Raja Ampat

Mushroom-shaped limestone islets scattered across blue water fill most photographs of Raja Ampat. Hundreds of wooden steps lead up to the deck. Tour boats arrive together through the morning, so climbing after midday is quieter.

Seawater seeping between the rocks has pooled into a lagoon that looks star-shaped from above. It sits right beside Piaynemo, so the same boat calls at both. The short scramble up grips razor limestone, and gloves spare your hands.

Limestone peak islands at the archipelago's northern tip, more than three hours by boat from Waisai. The summit is a scramble up rock holding a rope. Chartering a whole boat costs a lot, so travellers often split one.

The site where a world record was set for fish species counted on a single dive. Strong current runs on many days, drawing in the schools but taxing beginners. Entry times follow the tide, so go by what the dive shop says.

A small village of houses and a church on one sandy island, where many visitors stay in homestays and head out to sea. Under the jetty schools of fish circle the piles, visible just by floating. Village women sell woven hats and baskets.

A coral mound on sand where manta rays come in to be cleaned. Divers wait lying behind a rope laid on the bottom, and must not rise over or touch the mantas. Some days none turn up.

In the Waigeo forest, male red birds of paradise gather on branches to spread their plumes and dance. You walk in before sunrise and wait hidden. Village guides know the display trees, so ask your homestay to arrange one ahead.

A strait between Gam and Waigeo as narrow as a river. Fast current makes it a drift dive, with soft coral covering both walls. Above water mangroves and forest press in close, so even passing through by boat is worth it.

On limestone cliffs around Misool in the south, hand stencils and fish are painted in red ochre. Boats nose in under the cliff for you to look up. It lies about four hours by boat from Sorong, so it takes a trip separate from the northern islands.

Coral and fish crowd beneath a village jetty on Mansuar, turning it into a snorkelling favourite. Steps lead straight into the water with no boat needed. At some tides the current picks up, so ask a villager before getting in.

A white sandbar that surfaces in open water at low tide only, a stop for boats touring off Mansuar. The flood tide drowns it again, so there is little time to stand on it. With no shade anywhere on the sand, step off carrying a hat and water.

A dive circling a single underwater peak off Mansuar. Its top lies shallow, so fish schools wrap around it, and big oceanic mantas sometimes pass. The current can switch suddenly, making it a site for experienced divers.

A freshwater stream through the forest of Warsambin village on Waigeo, named for water so blue you see the bed. The boat lands you and a villager leads the way along a forest path. People come to soak salt-weary skin in its cold fresh water.

A small village on Mansuar with a giant clam garden in the shallows beside its jetty. Villagers also plant coral fragments on frames to regrow the reef. The water under the jetty is clear, so boats tie up and people snorkel straight off it.