How many people are on an open trip?

Usually ten to twenty, depending on the vessel. The smaller boats on this list carry closer to ten, which is worth knowing if a full deck is not what you want.

Yes, and plenty do. You will normally share a twin cabin with another solo traveller of the same gender, or pay a single supplement for sole use if you would rather not.

Why are the prices so different?

Boat age, cabin size, whether bathrooms are private, crew to guest ratio and how many days the route runs. The cheapest and the most expensive on this list are not doing the same trip.

What is not included?

Flights to Labuan Bajo, hotels either side, alcohol, tips and dive gear rental. Park entry, meals, water and the guide are in the fare.

How far ahead should I book?

Two to four weeks in the dry season, more for July and August. Outside that a week is usually enough, but fewer boats run.

SHARED DEPARTURES

Open trip Komodo

Join a scheduled boat instead of chartering one. Same route, same sites, a fraction of the cost.

Check availability See the boats

What an open trip means

An open trip is a departure that already exists. The boat, the date and the route are fixed, and you buy a place on it rather than the whole vessel. You share the deck with ten to twenty other travellers and pay per person, which is why it is the cheapest way into Komodo National Park.

Fares below are per person and cover the boat, crew, meals, guide and park fees.
Cabins are twin or double. Solo travellers usually share, or pay a supplement for sole use.
Departures run most days in the dry season and thin out from January.
Flights, alcohol, tips and dive gear rental sit outside the fare.

The boats and what a place costs

Eight vessels running scheduled departures through the park. Prices are per person.

Malca Voyages

USD 300 per person

Yumana

USD 330 per person

Lamborajo III

USD 360 per person

Elbark Cruises

USD 400 per person

Catnazse

Liveaboard

USD 430 per person

Ayvara Cruises

USD 450 per person

Mosalaki

Sharing cabin

USD 460 per person

Neptune

Phinisi

USD 610 per person

Cabins sell out first in the dry season and on weekends. Message us for live availability rather than assuming a date is open.

How joining one works

Four steps from a message to standing on the deck.

01
Send us your dates
Tell us when you are in Labuan Bajo and how many of you there are. That is enough to start.
02
We check what is free
Availability moves daily. We come back with the boats that genuinely have cabins on your dates, not a brochure.
03
Confirm and hold
A deposit holds the cabin. You get the boarding time, the pier and what to bring.
04
Board in Labuan Bajo
Meet the crew, briefing on deck, and the boat leaves. The rest is the route.

Open trip or your own boat?

Worth deciding before you look at prices, because the two are not comparable line for line.

What you buy

Open trip: A cabin on a boat that is already going
Private charter: The whole vessel and its schedule

Cost

Open trip: From USD 300 a head
Private charter: Quoted per boat, worth it from about six people

Departure date

Open trip: Pick from what is scheduled
Private charter: Any day the boat is free

Route changes

Open trip: Fixed for everyone aboard
Private charter: Yours to adjust on the day

Who you meet

Open trip: Other travellers, which some people came for
Private charter: Nobody you did not bring

	Open trip	Private charter
What you buy	A cabin on a boat that is already going	The whole vessel and its schedule
Cost	From USD 300 a head	Quoted per boat, worth it from about six people
Departure date	Pick from what is scheduled	Any day the boat is free
Route changes	Fixed for everyone aboard	Yours to adjust on the day
Who you meet	Other travellers, which some people came for	Nobody you did not bring

Open trip questions

The practical ones, before you pick a boat.

Ask us anything

Which dates are you free?

Send us your dates and we will come back with the boats that actually have cabins.

Check availability