Jellyfish Lake: Togian Islands must-visit
If there is one thing I truly hate about swimming in the North Sea, it’s JELLYFISH. I’m terrified of these slippery sea monsters. However, I jumped into a lake full of thousands of jellyfish in Sulawesi, specifically in the Togean Islands. This unique lake, called Jellyfish Lake, is filled with jellyfish that can no longer sting. They may still be slippery and intrusive, but it’s absolutely one of the most magical things I’ve ever done. Forget yoga… spending an hour underwater, gazing at jellyfish gracefully swimming by, is definitely next-level meditation.
Badass of the Sea
Secretly, we all find jellyfish to be unpleasant creatures. Jellyfish, also known as the wasps of the sea, are annoying, painful, and always in places where you don’t want them. But in reality, jellyfish are mega badass. Did you know that there are jellyfish that are immortal? The Turritopsis dohrnii, to be precise, can revert back to its earliest stage of development after reaching full maturity. Yes, indeed… try to do that yourself. Additionally, jellyfish are 95% water. They have no heart, nervous system, respiratory system, or even a brain, and yet jellyfish have existed for over 500 million years. Holy crap! That makes jellyfish one of the most successful marine creatures in the world. And as irritating as they can sometimes be, jellyfish are truly incredibly beautiful.
#How?
During our visit to Jellyfish Lake on the Togean Islands, I was told that this lake was once part of the sea. Due to a volcanic eruption or a landslide, a portion of the sea was isolated, creating a saltwater lake. The jellyfish no longer had natural predators, so their venomous tentacles were no longer necessary. Although they still have the tentacles, over the past thousands of years, the tentacles have weakened to the point where they no longer cause pain upon contact. Diving into the lake is especially unique and completely painless.
Booking a Jellyfish Lake Trip
A visit to Jellyfish Lake is often part of a day trip that includes multiple destinations. We booked this trip through Poki Poki. Most accommodations offer various boat trips where you pay per boat. The more people that join, the cheaper the trip becomes. I think we paid a total of about 50-60 euros for a boat that could accommodate 4 people, so approximately 15 euros per person. Lunch is usually included with your accommodation, so you don’t have to pay extra for it. During our day trip, we not only got to swim with thousands of jellyfish but also enjoyed a fantastic lunch at Karina Beach and spotted several dolphins.
Tip! If you’re island hopping, save money and time by getting dropped off at your new accommodation during your day trip.
On the Togean Islands, we stayed on different islands. However, these islands can be quite far apart. So, if you want to move on to the next destination, you’ll have to book a boat taxi. But here’s another option: book a day trip and ask if they can drop you off at your new location. We had to go from Poki Poki to Karidiri, which is normally a 2-hour boat trip. However, the resort was not far from the lake, so we were dropped off directly at Karidiri on the way back. This allowed us to save a significant amount of money and time.
