Padang Bai, Bali
Bali’s biggest coral restoration site is right here in Padang Bai. Spend a day with our team, tie live coral onto your own reef star, then jump in and see the reef that’s already growing back.
Full refund if you cancel more than 48 hours before
Bali’s biggest coral restoration site
Since 2019 we’ve been growing a brand new reef in Padang Bai. Today it’s the biggest coral restoration site in Bali, and one of the biggest in the world. Every coral we plant brings more fish and turtles back to the bay, and helps the local families who make their living from the sea.
of seabed planted with coral so far, about the size of 25 tennis courts
reef structures built and placed on the seabed
coral fragments planted by hand
our goal: a full 5 hectare reef, as big as 7 football pitches
Every visit helps the reef grow · Restoring Padang Bai since 2019 · Partner of the TUI Care Foundation
First, the basics
It looks like a rock and grows like a plant, but coral is actually an animal. Thousands of tiny animals live together and build one shared skeleton.
Think of coral like the trees in a forest. It grows slowly, builds the structure, and everything else moves in around it. When the coral comes back, the fish, turtles and octopus come back too.
Lots of people have planted a tree. Very few know you can plant a coral. You can, and it’s easier than you think.
Plant a coral with usThe day, start to finish
Meet the team at our base in Padang Bai and get settled in.
Hear the story of this reef, see how a reef star is made, then get your gear on.
A short boat ride takes you out to our pontoon, right above the restoration site.
Tie live coral onto the frame with your own hands. It's the part everyone remembers.
Snorkel or dive over the reef while our team places the new structures below you.
Enjoy lunch together on the pontoon, right above the reef, and ask the team anything you like.
The method
A reef star is a small six-sided steel frame. You tie live coral onto it, and we place it on the seabed where the old reef used to be. The coral grows over the frame, the frames join up, and in a few years there’s a reef again. There are now more than 9,400 of them down there, covering 9,189 square metres of seabed that was bare in 2019.
Bare seabed with broken coral and very little life.
Live coral tied onto the frames and placed on the seabed.
The frames join into one big reef, and the fish move back in.
New to diving?
Our snorkelling day is made for people who don’t dive. And if you’ve always wanted to try diving, you can add that too.
Pick your day
With a briefing from our team and a short boat ride out to the pontoon above the reef.
Perfect if you don't dive. Tie coral onto a reef star on the pontoon, then grab a mask and fins and snorkel over the reef while our team places it below you.
IDR 750,000 per person
Briefing, boat rides, half a reef structure, coral fragments, water/tea/coffee, lunch on the pontoon.
Great for ages 6 and up who are comfortable in open water.*
Book snorkellingTwo dives working on the reef with our team. You'll plant new coral and help clean and look after the structures already down there. A real working day on the reef.
IDR 1,250,000 per person
2 dives, snacks, lunch on the pontoon. Rental equipment +IDR 250,000.
Certified divers only
Book a planting diveA full day out. Your first dive tours the whole restoration site, including the coral nurseries. The second dive is all yours, as you tie coral onto your own reef star with a bamboo name tag.
IDR 2,600,000 per person
2 dives, your own reef star, bamboo tag, lunch on the pontoon.
Certified divers only
Book a conservation diveAdd an instructor to any package and they’ll take you diving one on one. You’ll start with a short briefing and a few skills in the shallows, then head down to the restoration site. Once you feel comfortable, you’ll plant coral in the shallow area next to it.
Groups, schools and company days. The snorkelling day works really well for mixed groups, even when not everyone dives. Tell us what you need and we’ll plan the day around you.
Plan a group dayFull refund if you cancel more than 48 hours before.
*Durations and minimum-age guidance are estimates pending confirmation from the dive team.
Getting here
We’re in Padang Bai, on Bali’s east coast, about 1 hour 15 minutes from Ubud. It’s a calm bay full of fish, with Mount Agung behind it and black sand beaches on both sides.
The restoration site is at Baung Penyu, just off the bay. In 2019 it was mostly broken coral with very little life. Today turtles, octopus, cuttlefish and moray eels live here again, along with lots of fish.
From IDR 750,000. No diving certificate needed. Families welcome. Every reef star you plant becomes part of Bali’s biggest coral restoration site.
Full refund if you cancel more than 48 hours before
