242 Manado, North-Sulawesi
Indonesia
+62 (0)812 4350 0956
info[at]thalassamanado.com
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