Komodo Boat Tour
The best way to discover some of Indonesia’s islands and wild life? An adventurous boat tour from Lombok to Flores it is! We did a four-days, three nights boat tour with Wanua Adventure. If you have the time when you’re travelling through Indonesia, a boat tour should be in your itinerary! The highlight of the tour is seeing Komodo Dragons on Komodo Island!
Practical Information
There are a lot of tour operators offering different kinds of tours to Komodo Island. Take your time to have a look on the different options to find the best one for your needs. Be aware that some tours will include all costs (such as entrance fees for Komodo National Park) while others don’t.
We choose for a multiple day tour starting in Bangsal (Lombok) and ending in Lubuan Bajo (Flores). It is also possible to do it the other way around. If you’re planning to go on a multiple day tour, there are only two companies offering this experience (as far as we know off), Wanua Adventure and Travel Wise. Although, you’ll find lots of stands on Lombok selling these trips. Those people are not organising the trip themselves, but are trying to make a profit on selling official tickets. Therefore, we recommend contacting the companies directly. They are easily findable online and you can send them a WhatsApp message and they will answer very directly.
You can go for 2 nights or 3 nights and when booking you can to choose between sleeping on the deck or in a cabin. A cabin might sound more luxurious but bear in mind that the cabins are located just above the motor of the boat, which makes them quite hot and noisy, especially as the boat is driving at night as well.
If you opt for sleeping on the deck, as we did, you get a matrass, a pillow and blanket and you share the deck with the other passengers. The big luggage goes into the hold of the boat which you can access at any time. On the boat there were three toilets and a salt water shower (we were lucky as we were on Tiara Mandiri, but there are smaller boats without a shower as well). We paid 2,8 million IDR per person. This price has increased by almost 150% since Covid, so check the price again when you want to book.
The package you buy at Wanua Adventure includes everything. Not only all entrance fees but also the food on the trip. There are three fresh meals a day, snacks and fruits. Water, coffee and tea can be taken at any time. For meals on the boat, we thought it was quite good, although this is very subjective. For breakfast we got banana pancakes and toast. Lunch and dinner were often rice with vegetables or fried noodles. The food is laid out on different plates with different dishes you can choose from. So, there is something for everyone, also for vegetarians.
The crew members are friendly and helpful although they don’t speak English except for the tour guide.
Itinerary
Day One
We got picked up at eight-thirty in our hotel in Mataram, this pick-up is also included in the price. Together with some other travellers in the city we drive to the meeting point in Bangsal. That’s the official office where everyone comes together. Luckily, we got split up into four groups for four boats because there are a lot of people. The registration takes a lot of time. It’s already 11 am when are leaving with another bus to Lombok Kayangan, which is on the other side of the island.
On the way to the harbour we stop at a super market and we get some snacks from the crew. This makes us a bit less annoyed because of all the waiting and transportation. At 3 pm we finally install ourselves at the boat and we start sailing. Lunch is already waiting for us and we were really happy to finally have a meal and start this trip.
The first stop we make is Kenawa Island. On this small island we had a little swim and enjoyed the sunset. Back on the boat we have dinner. There is a good vibe with all the passengers. There are people chatting, relaxing and playing games. We decide to go bed early as we had a long day.
Day Two
It’s only five-thirty in the morning when we wake up because we realise the boat stopped. We feel excided as we are looking for whale sharks this morning! We put on our bathing suits and get down to have a better look at the water. We see the first whale shark swimming right next to the boat and we take a snorkel to jump into the water. These creatures are so beautiful and incredibly large. We do feel shocked when they come so close, although we know they don’t hurt people. This is all so incredible! We already feel this might be the highlight of our whole Indonesia trip.
Unfortunately, I got stung by a jellyfish and I’m too scared to go in the water again. So, I watch the others swim while I stay on the boat.
The afternoon is all about relaxing. People are reading, journaling, playing games or having a nap. In the afternoon we have a refreshing swim at the boat. People are jumping off the deck and we’re having the best time. At sunset we even see dolphins swimming next to our boat.
Also this night the boat keeps driving.
Day Three
After breakfast at 6 am, we visit Komodo National Park at Komodo Island. Komodo Island is one of the four islands where you can find Komodo Dragons. This is the largest lizard on earth, it can grow up to three meters. The lizards have a venomous bite for all animals, including humans. We get a ranger to guide us through the park. Although we feel like it’s not a real ranger. He can’t speak English very well, he doesn’t wait for the group and doesn’t tell us more about the Komodo dragons or the park than the information-boards at the entrance did. After just entering the park, two Komodo Dragons are lured to our group with bags of food. This feels a bit strange to us. But the animals are very special to see! They are walking slowly but majestically and do seem very strong.
To be honest, we don’t feel like this is an authentic experience at all, but more a scene. Besides the food bags we also had to be quiet when walking to the lizards, but once we where there, everyone started talking loudly and people took photos from very close by.
There are three hike options, short, medium and long. They gave us a choice but when we said we wanted to do the long hike this wasn’t possible due to time restrains. The medium hike took about less than an hour and was about 3km long. We did not see any other animals in this small period.
After Komodo National Park we go back on the boat and drive to Pink Beach, which is located on the other side of Komodo Island. Time to relax and snorkel at this beach. The sand is coloured pink because of red corals. Don’t expect too much from this, as the sand is only a bit pink where the sea meets the beach. We take a snorkel and go into the water to see all the fish and coral.
This evening we’re watching sunset from Padar Island. The hike up the hill is easily doable, as there are stairs nearly to the top. The last meters are more climbing but the view you get is definitely worth it! After the climb we get dinner on the boat.
For the last night a girl on our boat plays her ukulele, singing songs and people start to sing along. This night the boat stays where we are, so it’s a quiet night.
Day Four
For the last day there are no big things planned. Just relaxing, swimming, snorkeling… The first stop we make is at Long Beach. A nice beach with again a lot of coral and fish for snorkeling.
Before heading to Lubuan Bajo, the harbour where we get dropped off, we stop at Kelor Island. From the beach of Kelor Island we already see the harbour and we feel like this is the end of the trip. We take some more time to relax and pack our bags.
Note:
This boat trip really is an unforgettable experience for your Indonesia trip. But just like everything, it also has some less positive sides we want to share as well.
Komodo Island and Komodo National Park are like the other islands and beaches of Indonesia. Meaning that the beaches here are polluted as well. Sadly, this is all because of the locals that are throwing their garbage on the ground and in the water. The country is thinking to incline the entrance fee to 3.75 million IDR, which equals around €250, to preserve the habitat of the Komodo Dragons by decreasing the amount of visitors. We don’t like this measurement as we don’t feel like the park is well maintained, especially because of the maintainers themselves polluting the island. Apart from that, there are way more animals that can be found on the island but the rangers don’t even try finding them. If you pay a higher price, we think you should get more than just to see a Komodo Dragon without any information from a non-English speaking ranger.
The organisations of these boat trips try to hop on the green trend. Sadly enough the locals of Indonesia, including the crew from the ship, don’t understand or see the problem. In the beginning we received a reusable bottle with a printing “Stop throwing your trash into the splash” which we can refill on the boat. That is contradictory to what happens on the boat. The crew themselves throw away trash such as cigarettes into the sea, people can shower with normal shampoo and soaps on the boat, although it flows right into the sea…
By saying this we just want to be real. Although all this, we are still recommending you to take the trip. It’s sadly enough just a South-East-Asia thing that as a tourist you can barely do anything about it. Do what you can do for the environment and enjoy your time!
