Komodo Tour

I just returned from my Komodo tour, so now is the right time to write you a short report about it!

The Komodo tour is a 4-day boat trip including overnight stays. It gets its name from the Komodo National Park, which is located in the east of Indonesia.

The boat accommodates about 40 people, and everyone sleeps together in one room, mattress to mattress. When we first arrived, we were all a bit shocked because the room was about 1.30m high and definitely too small for 40 people. But after settling in and spending the first night, we got used to it. I was on the tour with my brother and 4 girls with whom I've been traveling for a while now. We started in the afternoon, hiked to a small island for sunset, and then continued cruising through the first night. Of course, we ate on the boat; the crew cooked for us every day, sometimes more delicious than other times, but it was usually enough to fill us up ;)

On the second day, we were woken up at 5:45 for sunrise and eagerly awaited the highlight: swimming with whale sharks. All of my friends who had done the tour before saw whale sharks, as the area is quite famous for them. However, as nature sometimes goes, we were unfortunately deprived of this experience 😔 The guide told us that it happens once a year that no whale sharks are sighted, which was all the more frustrating since the chances were extremely good that we would see some. The rest of the day we continued heading toward the Komodo National Park because we had to cover 450km in 3 days. The second night was very wobbly, so sleep wasn't particularly restful. We spent our time on the boat reading, sleeping, playing games, looking out at the sea, and soaking up the sun!

The third day was the best of the whole tour because finally, more happened than just boat riding. We took a short hike through the national park to see the local Komodo dragons. Due to their saliva filled with bacteria, a bite is almost certain to cause death due to infection. Fortunately, they are generally not aggressive if you keep a safe distance, so we could admire the huge reptiles from afar. I had also seen iguanas in Thailand, but those in Komodo are of a larger variety and are therefore very impressive.

Later, we went to a pink beach for sunset, swimming, and snorkeling, which was unbelievably beautiful to see. The clear turquoise water meets the pink sand, which turns almost dark pink when in contact with the water. The corals here were also the most beautiful I have seen so far! Very colorful, lively, and diverse 🪸 and when suddenly deer emerged from the woods to cool off in the water, it felt almost like a Barbie movie.

In the evening, we visited a viewpoint that offered a stunning view of an island with its bay. However, the Komodo tour has almost become a must-do on every backpacker list, so at least five other boats with 40 people each stopped at the viewpoint. Nevertheless, the view was breathtaking, and the sunset was wonderful! We spent the last night without the noise of the engine as we anchored in a bay.

The last day consisted of snorkeling and playing Canasta on the beach with Lucas before we were dropped off in Labuan Bajo, a town in eastern Indonesia.

For Lucas and me, we spent one last night in a nice hotel with a harbor view to recover from the boat ride ;)

All in all, the tour was wonderful, and I am grateful to have seen what nature has to offer! However, for the most part, it was just a lot of boat riding, and the ratio between traveling and activities just didn’t feel right for me. Of course, we were all disappointed that we couldn’t see any whale sharks, but the people from the tour couldn't help that. Unfortunately, the crew on the boat also were not in the best mood and mostly didn’t speak English, so the sense of community on the boat wasn’t very strong, and everyone was in their own groups.

After the night at the hotel, I had to say goodbye to Lucas because I was heading to Nusa Penida, and he was going to the Philippines to enjoy a nice vacation with his girlfriend! The time with him was really great, and I am grateful he came to Asia early to vacation with me! That was definitely one of the highlights of my trip!