Jungle-topped karst islets scattered across a turquoise lagoon: the view from Piaynemo is the one you’ve seen on every Raja Ampat postcard. This guide covers where Piaynemo and the Fam Islands are, what a day trip involves, the climb to the viewpoint, diving in the Fam Islands, nearby Telaga Bintang and how to get there, from my own long day out in the Fam Islands.

Before I went to Raja Ampat, I assumed the famous view couldn’t possibly look as good in real life as it does in the photos. I was wrong: it looked better.

I visited in May, on a full-day trip from Papua Paradise Eco Resort on Birie Island, where I spent a week diving. The day combined three dives around the Fam Islands with the climb up to the Piaynemo viewpoint, and it was one of the most memorable days of my trip.

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Mushroom-shaped karst islets in turquoise lagoons seen from the Piaynemo viewpoint, with open sea beyond
The view from the top at Piaynemo, which looked even better than the postcards

Where are Piaynemo and the Fam Islands?

The Fam Islands are a cluster of small islands in western Raja Ampat, in the province of Southwest Papua. Piaynemo is part of the group: a tangle of jungle-covered limestone islets rising out of turquoise lagoons, which is why it’s sometimes called “Little Wayag”. From the water, it feels like a maze of tiny islands, with channels and reef flats running between them.

The Fam Islands are also one of Raja Ampat’s best-known diving areas. Getting there takes about 90 minutes by boat from Waisai and from the resorts around the Dampier Strait, and it took me 90 minutes from Papua Paradise.

Aerial view of Piaynemo's jungle-topped karst islets scattered across a jade lagoon, with open ocean behind
The karst islets of Piaynemo from above

What a Fam Islands day trip involves

Expect a long day. Most trips leave early and get back late afternoon, and the boat ride each way is the biggest chunk of the day. Mine left at 7.15am and was due back by 5pm, but it ran late, and I wasn’t back until a quarter to six.

A typical dive-resort trip follows a pattern like the one I did:

  • Morning: the boat ride out, then a first dive.
  • Surface interval: an hour or so with snacks on the boat, followed by a second dive or a snorkel.
  • Midday: the climb to the Piaynemo viewpoint, then lunch.
  • Afternoon: a final dive, then the long ride back.

Non-divers can usually join and snorkel instead, and the viewpoint alone makes the day worthwhile. It’s hot out on the water: I left my wetsuit off until the islands were in sight.

Climbing the Piaynemo viewpoint

The viewpoint is reached by a wooden staircase of around 300 steps, and the climb takes 10 to 20 minutes. It isn’t technical, but in the midday heat it’s a sweaty slog, so take water and wear shoes you’re comfortable on steps in. The thought of the view kept me going all the way up; funnily enough, the way down felt longer.

At the top, the platform looks out over the islets scattered across the lagoon. The colour of the water is so intense that I genuinely couldn’t work out how it was possible. If you fly a drone, this is the place for it: I got mine up for the aerial shots in this guide.

Aerial view of the Piaynemo lagoon, with turquoise water, mushroom-shaped karst islets and forested limestone ridges
Piaynemo from above, with turquoise water and forested limestone ridges

Diving in the Fam Islands

The Fam Islands have some of the best visibility in Raja Ampat, and the diving is a mix of the very gentle and the quite demanding.

Melissa’s Garden is a shallow, sheltered hard-coral garden where current is rare, which makes it one of the gentler famous sites in Raja Ampat. It was one of my three dives that day.

Sloping reef of hard and soft corals with small reef fish fading into deep blue water at Melissa's Garden, Raja Ampat
Hard and soft corals at Melissa’s Garden in the Fam Islands

The walls and drifts between the islands are a step up. Expect wall dives where good buoyancy matters, so you don’t bump the reef, and drifts where the current can be strong. On my second dive, I was swimming flat out just to stay in the same place.

As a rusty diver (my guide to diving in Raja Ampat covers this in depth), I found the Fam Islands dives harder than the ones on my day trip to Mansuar, and I enjoyed them less. A good guide makes a real difference here: mine, Welson, was brilliant and kept an eye on me the whole time. Confident divers who like a drift will probably love it. If you’re less experienced, ask your dive centre which sites they’re planning before you go, and don’t feel bad about swapping a dive for a snorkel.

Aerial view of green forested islands ringed by pale reef flats and turquoise shallows dropping into deep blue water
Islands, reef flats and deep blue channels

Telaga Bintang

Telaga Bintang, or Star Lagoon, is right next to Piaynemo, and many trips combine the two. It’s a star-shaped lagoon among the islets, seen from a second viewpoint at the top of a slightly harder climb than the one at Piaynemo. My day trip didn’t include it, so if you’d like to do both, check before you book.

How to visit Piaynemo

Both ways of getting there are by boat.

On a day trip from your resort. Many dive resorts run full-day trips to the Fam Islands, combining dives with the viewpoint. It’s the easiest option if you’re diving anyway. At Papua Paradise, the Fam Islands trip is one of the longer excursions and costs extra on top of the standard diving package. You can check availability at Papua Paradise, and my Papua Paradise Eco Resort review has more on staying there.

On a boat trip from Waisai. If you’re staying in Waisai or at a homestay, join a tour or charter a speedboat, which takes about 90 minutes each way. There are no public boats between the islands, so ask your homestay to arrange one or book a tour in Waisai.

What to bring

  • Water and a hat for the climb to the viewpoint.
  • Shoes you can manage the steps in.
  • Plenty of sun protection. You’ll spend most of the day on an open boat.
  • A dry bag for your camera and phone on the boat.

Fees

Every foreign visitor to Raja Ampat pays two fees: the regency tourist levy and the marine park fee. Between them, they come to roughly IDR 1.7 million to 2 million per person, and many resorts arrange them for you. My guide to how to get to Raja Ampat explains both and how to pay them.

Is the Fam Islands trip worth it?

For the view alone, yes. It’s the classic Raja Ampat panorama, and seeing it in person was one of the highlights of my trip. For the diving, it depends on your experience: confident divers will relish the walls and drifts, while nervous divers may prefer the calmer sites closer to the Dampier Strait and Mansuar.

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I’m Julianna Barnaby, a culture and travel writer and the founder of The Discoveries Of. I write in-depth, first-hand guides, itineraries with realistic timings and honest opinions on what’s genuinely worth your time.

I read English Language and Literature at Oxford and started freelance travel writing while I was there. I’ve since co-written AA Travel Guides and written for Sunday Times Travel, Business Traveller, Rough Guides, Lonely Planet and Time Out, among others. I started The Discoveries Of in 2016, and have been helping people to discover their next adventure since.

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