It took us about 30 minutes by boat from Labuan Bajo until we reached the 20 room resort. We spent the next two days relaxing at the beach, going snorkeling at the reef just off the coast and watching the beautiful sunrise and sunsets. There is a small village on the other side of the island that provides the hotel with fresh fish every day.

While not cheap, we really enjoyed our stay and it was a great way to end and otherwise also fantastic trip. Highly recommended.

Seraya Hotel

Seraya Hotel

Our room at Seraya Hotel

I guess these folks paid even more per night than us

Kids at the local village on the island

Sunset on Seraya Kecil

Sunset on Seraya Kecil

Sunrise on Seraya Kecil

Sunrise on Seraya Kecil

As outline in my introductory post, we opted to fly from Bajawa to Labuan Bajo as opposed to splitting up the trip in two long drives (with a night stop in Ruteng). The only reason why I was initially hesitant was because I was considering visiting the most characteristic Manggarai village of Wae Rebo.

Our ride from Bajawa (BJW) to Labuan Bajo (LBJ)

Somehow I was under the assumption that Bajawa airport would be close to the city since… well that’s what small airports are usually like. But nope – one hour outside of town. The airport was entertaining since it was so simple.

A few years ago it made national news because (quoting from the Jakarta Globe):

The district head of Ngada, East Nusa Tenggara, decided to bar state-controlled airline Merpati Nusantara from landing at Turelelo Soa airport on Saturday after he was refused a ticket on a Merpati flight that was already fully booked.

You can’t make this stuff up…

The flight was uneventful but offered nice views of the island and before we need it, we touched down at Labuan Bajo.

Aerial view of Bajawa (BJW). TransNusa Fokker 50 on the tarmac.

A sneak preview of what we might be expecting on approach to Labuan Bajo

The majority of visitors to Flores only visit this city on the northwestern tip of the island and use it as a base to explore Komodo National Park. It is famous for diving and after having gotten my Open Water diving license four years ago, I thought it was time to finally again explore the underwater world. There is a large number of diving shops and it is difficult to distinguish to good from the bad ones. Luckily a friend had been there a few months ago and was able to recommend me the shop he used, so I didn’t do much further research. Komodo Dive Center is run by a German and we were fully satisfied. For 1’375’000 IDR we booked a three-dive day trip. What we got to see during those three dives was nothing short of amazing. At one spot it was just our divemaster and the two of us along with a dozen huge Manta Rays (wingspan of about 6 meters). Beyond that we saw turtles, sharks and lots of other creatures (I am not really good with name of underwater animals). My underwater camera gear is limited to a GoPro and the photos don’t do it justice.

Past secluded islands in Komodo National Park

Turtle in Komodo National Park

Manta Ray at Komodo National Park

We contemplated going diving for a second day but instead decided to rent a boat and visit the Komodo dragons on Rinca island. Nearly every shop in town advertises boat trips to Rinca. Someone recommended to us to cut out these middle men and instead go to the harbor directly and strike a deal with one of the boat owners. We did that and settled on 700’000 IDR to take us to Rinca. Mr. Iwan was our captain and I can recommend him: +6281239817908.

One of the dozens of liveaboards passing us

It took around two hours on the slow boat to Rinca. Once arrived, every passenger is met by a guide and escorted to the ticket office. We were a bit surprised that nowadays each visitor is expected to pay a grand total of over 250’000 IDR in various charges and surcharges. Seems like recently the local (or central?) government decided they wanted a piece of the pie as well. Rather than making smaller slices, they decided they would just make the pie better. The ranger blamed the new fees on the “new guy” (the recently elected president). Time will tell whether tourists are still willing to pay this much.

Our collection of tickets for one visit – Rinca Island to see the Komodo dragons

An interesting crab on Rinca Island

Rinca is more popular to see the dragons because it is closer to Flores but also chances are higher to see them. Apparently they usually hang around the kitchen of the ranger camp. Now if you’re thinking this would be because the rangers feed them, then you are wrong. Our guide told us they never feed the dragons. This was about a minute before we walked up to the kitchen and saw some rice flying out of the window and half a dozen hungry dragons going after the food. Our guide commented that “normally” they don’t feed them. Yeah, right. I think it saves the guides the hassle of taking the tourists on long walks, looking for dragons.

A gang of Komodo dragons on Rinca Island

Close-up of one of the dragons

The animals are quite impressive but not really a friendly bunch. They eat each others’ babies and spend their lives as solitary animals (unless they are hanging out by the ranger kitchen).

We made a short hike up a mountain and enjoyed the view before going back to our boat and heading to Kalong Bay.

View from Rinca Island

Kalong is the name for a Southeast Asian species of large flying foxes. And yes, they are large. At Kalong Bay there are several hundreds if not thousands (I try not to exaggerate) that every day at sunset start flying over to the main island of Flores to find food. They return before sunrise. Watching them is truly spectacular and should not be missed. It was difficult to get good photos because of the poor light conditions but I hope one can get an idea of the spectacle.

Here they start flying towards us

Hundreds or thousands of flying foxes

That’s one of the flying foxes flying past us.

While so far Flores wasn’t really setting new standards in terms of culinary experiences, we were very positively surprised by what Labuan Bajo has to offer. There are two Italian restaurants and truly deserve to be called Italian, a great upscale fish restaurant as well as some others that we didn’t get the chance to sample.

One of the better pizzas I’ve had in a while

But not only that, also the local night market is great for choosing the fish you’d like them to throw on the BBQ and grill. We went twice and ordered a fish for 120’000 IDR that easily feeds two people.

While I was a bit skeptical of spending time in Labuan Bajo (and it is indeed a ramshackle town), I found it has its charme. The sunsets are gorgeous and the food makes this a good place to come back after a day out on the water. But beware – don’t spend time during the day in the town as there is close to nothing to do or see.

Accommodation standards in Flores (maybe apart from Labuan Bajo) are not very high yet and even if you wanted to splurge, you would have a hard time doing so. One place that caught our attention was the Manulalu Bed & Breakfast (misleading name as they serve meals all day long). Run by someone with experience from Bali, it is surprisingly quirky and we really enjoyed our three nights there for a reasonable 500’000 IDR per night. Every morning we enjoyed our breakfast with a magnificent view of the valley and Gunung Inerie.

The Manulalu Bed and Breakfast…

…and the fantastic view from the terrace of the valley…

… and Gunung Inerie.

Villagers on the 4pm “bus” back from work.

Somehow I had the urge to climb Gunung Inerie while I was there. A guide was arranged at short notice and we left the next morning at 5.30am. I hadn’t done a lot of tough hiking before but I must saw that was really exhausting. As you can tell from the shape of the mountain, we went uphill for two hours straight. Have a look at the GPS data below and you’ll see what I mean:

Climbing Gunung Inerie (runtastic.com)

Around 7am on the way up

About half an hour later, finally on top

Covered in sweat we reached the top, only to meet a group of half a dozen local boys that were chilling out at the top at 2200 m.a.s.l. While I was wearing proper hiking boots, some of the guys weren’t even wearing shoes.

The small gathering at the top

Going down was tricky as well and we ended almost sandsurfing part of the descent. We were back in the hotel shortly after 10am – apparently way earlier than we were expected.

Close-up view of the crater rim of Gunung Inerie

The following days we spent exploring the area and visited two traditional villages, Bena and Luba. These two well preserved Ngada villages, the local tribe. Luckily we were there off season and were almost the only tourists. I imagine it can feel quite awkward with many tourists around. In Bena you are asked for a donation when you enter.

View of Bena village from our hotel

View of Bena

Quiet Bena on Easter Sunday afternoon

Kids playing football at the neighboring Luba village

Next to Bena and Luba, a “regular” village is growing. The vast majority of villagers is catholic and what surprised us is that apparently it is normal to have large graves with your ancestors in your front-yard. We walked around town on a Sunday afternoon and saw many people sitting (and even dancing) on the graves. Well, I guess the deceased are visited more often than if buried in a cemetery.

Catholic grave in a front-yard

On the last day we visited the market in Bajawa. While nothing to write home about, it was interesting to see the abundance of fresh produce growing on the island. The avocados were superb (three giant pieces for less than $1). A pity that we can only buy the overpriced, tiny variety from the USA in Singapore.

Chilli at Bajawa market

Delicious avocados at Bajawa market

Bajawa market

I would definitely recommend spending two nights in Bajawa. The climate is beautiful with chilly mornings and evenings. The scenery is stunning and the Ngada villages along with Gunung Inerie make for some great day trips.

Location of Manulalu Bed & Breakfast:

One can either fly into Maumere or Ende, with the latter being a little bit closer. The vast majority of Western tourists will travel through Bali with the only other alternative being Kupang on Timor. We opted for Ende and were greeted with a spectacular approach.

The Gili Islands off Lombok seen enroute to Flores

A volcano enroute to Flores

On approach to H. Hasan Aroeboesman Airport (ENE)

Kalstar Embraer 195 (PK-KDD) at Ende Airport

I had once again looked for a driver online and contacted one via WhatsApp, after my recent success with this method in Thailand. I settled on 1.5 million Rupiah to take us from Ende to Moni/Kelimutu and onwards to Bajawa the next day. Everything was confirmed and there was a driver waiting with our name on a sign when we arrived. There was a little confusion as Rio wasn’t the name of the driver I was expecting. Turns out, my initial driver seemed to have given away (sold?) the job to someone else. While annoyed in the beginning, I was very happy with Rio and can recommend him (he is based in Bajawa). English skills could improve a little bit but he was a very reliable and safe driver.

Rio’s contact details (driver in Flores)

Right away we knew we had arrived in Indonesia, when we saw the first live chicken transported on a motorbike

The drive up to Moni took just short of two hours. Going in with low expectations for Moni, I wasn’t disappointed. It is basically a town that stretches along the main road for about a kilometer. It seems that word has spread that running a guest house/homestay is a great idea, hence every other house advertises vacant rooms. Research online showed that there are no real jewels around, so I relied on Tripadvisor this time and opted for the “Estevania Lodge” at 350’000 IDR per night. It was perfectly fine though nothing to write home about. There isn’t much to do in the town (as in “nothing”) so we wandered around a little bit and visited a nearby waterfall. In the evening we visited the new “hip” restaurant just outside of town, “Santiago”. Since it was Good Friday (and most of the population is Christian), all dishes were vegetarian.

Our accommodation in Moni: Estevania Lodge

The fact that all guest houses are along the main (and only) road became an issue at night. Windows aren’t exactly sound proof and we were kept up by a mix of football on TV, babies crying, music blasting from cars and other random sounds. The only concern we had was that we were supposed to wake up at 4.15am the next morning to see the sunrise. Our driver was kind enough to wake us at 3.45am (not sure how we got lost in translation regarding the time) and started blasting music from his car. I didn’t mind since I was up but I wonder what the neighbors thought of it.

In order to get to Kelimutu, you have to drive for over half an hour up the mountain. Eventually there was a ticket booth that relieved us off 150’000 IDR each (locals are charged 5’000). From there it is another half an hour or so hike. By the time we reached the viewing platform it was still dark and quite cold. Luckily there are some vendors up there selling hot drinks. By the time the sunrise started, there were around 30 tourists anticipating the first rays of light of the day.

Mount Kelimutu crater lakes just before sunrise

While not the perfect sunrise, we weren’t disappointed. The colors of the lakes are very special and so distinctly different. It almost doesn’t appear to be water but colors used for painting. Once the sun was up, we spent around another half an hour enjoying the views and then walked over to another platform to get a closer look at the darker lake.

Close-up of the different colors of the two lakes

The third lake with yet another color

A good view on the darkest of the three lakes

By around 8am we were back in Moni for breakfast. Since we did not plan to go hiking in the area, we packed our stuff and left for a long drive to Bajawa.

I don’t remember where exactly, but sometime ago I saw a photo online of a volcanic crater lake of breathtaking beauty. It turned out to be Mount Kelimutu on Flores and from then on I continued to read up on the island in an effort to figure out whether it was worth visiting. The island is still off the beaten path, hence there wasn’t that much info readily available. Also the Lonely Planet only contained a few dated pages on the island. Other guide books are even more sparse or skip the island altogether.

Mount Kelimutu

Eventually I managed to gather sufficient info and decided it was worth visiting! I managed to put together an itinerary that convinced my significant other. We were to combine trekking, diving and relaxing at the beach into a memorable 9 day adventure.

The almost perfectly shaped volcano – Mount Inerie

An Ngada village near Bajawa

In the end our itinerary looked as follows:

We would fly into Ende and arrange for a driver to take us to the mountain village of Moni, the “gateway” to Mount Kelimutu. After visiting the crater lakes, we would drive west along the coast and onward to a cute bed and breakfast in the Ngada region, home to a number of traditional villages. This is also the best spot to start a hike up Mount Inerie. After relaxing and enjoying the mild climate for three days, we decided to fly from Bajawa to Labuan Bajo, the island’s biggest town in the west and jumping off point to Komodo National Park. We opted for flying as it saved us two long drives and it didn’t seem like we would be missing out on too much. Our time in Labuan Bajo we would split up between a few nights in the town itself to go diving, visit the Komodo dragons and enjoy the good restaurants in town (no joke) and then spend the last two nights in an amazing looking resort on a small island off the coast.

The Komodo Dragons on Rinca Island

Day	Place / Activities	Transport	Accomodation
1	Flight to Ende via Bali - drive to Moni	Driver	Estevania Lodge
2	Mount Kelimutu. Drive to Manulalu/Bajawa	Driver	Manulalu Bed and Breakfast
3	Hike Gunung Inerie. Bena and Luba villages	Hiking	Manulalu Bed and Breakfast
4	Visit to Bajawa market	Driver	Manulalu Bed and Breakfast
5	Flight to Labuan Bajo	Flight	Blue Parrot
6	Diving trip	Boat	Blue Parrot
7	Explore Rinca Island, Flying Foxes	Boat	Blue Parrot
8	Seraya Island, beach	Boat	Seraya Resort
9	Seraya Island, beach	None	Seraya Resort
10	Fly back home!

I’ll probably be posting an installment on each destination of the trip and hopefully help other travelers get a clearer picture on what Flores has (and doesn’t have) to offer.

The perfect sunrise seen from Seraya Kecil