All you need to know about visiting Labuan Bajo, Flores
If you’re visiting the Komodo Islands in Indonesia, chances are you’ll make a stop at Labuan Bajo. This town is the starting point for any trip to the Komodo Islands, whether you’re exploring them on day trips or on a longer cruise!
After visiting, I’ve written this guide to help you plan your own trip to Labuan Bajo. I hope it gives you some inspiration on things to do when you aren’t exploring the nearby beautiful islands.
Ratings
Accessibility: 3/5 • Safety: 5/5 • Enjoyment: 3/5 • Value: 4/5 • Overall: 3.75/5
About Labuan Bajo
Labuan Bajo is a port town in western Flores, an island in the Lessa Sunda region of Indonesia.
If you’ve heard of Labuan Bajo, undoubtedly it’s because of what’s nearby. The Komodo National Park, known for its native Komodo dragon, is just a boat ride away, with the town being the starting point for trips exploring the area.
There’s no denying that Labuan Bajo has become touristy as a result, catering for a range of travellers. However, as the town is a launching pad for more interesting attractions, it sometimes feels a bit dejected.
What is Labuan Bajo like?
For tourists, Labuan Bajo is all about the port. There’s one main road which follows the coastline, and the area behind is almost entirely occupied by boats. The full range was there during my visit: liveaboards, fishing boats, speed boats, and even one cruise liner!
The main road passing through the town is very touristy: think mainly dive centres, tour agencies and tourist-oriented restaurants and bars. I didn’t see much at all for locals.
And yet… the town feels very empty during the day. It makes sense, with most people out on day trips. But still! It doesn’t necessarily bode for a good vibe.
I also thought that, for somewhere as touristy as Labuan Bajo, there would be a lot of nice places to eat and cute places to buy souvenirs. And sure, there were a few, but not that many. We couldn’t even find a postcard!
A lot of locals live on the outskirts of town, where you’ll find smaller neighbourhoods and busier streets. We drove through it on the way back from Rangko Cave and it was such a surprise after staying in the quieter tourist centre!
How to get to Labuan Bajo
It’s easy to get to Labuan Bajo. Seeing as it’s the gateway to Komodo Islands, it has its own airport (Komodo Airport), which has several domestic links and is busier than you’d think!
The easiest way to get to Labuan Bajo is a domestic flight from Jakarta or Bali. It’s just 1 hour’s plane ride from Bali and if you book in advance you can get reasonably priced tickets.
If you aren’t into flying, your options are a bit more limited. It is technically possible to travel overland, using a mix of ferries and buses, across Sumbawa Island to reach Lombok and eventually Bali. However, this sounds like such a painful option for little savings!
Naturally, you could also travel using buses from other areas of Flores. I didn’t meet any travellers continuing through Flores, so this didn’t seem like a popular option – although I’m not sure why, as the rest of Flores seems so vibrant and interesting.
A final option is to take a boat trip from Lombok to Flores, via the Komodo Islands. This is what I did. It’s the least glamorous trip I’ve ever been on and was painful at times. But it’s such an affordable, fun way of seeing the Komodo Islands and other sights along the way.
Where to eat in Labuan Bajo
To be honest, the area where most people stay in Labuan Bajo (within walking distance of the marina) doesn’t have an overwhelming number of places to eat. You’ll see lots of tourist options with tourist prices to match, and the odd warung, but we weren’t crazy about the options.
Our favourite brunch and lunch spot was Miramori, a cafe on the Main Street. Whilst it has tourist pricing (brunch cost Rp 65,000 / $4 / £3.20, excluding tax and service), it has a really chill vibe and super friendly staff. The breakfast was so tasty with lots of dishes to pick from. We particularly liked the avocado and smoothie bowl.
For dinner, we liked Kopi Mane Inspiration, a coffeehouse close to Seaesta, where we stayed. As it’s up the hill behind the tourist area, there are nice views of sunset from their rooftop. They make good coffee, and the food, at Rp 30,000 to 40,000 ($1.80 to $2.50 / £1.50 to £2.00), was very reasonable. It’s simple but tasty!
As for western dinner food, La Cucina made good pizzas! They were expensive compared to local food though (at Rp 90,000 / $5.50 / £4.50 plus tax).
Don’t forget to check out the night market. We found it to be expensive (or perhaps just scammy) for tourists, so make sure to check the prices.
Where to stay in Labuan Bajo
As the gateway to Komodo – which is enjoyed by people on holiday and backpacking – there’s a lot of accommodation in Labuan Bajo, covering all price points.
Most accommodation is located in central Labuan Bajo. However, there are also a couple of luxury options a few kilometres from town, with big resorts available.
For the backpacker and younger community it appears that Seaesta is the place to be. They’ve got both dorms and hotel rooms, so you can pick where you’d like to stay. It’s a hotel with dorms rather than the other way around, and has a chill vibe.
We stayed at Seaesta, and its dorms are one of the first where I thought someone who actually stays in hostels had designed them. They have all the features that I’d like to see in all hostels, like USB charging, large storage areas by the bed, a large clean locker and hooks for each bed. It’s a great option for backpackers; however, the beds sell out in advance (we couldn’t book the first night of our stay over a month in advance!) so don’t book too late.
La Boheme is another good hostel option. A bit cheaper than Seaesta, it’s very popular and isn’t too far from the centre of town.
Ratings
As part of this blog, I give every place I visit a rating so that I can easily compare destinations and decide whether they’re worth a visit. Those are the scores you see at the top of the page!
This is how Labuan Bajo rated:
- Accessibility: 3/5 – whilst it’s easy to get there, all the activities in Labuan Bajo involve going up stairs, climbing hills or getting into boats, so it’s not the easiest from an accessibility point of view.
- Safety: 5/5 – I generally felt safe in Labuan Bajo.
- Enjoyment: 3/5 – Labuan Bajo just feels like a stepping stone to other places. But there are worse places to be stuck!
- Value: 4/5 – the town and nearby attractions are not the cheapest in Indonesia. However, accommodation and food costs aren’t too bad.
Overall score: 3.75/5
If you have visited the town, let me know if you agree with these ratings.
What to do in Labuan Bajo
1. Take a trip to Komodo National Park (of course)
If you’re coming to Labuan Bajo, then almost certainly it’s because you want to visit Komodo National Park. I enjoyed my visit to this collection of gorgeous islands and would definitely recommend adding it to your itinerary.
Most people visit Rinca Island to see the Komodo dragon. It’s the largest monitor in the world and can only be seen on a handful of islands in the national park, so you can’t come all this way and not see them. However, to be honest, we found our visit to Rinca Island a let down. The Komodo dragons we saw were conveniently napping close to the visitor footpath, so it wasn’t too exciting.
Padar Island is another pretty site in the national park. From its viewpoint, you can see three separate bays – which I didn’t even know was possible!
And of course, let’s not forget a visit to Pink Beach. This beach is pink because of red coral fragments mixed in with the normal white bleached fragments. Don’t expect a bright pink, but a gentle pastel hue.
There are so many options for visiting: taking a day trip from Labuan Bajo, staying on a liveaboard, or taking a boat trip from Lombok (like me).
2. Visit Rangko Cave
Many people just stay in Labuan Bajo a night before and after their trip to the Komodo islands. That’s fair enough if you’re on a tight schedule as, compared to other places in Indonesia, the area around Labuan Bajo isn’t that beautiful.
However, if you have more time in the town, you can check out Rangko Cave. This cave, on a remote seaside location, contains a saltwater pool you can swim in. You have to take a boat there, adding to the excitement!
Visiting Rangko Cave wasn’t at all what I was expecting. I’m glad I did it but personally I wouldn’t sweat it if you don’t manage to get there yourself.
3. Visit Mirror Stone Cave
If you’re looking for a cave a bit closer to the town, Mirror Stone Cave is a good option. This is a dry cave that you can enter, as well as walk through the surrounding path and formation.
The name “mirror stone” comes from an area in the cave which gains surface water during the wet season and is sometimes illuminated by the sun. If you’re visiting in summer like us, you aren’t going to see it!
Visiting here costs Rp 50,000 ($3.20 / £2.50) per person, plus Rp 50,000 for a guide (one per group). Our visit took just over an hour and we were happy with it. However, definitely take what your guide tells you with a pinch of salt. Ours was pointing out turtle and fish fossils which would be close to impossible to form in this kind of environment.
Again, if you don’t have time to get here, no tears should be shed. But it’s a good option if you’re looking for something to do on the way to Rangko Cave, or if you have some spare time in Labuan Bajo.
4. Watch sunset
Labuan Bajo is set on the western coast of Flores, which makes it perfect for watching sunset.
For this, one option is to head down to the port, where there are a couple of benches and places for you to sit. There is an island which blocks the sun’s path from some angles, so make sure you’re in position around 30 mins before the sun is predicted to set, or you might miss it.
Alternatively, position yourself at a bar up the hill with a balcony (Seaesta did this well when we were there) and watch the sunset with a drink in hand.
5. Take an overnight trip to Wae Rebo
Around 4 hours’ drive from Labuan Bajo, you’ll find Wae Rebo, one of a handful of indigenous villages in the area.
From Labuan Bajo it’s possible to do a 1 night, 2 day tour to visit Wae Rebo. Of course, you could also visit independently, but with a 4 hour drive and hike to the entrance, it sounds physically exhausting!
I didn’t make it to Wae Rebo. By the time I knew this was a thing, I’d already booked my flight out of Indonesia, so visiting wasn’t possible. However, if I visited Labuan Bajo again, I would definitely add this to my itinerary.
6. Go diving in Komodo National Park
If you enjoy diving, Komodo National Park supposedly is one of the best places to dive in the world. As such, you’ll find a crazy number of dive centres all based out of Labuan Bajo.
I really enjoyed my dive in the national park. We saw manta rays, cuttlefish, turtles and amazing coral, plus dolphins swimming in the water! Most dive trips cover a similar set of dive sites, so you’ll have the opportunity to see similar corals in the water regardless of where you go.
However, diving in Komodo National Park doesn’t come cheap. Most dive centres offer a one day trip, including 3 dives, for Rp 2,500,000 ($162 / £123)… excluding Rp 200,000 to 300,000 ($13 to $20 / £10 to £15) entrance fee.
I’m so glad we did our dives in the national park as it’s a truly spectacular place to visit, but my bank account felt it!
Conclusion
Labuan Bajo on Flores really is just a stepping stone town. If you want to visit the Komodo Islands, you’ll almost certainly end up travelling through the town. But it’s worth it to see the amazing sights in the national park.
I hope this guide helps you to plan your own visit to the area.
Do you have any questions about visiting Labuan Bajo? Let me know in the comments!
