Bali and Komodo Twin Adventure

Whether you choose to stay in a luxurious spa retreat or boutique bolthole, spend the next few days recovering from jet lag, doing laps in the pool and indulging in delicious Balinese cuisine.

A plethora of active ways to explore the surrounding countryside are on offer, from white water rafting through dramatic gorges to working up an appetite on a traditional Balinese cooking course. Or you could set out on a guided bike tour through rolling rice paddies and past local villages or set out in style in a vintage VW convertible to explore further flung sites in Central Bali.

Best experienced by luxury liveaboard, Komodo National Park's rugged sun-drenched islands ringed with pink beaches and turquoise waters are a dreamy destination. Diving-wise, the areas with nutrient-rich thermoclines attract a whirlpool of marine life, which, coupled with pristine reefs has resulted in some of the most exceptional diving in Indonesia.

Board the Mermaid II liveaboard and relax in your cabin before heading out on to the main deck for dinner under the stars as you cruise towards Moyo Island, located off the north west coast of Sumbawa.

Spend your surface interval re-fuelling on a fresh fish lunch before cruising to Panjang Reef to mingle with the macro critters from the pygmy seahorse to vibrant frogfish. After watching a sky full of bats scatter into the sunset you'll descend back to Satonda for a night dive to see all things nocturnal, including flathead fish and stargazer fish.

After a delicious dinner settle into your cabin as you cruise overnight to Sangeang Island.

Next, you will cruise to Gili Banta to dive at either Tanduk Rusa (or Roller Coaster) or GPS Point. Tanduk Rusa features 40-metre slopes with vertical and horizontal currents resulting in an exhilarating dive. Look out for huge mushroom-shaped corals, colourful anthias, sweetlips and coral catshark. Strong currents in GPS Point make this a dive best suited to more advanced divers, and plankton-rich water can make visibility variable, however you'll be rewarded with a soup of marine life, including a wealth of sharks and pelagics.

As the sun begins to dip over the horizon, enter the Komodo National Park and enjoy a night dive at Gili Darat South Passage where you'll spot sleeping turtles, colourful reef stonefish and Spanish dancers in calm waters.

(Incidentally, although you can dive four times this day, you might also prefer to read a book on a sun lounger instead.)

The night dive at Pink Beach offers a spectacular display of colour as you descend to a maximum depth of 25 metres to see thriving sea life amongst soft giant corals.

Accompanied by a park ranger, you'll learn all about these ancient lizards as well as spotting wild boar, Sunda deer and birds. Then relax as you cruise two hours south to Horseshoe Bay Rinca Island to dive the famous Cannibal Rock to spot rare nudibranchs, frogfish and cuttlefish over spectacular corals, sponges, ascidians and huge black coral bushes.

Back on-board, you can watch the Komodo dragons scuttling across the beach and you might even spot whales and dolphins feeding in the bay. You'll spend the night in these calm waters and enjoy another fascinating night dive at one of the world class sites. You can do up to three dives today.

Next up is Manta Alley, arguably one of the best sites in Komodo, where you will drop to a maximum depth of ten metres and watch manta rays feed and get cleaned in a reasonable current.

Batu Bolong, or 'Current City', features a giant drop off extending 70-metres. As you might have guessed, the currents can be very strong but you will be rewarded with amazing soft and hard corals teeming with marine life, from Napolean wrasse to blue fin trevally to turtles.

Wave goodbye to Komodo National Park with a final night dive at Gili Banta for the Coral Cat Shark before stargazing as you cruise to Satonda Island.

Located just south of the airport, Jimbaran is a laid-back crescent-shaped beach characterised by golden sands and calm blue seas. Spend a couple of days basking in the sun and feasting on fresh fish from the famous seafood restaurants that pop up along the beach every evening. If you still want to fit in a few activities, Serangan Island is a short trip away as are a host of temples.