Name: Cicak Senang (Happy Gecko) Resort
Address: Liang Beach, Bunaken, Bunaken, Manado, Manado City, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, Wori, Wori, Wori, 95122, Indonesia
Rating: 9

Garden

Terrace

General

Laundry

Luggage storage

Services and amenities

Diet menu (on request)

Restaurant

Meals

Internet access

Internet

English

Languages Spoken

Library

Recreation

No parking

Parking

Next to the beach

Pool and beach

Diving

Snorkelling

Sports

Massage

Beauty and wellness

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the resort

Sam Ratulangi International Airport

Cicak Senang (Happy Gecko) Resort

Wori

What I love about the Happy Gecko is the relaxed and friendly atmosphere and the accommodating and helpful staff.   Word is getting out how great the Gecko is, and it was busy during my entire two week stay in August and early September 2023. Consider yourself lucky if you are able to reserve a cottage.

I really appreciate that everyone looks out for me, since I am older, but still allows me the freedom to swim out to the reef and drift with the current for a couple of hours, examining and photographing the amazing corals and sea life in Bunaken National Marine Park. I always pull a yellow buoy behind me to be seen by boats, and so the staff can see from a distance that I am ok.  

I have been to the Happy Gecko three times, once pre pandemic (2019), and now twice post (2022 & 23), for a total of six weeks+.  I am a snorkeler/free diver, but I am always invited out with the dive boat, and get to see many varied reefs and dive sites around Bunaken and Manado Tua that way.  My favorite time in the sea is during the full moon low tides, when I swim out the boat channel at Liang and along the outside of the reef (with yellow buoy so I am seen). At those extreme low tides the edge of the coral is above your head and sunlight shimmers on the undersurface of the water.  It is magical.  Another top experience on this trip was the two times that Yan took me over to the other side of the island with his smaller boat, and followed me as I drifted with the current the whole length of Timur.  

The reef at Bunaken is in very good shape, with only minimal signs of bleaching so far during the current El Nino.  Turtles are plentiful, and the currents & countercurrents deposit an abundance of marine larvae near the island, which is why there are so many fish of different kinds.  Another big plus for the Happy Gecko is how easy Manado and Bunaken are to get to from Jakarta and Singapore.  I am already thinking about my next visit.

Happy Gecko is the Best!

If you are looking for a small family run friendly dive place on Bunaken, Happy Gecko is perfect for a laid back friendly experience. It is excellent  value, located on the quiet side of the island.  Food was plentiful and tasty and the cute bungalows are no frills, but very functional with a nice view, balcony with hammock. 
The diving was excellent, mostly wall dives with a great diversity between sites with beautiful healthy coral and many large turtles and even a huge pod of dolphins one day. Jimmy, the dive guide was lovely, and Willeke, the owner, is delightful and helpful. I just emailed direct to make an easy booking.
I hope to return one day 

Happy stay at Happy Gecko 

Bungalows built up the face of the hill catch the breeze and enjoy beautiful sunset views. Host family, a native of Bunaken and his Dutch wife are excellent hosts, facilitating dives and full of travel tips and suggestions for other areas as well. Accommodated my vegetarian diet with many tasty dishes. Facility accurately described - No mosquito nets but coils provided. Bungalows roomy with good ceiling fan and en-suite bathrooms; cold water only not really a problem on the equator. Expect to pay in cash or a bank transfer in Euros which was a little inconvenient for us in US dollars. Set up Wise.com

The Happy Gecko

From the first moment we boarded the boat to enjoy Happy Gecko, we already missed it. We were there for a week and so much Wille how his fantastic team treated us fantastically. They took care to come and pick us up at the airport and help us with the departure transfer. The food was very rich and varied throughout the day, including the last special dinner was with the Baby Guling. We snorkled with them for 6 days and saw all the variety of species Bunaken offers, in a dive stop counting turtles when he reaches 20!!! Spectacular! I don't know if we will ever return to Bunaken, but if we definitely return to Happy Gecko! Thank you for all the team!!

We're going to miss Happy Gecko!!

Happy Gecko is a great place to dive, eat, sleep, relax and watch beautiful sunsets. Diving is fantastic, very diverse and the staff ensure it is safe and adapted to your level. Food is all local, always different and super delicious. Fruits will mainly come from their garden. Bungalows are spacious, bright, clean and comfortable. All have a seaview and a balcony. The owners, Willeke and Gerry are great hosts. They will take the time to discuss about the life there. They will help you with travel tips and will make sure that you enjoy your stay. We felt so good, that we stayed there longer than we had originally planned. 
As HG is located more or less in the middle of Bunaken, it is easy and very nice to take a walk on both side to discover other aspects of this safe and friendly island. 
People keep coming back, so may we. !


A place to coming back.

Very nice small resort with 6 bungalows with view over the sea. We stayed there for snorkeling (7 days), enjoyed good food, joined the diving boat for snorkeling, and relaxed on the terras of the restaurant or our bungalow.
Run by friendly Indonesian/Dutch couple.

Highly recommended!

Excellent small resort in Bunaken

This was my second trip to The Happy Gecko and Bunaken Island, and I enjoyed it even more this time.  Owners Willeke and her husband Jerry are wonderful hosts, and made me feel very welcome.  I requested a vegetarian diet, and the food was amazing!  On some days I skipped lunch so I could walk to the other side of the island to snorkel.  Their delicious breakfasts and dinners made up for it! The Happy Gecko has several cottages that are reached by a cement walkway up the hill behind the dining area/bar.  All have a patio and a view of the ocean.  Down in front of the open dining area is the beach and some groves of mangroves.  You can walk west in front of the Bunaken Oasis or southeast to the main part of Liang Beach in the evenings to view the sunset over the sea and Manado Tua, an extinct volcano just north from Bunaken.  I am a snorkeler and had an amazing time in the water, usually several times a day.  I also did a couple of night snorkels right in front of the Happy Gecko.  The dive crew was very good at inviting me along in the boat on the dive trips.  They dropped me off at the edge of the reef while they dived nearby.  I brought along an inflatable yellow buoy that I towed with a short rope to be safe on my solo snorkeling adventures - to make sure other boats would see me, and the Happy Gecko boat could easily spot me for the pickup.  Also, my buoy would hold me if I needed that, which never happened.  The colorful coral and fish in the Bunaken Marine Park are abundant and diverse,  the best I have come across in visits to the Florida Keys, the Southern Caribbean, and the South Pacific (Niue Island).  Underwater photography is my hobby and passion, and I came up with enough photos and videos to spend the entire winter reviewing them, inspired by what I saw, and dreaming of my next trip there.  (search ‘journeywest coral seas’ to see more of my Bunaken underwater photos).  Also, Willeke arranged with a local boat owner (Yan) to take me on exclusive trips over to Siladen Island and the Leukan sites on the south side of Bunaken.  I expected that Yan would drop me off and then pick me up later, but he stayed nearby the entire time I was snorkeling, which was several hours.  I gave him extra rupiahs because of how boring that must have been for him.

Full Disclosure:  Like all of Indonesia, trash often washes up on the waves and the tides.  The locals on Liang Beach are very quick to clean it up.  On a couple days of my 11 day stay at the Happy Gecko it rained VERY hard.  This caused enough runoff around the island to cloud the reef the next morning, making for very poor photographs and videos.  On the flip side, there were several days that the sea was so calm that it was almost like a lake.

Perfect Dive and Snorkeling Vacation

We had a fantastic time at the Happy Gecko. Willeke and Jerry have nice wooden bunkalows down the slope. You have to climb a few stairs, but the view is worth it. The food is very tasty and versatile (including great vegetarian dishes). We just went snorkeling one day at the coral reef outside the house because there was so much to see (including turtles). The second day Jerry took us on the boat to look for dolphins and we got them! Dogs from dolphins. They swam and jumped next to our boat. Then we found ourselves snorkeling too. The bungalows are clean and happy. Our bed is big but hard.

A fantastic stay

Happy Gecko Resort is an exceptional place to spend your holidays in total tranquility, surrounded by a charming jungle and facing a sea that leaves you speechless. The resort consists of a few traditional bungalows, spacious, comfortable, with private bathroom and seafront terrace from which to enjoy beautiful sunsets hidden by mangroves and overlooking the family restaurant where meals are consumed, breakfast included. The resort is run by the brilliant Willeke and the diving, small but very well equipped, by our husband. The food, delicious and simple, is very good, varied, healthy, perfectly balanced. The bungalows are cleaned every day and, among other things, I would like to emphasize that it is a pleasure to lose myself, sharing the familiar restaurant where you can eat meals, breakfast included.

It was a fantastic experience.

Happy Gecko is exactly that - happy. Thank you Willeke & Jerry for welcoming and making me feel at home. 

Excellent local food, a small honesty bar, lots of books and a view to kill for. 

And of course diving, wonderful diving. That’s why you’re there. Everything was easy from start to finish with very quick and clear communication. 

Dive in the morning, after lunch take a walk in the nature or through the small village, read a book or have a siesta or go snorkelling. Dinner is early at 18:30 so you’ll be asleep by 22:00. Fully refreshed for the next mornings diving. 

Lovely people in a lovely place.

Cicak Senang (Happy Gecko) Resort

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