For candidates who have completed their Open Water Diver and Advanced Open Water Diver courses prior to their program start date. You are confident underwater and have been cleared for diving by a doctor.

• Rescue Diver
• EFR CPR/First Air & Oxygen Provider
• PADI/SSI Divemaster
• Species Identification Specialty
• Shark Conservation Specialty
• Manta Conservation Specialty
• Turtle Conservation Specialty
• Mola Conservation Specialty
• Nudibranch & Macro Specialty
• Ocean Gardener Coral Diver Specialty

Comfortable in open water, can complete a timed 400m free swim and tread water for 15 minutes, have been cleared for diving by a doctor.

• Open Water Diver
• Advanced Open Water Diver
• Rescue Diver
• EFR CPR/First Air & Oxygen Provider
• PADI/SSI Divemaster
• Species Identification Specialty
• Shark Conservation Specialty
• Manta Conservation Specialty
• Turtle Conservation Specialty
• Mola Conservation Specialty
• Nudibranch & Macro Specialty
• Ocean Gardener Coral Diver Specialty

Bira is located on a peninsula in Southern Sulawesi around 200km away from Makasar. It is one of Indonesia’s most stunning beaches and untouched reefs. Far away from the hustle and bustle of cities, this sleepy ship building village has only just started to attract the travellers eye.

A perfect tropical paradise, this peninsula is only 1km wide and stretches 2 km long with a local population of around 2,000. Like most of Indonesia, there are deep ties to Islamic culture and the predominant religion in the region is Muslim.

Bira is famous among the world’s boat building community as one of the last places that uses a traditional wooden method. As an intern at Bira you will meet a lot of these salty pirates who have come to Bira to learn from master craftsman in the region.

During the week days the area is quiet with little to now tourists, but the weekends attract Indonesian city dwellers from Makasar or Jakarta to enjoy the idyllic beaches and pristine oceans.

Bira is and up and coming tourist destination among international divers. In recent years we have seen some development in the area which has brought more tourists. The dive shop at Blue Planet is small but complete, with everything you could need to explore beneath the waves. They come equipped with stand up paddle boards, rock climbing equipment, and a slack line on the beach. Interns at the Bira Project get a chance to fully embrace the beach lifestyle.
Days can begin between 7am – 9am depending on tides and scheduling, unless you need to stop in at the local market which is open every other morning from 6am. Diving, workshops, and land based activities are scheduled on rotations. Friday mornings the team heads to the local elementary school to spend 2 hours with the kindergarten class learning English and making ocean crafts.
The confined training sessions are done at our doorstep on Blue Planet House Reef, along with nights dives, coral restoration, and surveys.
The evenings are spent sitting around the massive table or bringing the paddle boards down for a floating sunset bar. Sunset’s in Bira are some of the best in the world, and we are treated to them daily.
On days off interns explore the surrounding areas with sight-seeing, hikes, cliff jumping, visiting fresh water caves, and the never ending white powder sand beaches.

Everything at the Bira Project is found on site at Blue Planet Dive Resort.

Accommodation

Shared 4-bed mixed bed dorms are included in all program fees. These are located steps away from the head office and classroom with incredible sweeping ocean views. These are fan rooms with detached shared showers and toilets. There is no hot water, but you won’t miss them with the regions hot arid climate.

Private rooms is available starting from around 5,000,000 IDR/month for basic accommodation. But we recommend bunking up with your fellow interns. There are also several resorts in the area that offer nightly rates if you are looking for some privacy.

Blue Planet Dive Resort

Our dive partners at the Bira Project are the team at Blue Planet Dive Resort, an eco-dive school and resort located in the village of Sakti on Nusa Penida. They first started building in 2018 and opened their doors alongside Indo Ocean Project’s Bira Project.

The owners are a French couple who have been living in Indonesia for several years. Their team of dive instructors and guides provide courses and fun dive experiences to tourists. Interns at the Bira Project will assist the Blue Planet dive team in their daily tasks to get a taste of what it takes to work in the industry. The team at BP also live on site and make up a big part of our Bira Project family.

Getting to Bira is a bit of rite of passage, in order to enjoy it… you need to face the long journey.

The nearest airport is in the provincial capitol Makasar called Sultan Hasanuddin Airport (UPG). There are occasional international flights from Singapore or Kuala Lumpur but they are expensive and irregular. When travelling to Bira the best option is to book a flight into Jakarta or Bali and book a separate domestic flight to Makasar.
Both Jakarta and Bali are busy international airports with regular flights. They both offer direct flights to Makasar several times per day.

Once you land in Makasar our driver Rahim will greet you in an Indo Ocean Project shirt. You will be taken in a private car (maybe shared with a fellow arriving intern) to the project headquarters 200km away.

Depending on traffic this trip can take 4-6 hours.
Bira is on a peninsula, so no need to take any boats. The driver will bring you directly the project headquarters where one of our staff will be waiting to greet you.

It’s recommended to arrive before 2pm to get to the project before night fall.