Ora Beach

Ora is a small beach on the northern coast of Seram, backed by steep forested hills and fronted by water that goes from ankle deep to a coral wall within a few metres. That is the appeal: you can snorkel a proper reef drop-off straight off the sand, without a boat. A handful of wooden bungalows stand on stilts over the shallows, and the nearby villages of Sawai and Saleman sit on the water at the foot of the cliffs. Boat trips run to a cave with swiftlets, to a river mouth in the mangroves, and along the limestone coast of the Manusela national park behind.

The landscape

• The house reef - a coral drop-off a few metres from the sand, snorkelled without a boat.
• The stilt bungalows - wooden rooms built over the shallow water at the end of the beach.
• Sawai and Saleman - fishing villages built on the water beneath the limestone cliffs.
• The cliffs and caves - boat trips along the coast to sea caves and a mangrove river mouth.

When to go

The drier, calmer window on this coast runs roughly from September to April. Getting here eats a day in each direction, so two or three nights is the minimum that makes sense. Book the bungalows ahead, since there are very few rooms, and arrange the boat transfer from Saleman at the same time.

What to expect

The journey is long and awkward: an overnight or early ferry from Ambon, several hours by road across Seram, then a boat. Rooms are basic and priced higher than the standard suggests, because there is no competition. Power runs on a generator for part of the evening. The beach itself is short, and coral in the shallows has taken damage from careless feet.

Nearby

Manusela national park lies inland, and Ambon is the gateway by ferry.

Key facts