Allo Cave (Goa Allo)

Most caves are the same when you arrive as when you left. This one is not.

Goa Allo is a sea cave with a pool inside it, and the level of that pool follows the tide. Turn up when the water has dropped and you are looking at a clear lagoon inside a limestone chamber with a white sand floor. Turn up when it has not and there's nothing to see, because you can't get in.

That's the whole character of the stop and it's the reason it appears in some trip reports and not others.

Where it is

Goa Allo sits in the Sombori island group, in the area of Desa Mbokita, Menui Kepulauan district, Morowali Regency, Central Sulawesi. It is close to Goa Berlian, which is why the two are almost always done on the same day.

They make a good pair because they're opposites. One is dry, high up and reached by a scramble. The other is at sea level and you arrive by boat straight into it. More on Goa Berlian, the dry cave on the same run.

What is inside

The cave mouth is large and tall, and reports describe more than one opening, so the interior is not the pitch-dark space the word cave might suggest. Light gets in.

Inside there is a hollow holding water that rises and falls with the sea outside. At low water it reads as a still, clear pool with a pale sand bottom, ringed by rock. Because it sits inside limestone surrounded by the sea, the colour of the water inside contrasts sharply with the greener sea outside.

You can swim in it. That's the point of going.

The tide

Access depends on the state of the water on the day. We are not going to publish a tide table or a best time here, because tide times shift daily and a fixed figure on a web page would be wrong more often than right. The crew checks, and they will build the day around this stop if it matters to you. Say so at the start of the trip rather than at the end.

This is the strongest single argument for a longer trip. On three days you get one attempt. On four days and up, the crew can come back. See the four-day Labengki Sombori trip, and which Labengki attractions depend on the tide.

Practical notes

• Arrival is by boat, directly. No climb, which makes this one of the more accessible stops on the Sombori side.
• You'll get wet. That's the intention.
• Take a dry bag off the boat if you're carrying a camera, and keep it shut.
• Don't touch the formations or stand on anything living. Cave surfaces take a long time to grow and no time to mark.
• No sunscreen going in if you can manage it. Enclosed water inside rock doesn't flush quickly.
• A torch is worth having, though there is more daylight inside than you expect.

Practical summary

• Getting there: by boat, into the cave mouth
• Difficulty: low, no climbing
• Tide dependent: yes, completely. This is the defining fact about the stop
• Swimming: yes
• Best for: anyone, including people skipping the Goa Berlian scramble
• Pairs with: Goa Berlian, on the same day

Common questions

Will I definitely get to see it? No, and any operator promising otherwise is guessing. It depends on the tide during your trip. Longer trips have better odds because they allow a second attempt.

Is it dark inside? Less than you would expect. The mouth is large and there is more than one opening, so daylight reaches the pool.

Can I go in if I am not a confident swimmer? Tell the crew. The water inside is enclosed and calm, which makes it easier than open sea, but you should be comfortable in water either way.

Is it the same as Diamond Cave? No. Goa Berlian is dry, up a steep scramble, and about light on stalactites. Goa Allo is at sea level, entered by boat, and about a tidal pool. Different stops, usually the same day.