Komodo Island
11.07
If you’re planning a trip to Indonesia, you should really look at putting a trip out to Komodo Island on your ‘to do’ list. It’s a part of Indonesia that feels a bit forgotten, away from the party-fuelled streets of Kuta and the resorts dotting the coastline of Bali. In truth, I’d begun to feel a bit tired of the Bali scene, feeling like I’d done all there was to do and seen all there was to see in Indonesia, but I was wrong! My trip out to Komodo National Park changed my view of Indonesia altogether, reminding me there’s just so much beauty to be discovered and explored. So, to help you visit for yourself, here’s my guide on everything you need to know about visiting Komodo Island and a few dreamy photos to inspire you to get out there and have an incredible adventure. The short answer to this is simple; it is absolutely, freaking beautiful! I could not get over the perfect blue water, dramatic mountains and gorgeous weather. Everywhere we went I just kept wanting to jump into the water and spend the day swimming. Komodo offers up a tropical paradise of dreamy islands, strung together by the Flores Sea. You’ll find it a total haven from the busy, party-wild streets of Bali, but with that same ‘anything goes’ vibe Indonesia is so well-loved for. Not only this, but Komodo Island is home to the infamous Komodo Dragon; equal parts terrifying and mesmerising.
Komodo Island is just one of the 17,508 islands that form Indonesia and is also part of the Komodo National Park. One way to get there is to fly from a major airport, like Jakarta or Denpasar, to Lebuan Bajo. From here, you can jump on a boat and set sail for Komodo Island. A boat is the only way to navigate these islands, unless you’re uber-rich and have access to a helicopter. Trust me, the boat ride is fantastic! It takes around 2 hours or so to get from Lebuan Bajo to Komodo Island, so you can do it as a day-trip, but I’d recommend you spend a few days sailing the area, if you can, as there’s so much to see and do. You’ll want to take it slow, jumping off the boat when you can and just really enjoying yourself in general
Our visit to Komodo Island was only a day trip, with us spending a couple of hours on Komodo Island up close with the Komodo Dragons. We arrived by boat and saw our first dragon as we were walking off the jetty, with the absolute beast of a creature having a nice nap on the beach. We were greeted by a group of rangers, who divided us up into groups of no more than 5 people and were assigned two rangers, one to walk ahead of us and one to walk behind. The rangers are armed only with a long wooden stick, which they use to bop the dragons on the nose if they get too close as the nose is the most sensitive part of the dragons.
There are a few different hikes you can do on the island, of varying lengths and difficulties. As it was such a hot day, our group opted for the short hike. We didn’t see any dragons during the walk, but we did see plenty of them down toward the beach. It’s hard to describe how you feel when you see them, because they do look quite docile but you know how quick they can move and how deadly they are if they get you. I felt weird when I saw them, but I never felt unsafe because there were so many rangers around us.
The National Park is a conservation area and protected, so it makes sense there’s an entrance fee on Komodo Island. The fees are subject to change, so it’s best to check when you arrive in Labuan Bajo, but it only costs a few dollars per person and a little extra for a ranger. All up, you’d be looking at around $10-$15AU per person to enter the park, be guided around and protected by a ranger. You can pay the fees when you arrive in Labuan Bajo at the National Parks’ office or when you arrive on the island. We visited in August and it was scorching hot, though it wasn’t anywhere near as hot as it can
I’m glad we are short-circuited parents that way.We’ll be sleeping on the boat, snorkeling, hiking, climbing mountains and, of course, trekking to see the Komodo dragons. Even the crew members where a little surprised, but open and accepting. My children earned their chops with our crew when they saw how well Miss I (age 2) snorkeled by herself with no floatation devices and when G (age 4) bravely jumped off the side of the boat, falling two meters down into the ocean with his Spider-man floaty. After lazying around on Gili Air for 10 days, we yearned for a bit more adventure. We booked a 4 day sailing trip with Kencana Tours. The following is our experience written day by day.
By the end of the stunning photography, you’ll be wanting to fly to Bali, take a boat to Lombok and jump on board to see the beauty of Indonesian islands. It was 4 grand days of sailing among pristine, “holy crap this is so freakin’ amazing” scenery. It’s not that I’m a great photographer, it’s that the subjects were so dang beautiful:To say it was awesome in the truest definition of the word is an understatement. This was our first travels of Indonesia beyond Bali and we fell in love
With over 17,000 islands, Indonesia has plenty to explore.
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