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Secret Garden

📍 Lombok, Indonesia

Chocolate Chip Sea Star (Protoreaster nodosus) — recorded at Secret Garden

Secret Garden is a dive site in Lombok, Indonesia. It lies within the Gili Ayer, Gili Meno, Gili Trawangan Marine Recreation Park. The sea floor at the site position lies at about 6 meters. Currents typically run at 1.7 km/h and reach 3.2 km/h on the strongest days. Water temperatures range from 28°C in August to 30°C in November. The typical daily tidal range is about 1.2 m. Species recorded in the area include Green Sea Turtle, Chocolate Chip Sea Star, Whitemouth Moray, Manybar Goatfish and Yellowtail Coris.

Dive Conditions

⬇️
Seabed Depth
6m
💨
Current
1.7 km/h (3.2)
🌡️
Water Temp
28–30 °C

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Typical Current 1.7 km/h (up to 3.2)
Seabed Depth 6 m
Water Temperature 28–30 °C
Tidal Range 1.2 m (typical daily)
GPS -8.3494°, 116.0878°

Data sources: currents and water temperature from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values 2024; seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid, sampled at the site coordinates (grid resolution about 450 m). Tidal range is the median daily range of modelled sea level from Open-Meteo Marine, hourly values 2024. Protected area boundary from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Species observations from iNaturalist, checked against the World Register of Marine Species.

Conditions at Secret Garden through the year

Sea surface temperature at the site coordinates, averaged per month from hourly model values for 2024. The water is warmest in November at about 30 °C and coolest in August at about 28 °C, a spread of 2 degrees across the year.

Monthly sea surface temperature at Secret Garden (°C)
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
29.4 29.4 29.6 30.1 29.8 29.1 28.8 28.3 28.6 29.4 30.3 29.9

Ocean current at the site runs at a typical 1.7 km/h. In the strongest tenth of the hours modelled for 2024 it reaches 3.2 km/h, which is when entries are normally timed to slack water at the turn of the tide.

The tide moves the water level by a median 1.2 m over a day, and by up to 1.7 m on the largest days of the month. That range drives how much water is exchanged over the reef and when the current turns.

Offshore wave statistics are not shown for Secret Garden: within 10 km of the site there is land in the directions from which 77 % of the larger waves in the area arrive, so open-sea values would overstate the swell at the site itself.

The seabed directly under the site coordinates sits at about 6 m. This is a bathymetry grid value with a cell size of roughly 450 m, so it describes the depth of the area rather than the deepest point a dive can reach.

Secret Garden lies inside Gili Ayer, Gili Meno, Gili Trawangan Marine Recreation Park. Protected areas can carry their own rules on entry fees, permits, anchoring and fishing; check the current rules with a local operator before you dive.

Satellite habitat mapping places Secret Garden on a shallow lagoon, over a seabed mapped as sand.

How Secret Garden compares

These comparisons use only the measured values above, set against the 376 dive sites published on findadive.com. A percentage shows the share of other sites with a lower (or higher) value, so it reads the same way wherever the site is.

Secret Garden compared with all listed sites and with Lombok
MeasureThis siteCompared with all sitesMedian in Lombok
Mean water temperature29.4 °Ccooler than 53 % of the other 375 sites29.4 °C (44 sites)
Water temperature in the coolest month28.3 °Cwarmer than 62 % of the other 375 sites28.2 °C (44 sites)
Typical current1.7 km/hstronger than 58 % of the other 375 sites1.8 km/h (44 sites)
Current in the strongest 10 % of hours3.2 km/hstronger than 61 % of the other 375 sites3.2 km/h (44 sites)
Median daily tidal range1.2 msmaller than 81 % of the other 375 sites1.2 m (44 sites)

Water temperature, current and tide from Open-Meteo Marine (CC BY 4.0), hourly model values for 2024 at -8.3494°, 116.0878°. Seabed depth from the GEBCO 2020 Grid. Protected area boundary from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Wave statistics from ERA5-Ocean via Open-Meteo Marine (contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2015–2024), daily maximum wave height on a 0.5° grid; land shelter tested against Natural Earth coastlines. Reef structure and seabed cover from the Allen Coral Atlas © 2018–2023 Allen Coral Atlas Partnership and Arizona State University (CC BY 4.0).

Marine life recorded at this site

Research-grade observations from iNaturalist within about 12 km of these coordinates.

Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas)
Green Sea Turtle Chelonia mydas A large sea turtle with a smooth, heart-shaped carapace, often seen swimming or resting on the seabed.to 1.5 m · surface to 40 m · day and nightseagrass beds, coral reefs, and sandy areasRemain still and avoid sudden movements; the turtle may approach if it feels unthreatened. (c) Julia Palmer, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Chocolate Chip Sea Star (Protoreaster nodosus)
Chocolate Chip Sea Star Protoreaster nodosus A sea star with a tan to brown body covered in dark, conical tubercles resembling chocolate chips.to 30 cm diameter · 0-30 m · day and nightsandy and seagrass areas, sometimes on reef flatsLook for its distinctive shape and pattern on open, soft substrates, often partially buried. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Whitemouth Moray (Gymnothorax meleagris)
Whitemouth Moray Gymnothorax meleagris A medium moray eel with a dark brown to black body densely covered in small white spots, and a white interior mouth.to 120 cm · 1-45 m · at nightreef crevices and under ledgesOften seen with its head protruding from a hole; its white mouth is visible when it opens and closes its jaws. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Manybar Goatfish (Parupeneus multifasciatus)
Manybar Goatfish Parupeneus multifasciatus A slender goatfish with a pale body crossed by five dark vertical bars and a yellow stripe along the side, often seen probing the sand with its chin barbels.to 30 cm · 1-100 m · by daysandy areas near coral or rubbleLook for puffs of sand as it feeds; it often forms small groups that move quickly across the bottom. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Yellowtail Coris (Coris gaimard)
Yellowtail Coris Coris gaimard A large, colourful wrasse with a striking red body and a bright yellow tail. Juveniles are orange with white spots and black-edged fins.to 40 cm · 1-30 m · by dayouter reef slopes and sandy areas near coral rubbleWatch for it foraging over sand and rubble, often turning over pieces with its snout. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Almond Ark (Barbatia amygdalumtostum)
Almond Ark Barbatia amygdalumtostum A small bivalve with a dark, roughly textured shell, often found in clusters attached to hard surfaces.to 4 cm · 5-25 m · day and nightattached to rocks, coral rubble, or under ledgesLook for dark, fuzzy patches on reef surfaces; these are often dense colonies of this ark shell. (c) River Ahlquist, some rights reserved (CC BY) · observation
Harlequin Sweetlips (Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides)
Harlequin Sweetlips Plectorhinchus chaetodonoides A juvenile with bold black and white spots on a brownish background, swimming with a distinctive bobbing motion. Adults are grey with small dark spots.to 72 cm · 1-30 m · at nightcoral-rich areas of lagoons and outer reefsLook for the solitary, slow-swimming juveniles near coral bommies during the day; they often hover in one spot. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation
Ocellate Phyllidia (Phyllidia ocellata)
Ocellate Phyllidia Phyllidia ocellata A nudibranch with a yellow body covered in black-tipped, blue-grey tubercles and distinctive black rings with yellow centres.to 6 cm · 5-30 m · day and nightcoral and rocky reefs, often on spongesLook for its bright pattern on reef surfaces and sponges; it moves slowly, allowing for close observation. no rights reserved · CC0 · observation