Visited: Sept 28 to Oct 3, 2024
We spent two nights in the town of Labuan Bajo, on Flores, before boarding our liveaboard boat to make our way to Lombok while passing through the Komodo National Park. We thought Labuan Bajo would be a sleepy little town, but it was much more developed as a tourist town than we expected with nice restaurants and international cuisine. We did not do any sightseeing and just hung out around town enjoying the ocean views and food before heading off to explore the Komodo Islands. We ate Korean fried chicken and surprisingly good pizza.
We originally had planned to just do a 3D/2N boat trip starting and ending in Labuan Bajo, but learned that there was an option to go all the way to Lombok on a 4D/3N trip. We met some travelers that had done the 4 day trip that raved about the experience. I get seasick easily so I was nervous about a liveaboard experience. But I was convinced that it would be a magical, once in a lifetime adventure. So we decided to go for it. Why not spend one more day on a boat and see a whole other island?
We signed up for the Wanua Adventure trip and chose to sleep in the common upper deck where nearly 30 people sleep next to each other on mats. There are private cabinets, but we read reviews that the private cabins were incredibly loud (located directly above the engine) and very hot. I wasn’t thrilled about the sleeping arrangement as we are both well-past the dorm hostel life, but figured it couldn’t be too bad for just three nights. Spoiler alert: unfortunately, the entire boat trip was a let down.
To be fair, it wasn’t that the boat trip was objectively bad. I think it is a magical experience for the right person. That person just wasn’t me for a few reasons. 1) The stops and sights were not as stunning as I thought they would be. Of course, they were beautiful, but they didn’t seem particularly special to make it worth the boat experience. 2) Although I luckily did not get terribly seasick, I did not feel great for large stretches and/or felt very drowsy from Dramamine. 3) There were no places to sit or lounge during the long hours on the boat between stops — only our sleeping mat or the uncomfortable wooden boat floor. I’m pretty sure I bruised my tailbone 4) The majority of the guests were French and hung out only among themselves. Overall, I would not do this boat trip again and Nate generally agrees.
Despite my negative ramblings, we did see some cool things and it was a once in a lifetime experience. Here is a day by day account of the boat trip.
Day 1: Endangered Komodo Dragons and Flying Foxes
Our first stop of the trip was Rinca Island which has a population of wild Komodo Dragons. Because they are free to roam the island, it is not guaranteed to see one. Luckily, we saw a few, including two almost as soon as we got there. Komodo dragons look like big, long lizards. I knew they were going to be big, but was still surprised by their size. They are poisonous so you have to make sure to keep your distance. Generally, they seem to be content lying around.
We went on a short hike through the island up to a viewpoint where we could see the ocean and the other islands. There was also an exhibition area with skeletons and lots of information about the Komodo Dragon.
We then went to Pempe Beach to swim and snorkel where the snorkeling was pretty good, but not amazing. After the incredible snorkeling at Semporna, it is hard to measure up.
Afterwards, we visited Rinca Village on Rinca Island, a small fishing village of the Bajo people. There, we watched a dance performance by the villagers. One was a traditional sword fighting dance called Manca Bajo and the second was a dance inspired by the movement of animals called Animal Pop Komodo). This visit was interesting… It was only our boat group and the entire visit felt forced and performative, like they wanted to humor and amuse the tourists. After the performances, they made us perform the Macarena for them, which maybe was a way to even the score.
We ended Day 1 by watching the sunset on the boat by Kalong Island. As the sun set, we could see huge Flying Foxes (huge bats that live on the island) flying around. Flying Foxes have a wingspan of up to 1.7-m and even from afar, you could see that they were massive. I’m glad I didn’t see them up close!
Day 2: Sunrise at Padar Island and a Pink Beach
Day 2 was probably my favorite day. We started the day at 4am with a sunrise hike on Padar Island, which is probably the most picturesque and well-known view of the Komodo islands. This was my favorite activity of the entire cruise. I broke a sweat climbing all the stairs to the stop, but it was well worth the view. We got to the top early enough to enjoy the boat lights shining on the water at dusk and saw the full sunrise with the sky changing colors. It got very crowded and overwhelming, but we still got some great pictures!
We then went to Long Pink Beach to swim and snorkel. The sand is a slight pinkish color which was very pretty. With calmer waters, it was a nice beach for swimming, snorkeling, and relaxing.
Our last activity of the day was snorkeling off of Komodo Island. Snorkeling here was also just fine. I didn’t snorkel for very long.
Then we were off for over 14-hours of continuous sailing overnight to Moyo Island.
Day 3: Swimming at a Salt Water Lake and a Waterfall
Day 3 was the last full day on the boat. Our first activity was swimming at a big salt water lake on Satonda Island. This is a special stop that Wanua only does for the Flores-Lombok route and the lake was very serene and pretty.
We then went to Moyo Island where we hiked up to a small waterfall to swim. However, the waterfall was very small and the swimming pool area was also very small, so I didn’t think it was worth it. There was a rope for people to swing and jump in and others did have fun doing it.
Day 3 was a short day with just two activities, then a lot of sailing. At night some people went to an island to party, but I had not been feeling good and was already sleeping well before they went. I was definitely a snooze on this trip.
Day 4: Last Sunrise Hike and Arriving at Lombok
On our last morning we woke up early for another sunrise hike on Kenawa Island. It was a pretty short but steep hike up a dusty hill. It was a very pretty sunrise with many shades of pink and orange.
Then we headed straight to Lombok to end our trip. By this point, I was very excited to get back on land and off the boat. We docked on the east coast of Lombok and from there took a 3-hr long shuttle van to Kuta, the main tourist city in south Lombok. I was starting to feel feverish on the ride to Kuta, so I was so eager and ready to check into a real room and a bed.
Leave a Reply