The Komodo Islands offer some of the most exciting and unique adventures you can have in Indonesia. From beautiful towering mountains to bats taking flight during sunset, a pink beach (yes.. the sand is actually pink) and even seeing the infamous Komodo Dragon up close, there is SO much to see and do here.
We had the pleasure of setting sail with Sail with Papiton and Travass Life, one of the premier travel companies on Labuan Bajo, that offer incredible multi-day tours. We sailed on the Papiton Duwa boat and had an incredible time enjoying the comforts of home while sailing through some spectacular islands.
In this blog post were are going to share with you everything you need to know about booking your trip to the Komodo Islands in Indonesia, including information on Labuan Bajo, why we sailed with Travass Life, and our full tour itinerary!
Let’s get into it!
Watch our complete travel vlog and guide to sailing the Komodo Islands in Komodo National Park here!
How To Get To The Komodo Islands
Komodo Islands are located East of the popular Island of Bali, Indonesia. However, you will begin your trip in Labuan Bajo, a small coastal town that is the gateway to the Komodo Island sailing adventures.
To get to the town of Labuan Bajo, you can take a domestic flight from most airports in Indonesia and will arrive at the Komodo Airport. From there, depending on your arrival date and time, the team at Travass will pick you up and bring you to the boat, or you will go to a hotel of your choice for the night!
We choose to arrive in Labuan Bajo a day early so we had time to explore the town and relax before our three day sailing adventure!
Komodo Islands Sailing Itinerary
Keep in mind that the itinerary is very weather dependent and can be changed if the guides feel another route is more suitable.
Komodo Islands Tour Itinerary: Day One
On day one, the Travass Team arranged pickup from our hotel at 8:00AM! From there we were brought to the port and transported to the Papiton Duwa, our home for the next 3 days. Once all 10 guests were settled on board, we began to sail to our first destination of the day!
siaba Island
After about 2 hours of sailing, we arrived at Siaba Island. This was a great snorkeling spot with colorful corals and fish. If you get lucky, you may even see some turtles! We spent about 45 minutes here enjoying the ocean and the sun before heading to our next stop for the day.
Manta Point
After a brief lunch break, we set sail to one of the most exciting points on this trip! Manta Point! There is never a guarantee to see Manta Rays, but if you visit from December to March, the likelihood is apparently higher. We got SO lucky and saw 5 Manta Rays during our hour here. They are absolutely magical and so gentle. This was a bucket-list moment for us!
Taka Makassar
Once we all boarded the boat with excitement from swimming with Manta Rays, we headed over to a sand bar in the middle of the ocean! We traveled shortly after a storm period so there was unfortunately quite a bit of trash and debris on the beach. However, this is not always the case. We spent about 45 minutes here soaking up some sun, before we sailed to our final destination of the day.
Padar Island
If you have ever googled “Komodo Island” then you will likely see a photo of this incredible Island pop up alongside many photos of Komodo Dragons. Padar Island, has one of the most beautiful lookout points in Indonesia, looking at 3 different sand bays below towering mountains.
As this is one of the most popular stops for day trips to Komodo, Travass Life brings their guests for sunset. This was the perfect time to visit in our opinion. The sun is not as hot on your hike up the 800+ steps to the top, and we were one of the only boats there, meaning we got to enjoy it with just a few others.
We have traveled to a lot of places, and we often see photos that really hype places up. This place far exceeded our expectations and no photo or video could ever capture just how beautiful this place is.
Dinner And rest
Once we returned to the boat from Padar Island, our captain set sail to where we would anchor for the night and sleep. We anchored directly in front of Pink Beach, which would be our first destination for the next day!
The crew made an incredible dinner, our group shared travel stories and got to know each other more, and then we all went to our cabins to sleep and prepare for another day of adventure!
Jake saw some Reef Sharks from our Balcony in the evening, and apparently they frequent this area at night, so make sure to look for them!
Tour Itinerary: Day Two
Pink Beach
We woke up in the morning to a beautiful sunrise and views of Pink Beach! This is one of the busiest destinations in the Komodo Islands, so our team made sure we were the first boat there! Our small boat took us to shore and we enjoyed the beautiful pink sand and some of the clearest blue water we have ever seen for about an hour! When we were leaving, about 7-8 large boats pulled up with SO many people.
While we understand beautiful places are popular for a reason and sometimes it is inevitable to share them with a crowd, we did appreciate that our boat crew got us there early so we could enjoy the beautiful beach in solitude with just our group!
We boarded the boat and then set sail for our next destination while breakfast was served.
Komodo Island
This is the stop that SO many people on our boat were waiting for! Komodo Island! This is one of the handful of Islands in Indonesia that still have a Komodo Dragon population. This endangered species is from the prehistoric era, and are the largest lizards in the world. Komodo Dragons can grow up to 3 Meters Long (10 feet) and can weigh over 70 kg (150+ lbs).
When you arrive, a guide is assigned to the group and they give you a safety briefing regarding the Komodo’s. From there, you will begin a small hiking loop taking you to areas that you are most likely to see these beasts! We got very lucky and saw 8 during our visit! One of them being about 2.5 meters long.
The guides are extremely knowledgeable and ensure your safety during the trip. Listen to your guides and keep a distance from the Komodo Dragons because they still are wild animals and can be aggressive if they feel provoked.
This Island had some souvenir tents and small market areas to buy soda, beer and some snacks!
We spent about an hour and half here. We then got back on the boat to have our lunch as we sailed to our next destination.
Snorkeling Spot
Our Travass Life team surprised us with an incredible snorkeling spot on our way to our final destination of the day! This was absolutely welcomed as it was mid-day and our group was very warm from the trekking around Komodo Islands. This spot had quite a strong current, so make sure to wear a life-jacket if you need it.
We saw a sea snake, some stunning colorful coral, a lot of tropical fish and some starfish!
Kalong Island
With a snack served as we sailed, we headed to our final stop of the day, Kalong Island for sunset! This island is famous for it’s Flying Foxes or a type of bat, that fly back to their home island everyday at sunset. This is one of the coolest experiences you will ever have! It was surreal to have thousands of these massive bats fly over the boat. This experience lasts for around 30 minutes and starts at sunset. Our entire group sat on the top deck of the boat and took in this phenomenon as the sun set around us. Absolutely magical.
Dinner and Rest
While our crew served us an amazing dinner, they filled us in on our final itinerary for the following day! We could not believe that we only had a few activities left before we returned. After dinner, our group went back to their rooms to get some sleep before our last morning of adventures!
Tour Itinerary: Day 3
Our boat moved and anchored at Manjarite Island for the night as there was some rough water and a storm that occurred overnight in our previously planned sleeping area. This change is sleeping location benefited us as we had quick access to our activities for the day!
Kelor Island
On our final morning, the boat crew woke us up at around 5 AM to get to our first Island of the day, Kelor Island. We made our way from the Paption Duwa to the beach of Kelor Island for a sunrise hike. The hike itself is only 10 minutes to the top, but it is quite steep and the trail is very muddy, so after some rain, can be a bit hard to navigate. You are going to want to pack shoes with good grip for this one!
Once we reached the top of the hill, our group sat in silence and watched as the sun rose over the adjacent mountain. This is a great way to start the day! After we hiked back down, there is a small group of vendors set up that sell drinks and snacks as well as some souvenirs. There is also a small white sand beach and a dock.
Manjarite Island
After we returned to the main boat, we had some time for breakfast as we waited for the sun to rise over the mountain of Manjarite Island. Once the sun appeared, we got ready to head over to our final stop of our trip! We had the option to visit the dock and enjoy the view and sunshine, or jump in the water and snorkel the rich coral reef that surrounds the island. We opted to hang out on the dock and soak up some sun. Although the group that decided to snorkel said they saw a lot of starfish and even a turtle!
Return To Labuan Bajo
Our trip has come to an end and we all boarded the boat for the last time! We set sail for Labuan Bajo and our group sat around sharing their favorite moments of the trip and contact information to stay in touch! Once we reached the port, the Travass Team had already per-arranged transportation for everyone to bring them to their hotel or to the airport!
Boat Amenities
Like we said above, we sailed on the Papiton Duwa! This boat has 5 cabins and can sleep up to 12 guests. There is a full crew on board, including a guide, a photographer for the trip, a chef and of course, the captain! This is one of the only boat tours through the Komodo Islands that we have seen that offer a photographer during the trip! We thought this was a great feature to add something extra special to the trip.
We stayed in the Manta Room which is a spacious suite at the back of the second deck of the boat. This room has a comfy bed, an en-suite bathroom, and a private balcony! This is the only room on the boat with a private balcony and it was SO great to have. We got up in the morning, made a coffee at the front of the boat and them came and enjoyed it on our balcony.
Each room on the boat has a private en-suite bathroom complete with a shower and flushing toilet. There is a shared dining area with a small kitchenette located at the center of the boat. Coffee, tea and filtered water are always available in the kitchenette! They crew always had some kind of snack out as well, whether it be Bananas, Cookies or Cereal! There is a community fridge if you decided to bring any of your own drinks on board as well, there is no alcohol on board, so you will need to bring that yourself.
There is a large sun deck located on the top of the boat, that offer some great views while sailing! At the very front of the boat there are two nets that act as a hammock which are perfect for relaxing.
Trip Inclusions and Exclusions
Inclusions
There is a lot included in the trip. All meals and snacks are included as well as Tea, Coffee and Drinking Water. Every room has a full private bathroom with hot water. Towels and linens are included as well. There is a guide as well as person responsible for Photos and Videos (professional camera and drone) of the trip. We thought this was a great bonus, as not many other boats offer this service!
Exclusions
Here are a few things to note that are not included on trip. Any alcoholic beverages, soda or juice need to be brought on the boat yourself. The National Park fees are not included in the trip and are 250,000 IDR per person. If you want to fly a drone in the National Park (Padar Island) than it is 1,000,000 IDR! You will need to notify the boat crew that you would like a drone permit so they can prepare it prior to your arrival to the National Park. Also tips for the crew! There are a lot of hard working crew members on board the boat making your trip magical, so make sure to give them a tip.
Final Thoughts
Sailing the Komodo Islands is a trip that you need to plan ASAP! If you like checking things off of your bucketlist, in one trip you will swim with Manta Rays, visit a Pink Sand Beach and see Komodo Dragons. This truly is a once in a lifetime trip!
We hope you found this blog post helpful. Let us know if you have any questions in the comments, we would be more than happy to answer them.
Check out Sail with Papiton and Travass Life!
