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Labuan Bajo and Komodo: flying in and getting onto the boats
How do I get to Komodo National Park?
Fly from Bali to Labuan Bajo, 70 to 80 minutes, from about Rp 915,000 for November 2026, then go out by boat from the harbour. Since 1 April 2026 the park admits 1,000 visitors a day in three time slots, booked on the SiOra app, and foreign visitors pay Rp 250,000 a day. Boats may not move at night, and the harbourmaster cancels sailings when BMKG warns of high waves.
At a glance
| Province | West Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) |
|---|---|
| Usual way in | Flight from Bali; ASDP ferry or Pelni ship by sea |
| Terminals and ports | Komodo airport (LBJ), Labuan Bajo harbour |
Flights to Labuan Bajo (LBJ) from Bali
Fly direct from Denpasar: Batik Air and Indonesia AirAsia, 75 to 80 minutes, from about Rp 915,000 one way for November 2026. Coming back, Garuda Indonesia and NAM Air also fly direct to Denpasar, about 70 to 80 minutes.
| Usual way | Direct flight from Denpasar |
|---|---|
| Typical time | 70 to 80 min |
| Where it arrives | Komodo airport (LBJ), Labuan Bajo |
Morning flights from Denpasar
Afternoon flights: Batik Air at 16:45. Wings Air's flights connect through other airports and take four hours or more.
Flights back. Direct flights to Denpasar leave Labuan Bajo between 08:45 and 19:00.
Komodo National Park entry fees, quota and time slots
The park changed how it lets people in on 1 April 2026: a daily quota, fixed time slots and booking in advance.
| Rule | 2026 |
|---|---|
| Daily quota | 1,000 visitors across Padar, Rinca, Komodo and 23 dive sites |
| Time slots | 05:00 to 08:00, 08:00 to 11:00, 15:00 to 18:00 |
| Fee, foreign visitors | Rp 250,000 per person per day |
| Fee, Indonesians | Rp 50,000 weekdays, Rp 75,000 holidays |
| Booking | SiOra app: date, group size, place and time slot |
Book the slot before the boat. The 1,000 places a day cover the whole park, against more than 429,000 visits in 2025, so book early and ask your boat operator which slot it has booked for you.
Komodo day trips and liveaboards from Labuan Bajo harbour
Almost everyone sees the park by boat, and a few rules now shape how those trips run.
No sailing at night. Since January 2026 the harbourmaster, KSOP Labuan Bajo, bans tourist boats from moving at night, especially at risky points. Multi-day trips go ahead, but the boat anchors after dark.
Weather cancels sailings. KSOP issues sailing permits only when BMKG's wave and wind forecast is safe. In the 2025–26 wet season it closed tourist sailings in stages from 29 December to 4 February, and on 13 to 15 September 2026 it closed the routes to Komodo and Padar for waves up to 1.9 m. Leave a spare day before your flight home.
Currents are real. On 13 October 2026 the pinisi KM Feronia, sailing from the Marina port to Rinca with 30 aboard, capsized in a whirlpool current off Pulau Tatawa; 29 were rescued and one passenger went missing.
By sea: the Sape ferry from Sumbawa, the Sumba ferry and Pelni
If you would rather not fly, the ferries link Labuan Bajo with Sumbawa and Sumba.
| Ferry | Ship | Crossing | Adult on foot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sape (Sumbawa) to Labuan Bajo | KMP Cakalang, KMP Cucut | 75 nautical miles | Rp 95,600 |
| Labuan Bajo to Waingapu (Sumba) | KMP Cucut, pioneer route | 105 nautical miles | Shown on Ferizy when you book |
Sape to Labuan Bajo is running. It is ASDP's mainline crossing, and it carried 12,903 passengers and 6,935 vehicles from January to May 2026. A car up to 5 m pays Rp 1,779,000 and a motorbike Rp 250,400.
Sailing times. ASDP's Sape branch posts each month's times on Instagram (@asdp.sape), and tickets are sold on Ferizy. Over the December 2025 holidays the ferry left Labuan Bajo at 10:00 and Sape at 21:00.
The pioneer ferries to Waingapu and to Rinca, on KMP Komodo, are subsidised routes that stopped from 1 July 2026 for lack of budget and resumed on 20 July. KMP Cucut works both the Sape and the Waingapu crossings; its Waingapu days are in the same monthly @asdp.sape posts, and seats are booked on Ferizy.
Pelni. Pelni's long-distance ships call at Labuan Bajo on voyages that also reach Benoa in Bali; tickets are booked on pelni.co.id, with 40 kg of free baggage.
From Komodo airport into Labuan Bajo town
Getting from the airport into town costs less than many expect.
DAMRI's Rp 5,000 loop. A 14-seat DAMRI minibus loops from Komodo airport through Puncak Waringin, Kampung Ujung, the harbour and Hotel Marina, Bukit Sylvia, Pantai Pede and Puri Sari, 07:00 to 17:00 in step with the flights. It takes cards and QRIS only, no cash.
Or a taxi or an app. The airport's approved options are the airport taxi counter in arrivals, DAMRI, Grab Bike and Gojek.
Dragons, ridges and reefs: what the Komodo park holds
The dragons are only part of it. This is what a trip into the park covers.
- Komodo dragons are the headline, and you meet them on Komodo and Rinca, the islands where most of the park's dragons live.
- Padar is the hike with the view of the trip, a ridge walk above curving bays, inside the same daily quota.
- Twenty-three dive sites pull divers and snorkellers into the park's waters, and they book a SiOra slot like everyone else.
- Go early or late: the park's three time slots run 05:00 to 08:00, 08:00 to 11:00 and 15:00 to 18:00.
- Rough-sea closures: the harbourmaster closed sailings in stages from late December 2025 to early February 2026, and again in mid-September, when the waves rose.
Going further
Routes through this hub
Labuan Bajo: what travellers ask
Can you take a ferry from Bali to Labuan Bajo?
Not directly by fast boat. Most travellers fly, 75 to 80 minutes from Denpasar. Overland, the last leg is ASDP's ferry from Sape on Sumbawa to Labuan Bajo, Rp 95,600 on foot, and Pelni's long-distance ships call at both Benoa and Labuan Bajo.
How do I get from Komodo airport to town?
On DAMRI's Rp 5,000 loop bus, 07:00 to 17:00, paid by card or QRIS only, which stops at the harbour and the main hotel areas; or by airport taxi, Grab Bike or Gojek.
How much is the Komodo National Park fee?
Rp 250,000 per person per day for foreign visitors in 2026; Indonesians pay Rp 50,000 on weekdays and Rp 75,000 on holidays. Book your slot on the park's SiOra app.
Can you visit Komodo as a day trip from Bali?
Only by flying: the first flight from Denpasar lands about 08:20 and the last direct flight back leaves at 19:00. Sailings depend on the weather on the day, so a spare day is safer.
How long is the flight from Bali to Labuan Bajo?
75 to 80 minutes direct on Batik Air or Indonesia AirAsia, and about 70 to 80 minutes on the way back.
Do Komodo boats sail at night?
No. Since January 2026 the Labuan Bajo harbourmaster bans tourist boats from moving at night; multi-day trips continue, but the boat stays put after dark.
Sources for Labuan Bajo
- Antara Kupang: ASDP strengthens sea links in NTT and NTB (29 May 2025)
- Kontan: DAMRI airport service in Labuan Bajo (30 June 2024)
- detikBali: Sape - Labuan Bajo ferry fares and holiday schedule (8 December 2025)
- Kemenhub UPBU Komodo: ground transport at Komodo airport (13 May 2026)
- Antara: Komodo National Park sets a 1,000-visitor daily quota (14 April 2026)
- detikNews: Forestry minister on the Komodo quota and its three sessions (14 April 2026)
- GoodStats: Komodo quota and entry fees (14 April 2026, from @btn.komodo)
- Metro TV: KSOP Labuan Bajo bans tourist boats from sailing at night (9 January 2026)
- CNN Indonesia: tourist boat sailings closed in Labuan Bajo (3 February 2026)
- Metro TV: KSOP closes sailings to Komodo and Padar (15 September 2026)
- Metro TV: tourist boat KM Feronia sinks off Tatawa (13 October 2026)
- Metro TV: ASDP pioneer ferries in NTT resume (20 July 2026)
- Pelni (PT Pelayaran Nasional Indonesia)
- Antara: Komodo dragon population in the national park stable (2 February 2019)