Indonesia · Komodo

Three Days on a Phinisi: Komodo National Park by Boat

Three days and two nights on a 28-metre wooden phinisi, five cabins, twelve guests maximum. Komodo National Park by boat, with the space to stay longer at each stop.

Duration

2N / 3D

Group Size

Max 12

Why We Picked This

The Komodo route is fixed. Every boat leaving Labuan Bajo runs the same itinerary because the islands are non-negotiable and the marine sites are where they are. What changes is the boat. The difference between the £300 backpacker option and this trip is not the destinations. It is the platform, the pace, and the fact that fewer people share the water with you at each stop. We booked a 28-metre wooden phinisi with five cabins, twelve guests maximum, and private ensuite bathrooms in every room. Our trip ran with eight guests on board, a dedicated chef, and a crew of four. The wooden construction is what makes phinisi charters distinctive: these boats have been built in South Sulawesi for centuries. The version we sailed on was 28.5 metres of hand-laid tropical hardwood, well-maintained rather than pristine, which is the right register for a working boat. The upper deck has a sundeck seating area. The lower deck has both indoor and outdoor dining. The suite cabin adds a bathtub. The other cabins run private ensuite without one. This is the tier where Komodo becomes a different kind of experience: same islands, same route, different water.

Day by Day

Day 1

Day 1: Labuan Bajo, Kelor, and Kalong

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Morning: Hotel pickup, port registration, boarding by mid-morning. Midday: Lunch on board as the boat leaves harbour, freshly cooked. Afternoon: Kelor Island trek (15-30 mins) on an unpaved steep path with no handrails. Snorkelling in the shallows with reef sharks that swim close to shore. Sunset: Kalong Island for the fruit bat migration. Between 5:30pm and 6:30pm, tens of thousands of fruit bats erupt from the mangrove forests and cross the channel in a dense flying river. It lasts around 20 minutes. Night: Dinner on board. Sleeping on board.

Day 2