Suffice to say that if you’re coming to Komodo National Park, you should be visiting Komodo Dragons. These glacial reptiles, which are actually thought to have evolved in Australia, are found on both Komodo and Rinca Island. Overall we preferred Komodo Island due to its arid landscape and the fact that the Komodo Dragons are largest here.
2. Rinca Island
Rinca Island is closer to the town of Labuan Bajo, which means you can take a day trip on a slow boat and avoid the hefty cost associated with taking a speed boat to Komodo Island. Komodo viewing is essentially guaranteed on Rinca Island as the dragons have learned to congregate around the kitchen area. On your guided tour through Rinca Island, you will also take a short trek up into the savannah.
3. Pink Beach
Pink Beach (Pantai Merah) is as phenomenal as it looks in the photos. It is possibly Clinton’s new favourite beach in the world (overtaking the beaches of Aitutaki, Cook Islands). The pink hue is due to the presence of single celled organisms called foraminifera, which live in pink or red shells. Over time, the washed up shells are broken down and integrate with the rest of the sand on the beach. The reef at Pink Beach is also amazing so be sure to take the time to snorkel before you leave.
4. Menjerite Island
For us snorkelers, this was the best reef in Indonesia. The water was crystal clear and the reef was very healthy with lovely bright corals, diverse and abundant sea life and good visibility. We saw a lion fish at close proximity. The island has a long wooden pier with a stunning backdrop, perfect for a wedding photo shoot if you could ever figure out how to organise it.
5. Padar Island
Padar Island is located between Rinca and Komodo Islands, and is the third largest island in Komodo National Park. Book a tour to Komodo Island and chances are you’ll be stopping at Padar Island on the way. The island looks like something out of Jurassic Park. The main attraction is hiking to the viewpoint, which takes about 15 minutes. There is a 150,000 IDR entrance fee at the start of the trail. At the top you can look over four of the island’s beaches and take your iconic photo. Padar Island used to be inhabited by Komodo Dragons until the late 1970’s. The Dragons disappeared after the population of their main prey, deer, was depleted by human hunting.
6. Makassar
Komodo National Park has many sandbars and Taka Makassar Island is one of them. It boats beautifully clear shallow aqua coloured water. Small day-tripping boats can conveniently anchor right next to the sandbar.
7. Kelor Island
Kelor Island can be visited as part of a day trip to Rinca Island. There’s a small summit you can hike up to, although we preferred to soak in the views from the beach.
View from Kelor Island
Honourable Mentions
Tours to Komodo Island will likely also take you to Manta Point and/or Turtle Point. We saw many turtles at Turtle Point, but they were quite deep compared to snorkelling with turtles in the Gili Islands. Similarly, there were many manta rays at Manta Point, but they too were very deep compared to the manta rays in Nusa Penida (where they were swimming next to us!)
