Top 5 Wonderful National Parks in Maluku and Papua

In the easternmost of Indonesia, there are a lot of biodiversity. You might be familiar with Raja Ampat which contains many beautiful sides of sea nature. Actually, easternmost of Indonesia does not only have Raja Ampat. You coud also find many national parks in easternmost of Indonesia, especially in Maluku and Papua.

As same as in other area of Indonesia, such as national parks in Kalimantan Island, national parks in Maluku and Papua also preserve many species of flora and fauna, and also consist of a lot ecosystems. Here are 5 wonderful national parks in Maluku and Papua.

1.  Aketajawe Lolobata National Park

Arranging doing some things in Halmahera Island, you should try to visit Aketajawe Lolobata National Park. This national park is located between three regencies, Tidore Islands, Central Halmahera, and East Halmahera. All of them are in the territory of North Maluku Province. Once you come here, you would see the view of forest.

There are many kinds of flora, such as damar, Bugis wood, and walnuts. For the fauna, there are about 70 species of mammals, 450 species of birds, 80 species of reptiles, and 10 species of amphibi. Some of them are butterfly, bear, grasshopper, and dragonfly.

Not only seeing the flora and fauna, you could also enjoy some tourism objects, such as Havo Waterfall, Caves, and a place for observing birds and butterflies.

2. Manusela National Park

Still in Maluku, there is Manusela National Park, Indonesia. This national park is located in North Seram District and South Seram District. Manusela National Park consists of many endemic species of flora and fauna.

For the flora, there are Eucalyptus sp, Shorea selanica, nyamplung, forest langsat, and durian. The fauna that are conserved in Manusela National Park are species of marsupials, rodents, bats, and birds.Manusela National Park originally combines two natural preserves, Wae Nua Natural Preserve and Wae Mual Natural Preserve.

Some people say this is the paradise for divers. There are some interesting spots to explore, such as underwater cave, mother cave, floating lodging, Salawai River, Saleman Beach, and Netherlands water springs.

3.  Lorentz National Park

This national park might be quite popular in Papua and also in the world. If you remember, in December 2019, there was a picture of national park in Indonesia that became Google Doodle.

Exactly, that is Lorentz National Park, one of the best national parks in Indonesia. It is located in Papua Province and West Papua Province. This national park is the biggest protected area in Southeast Asia. Its width is 2,7 hectares, 27 times the width of Jakarta.

The area is from Mountain Cartens to the south area of Arafuru Sea. Since being built in 1997, Lorentz National Park has conserved more than hundreds of endemic species of fauna, including species of birds and mammals. In 1999, Lorentz National Park has been officially one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Indonesia.

In the area of Lorentz National Park, you could fine the indigenous tribe of Papua, such as Asmat tribe, Nduga tribe, Sempan tribe, and West Dani tribe. Another attracting thing here is the glacier at the top of Jaya Wijaya.

4. Teluk Cendrawasih National Park

Still in Papua, there is Teluk Cendrawasih National Park. It is located between Teluk Wondana Regency and Manokwari Regency in West Papua Province, and three more regencies, Nabire Regency, Yapen Regency, and Yaropen Regency in Papua Province.

This National Park is devoted to conserve marine biota. There are more than 500 coral species, 900 coral fishes species, and the most important, this national park is the habitat of whale shark.

Since has officially become a national park in 2002, Teluk Cendrawasih National Park always develops until being rated as the national park with the best quality of coral reefs in the world.

The biodiversity are mostly found in Purup Island and Numamurang Strait. Around the area of Teluk Cendrawasih National Park, you could also find many beautiful caves. If you would like to take pictures, there is an old church which people say is very instagrammable.

5. Wasur National Park

Another one of the best national parks in Indonesia you should visit is Wasur National Park. This national park is directly adjacent to Papua New Guinea. There are various kinds of ecosystem here, starting from savanna, scamp, forest, until river.

In Wasur National Park, you could find many differents floras, such as mangrove, Terminalia, and melaleuca species. For the fauna, there are many species of birds, fishes, lobsters, and crabs in Wasur National Park.

There are many activities you could explore in Wasur National Park. Around the river, you could do fishing, It is also possible for you to catch any lobsters. If you are curious to do different things, you could see ant house inside Wasur National Park area, or you could see animal attraction in Blue Scamp.

There is also indigenous tribe you could have interaction with, it is Marind tribe. Do you think to have more than one day in Wasur National Park. Do not worry, because you could have nights in Wasur National Park office.

But it would be better if you inform the officer before your arrival to Wasur National Park, so you might ensure to be able having nights in Wasur National Park and explore as many as you can there.

Those are some of beautiful and wonderful national parks you must visit in Maluku and Papua. Which one do you plan to visit the first?