Visiting Komodo Island is an experience you won’t ever forget, but getting there can be a bit complex. Here’s how to get from Bali to Komodo Island (or how to get from Bali to Labuan Bajo) so that your trip is as smooth as possible!
Komodo Island (or islands, there are actually two of them: Rinca Island and Komodo) are the only islands in the world that have Komodo Dragons living there naturally!
It is NOT a zoo, these animals are at the top of the food chain there and rule the islands and they’re the world’s largest lizard!
For those reasons alone, and maybe for a slight adrenaline rush, this place needs to be on your “must-see” list!
So here’s how you would get there from Bali, Indonesia.
Can You Fly From Bali to Komodo Island?
Although you can’t fly from Bali directly to Komodo Island, you can fly to Labuan Bajo on the Island of Flores and take a boat tour to the islands from there.
How to Get To to from Bali to Komodo Island By Airplane
There are other ways to get there, but when you factor in taxi costs, food, and accommodation that the extra travel would cost, the airplane definitely wins.
Wings Air
The budget airline that goes back and forth every day for the cheapest price is called Wings Air.
Our tickets cost us $92.17 per person, so we spent $184.35 total on flights (round trip). We bought these through NusaTrip which had the cheapest price out of all the sites we checked.
From wherever you are staying in Bali, order a GoJek (the Uber of Bali, but much cheaper) to the Denpasar Ngurah Rai Airport. Depending on where you are, this should only cost a couple of dollars.
From our Airbnb in Kuta, it cost us 28,000 rupiahs or $2.08 USD.
They allowed us to use our e-ticket so we didn’t need to print anything out. You can check one bag per person that weighs 10 kg, but we only brought carry-on backpacks.
Those are supposed to be 7kg, but no one checked them.
They did not care about liquids, which we didn’t realize until we were going through security and the family ahead of us had a bag filled with water bottles and the security didn’t even blink an eye.
Since it’s such a small plane, you get to pretend to be a celebrity and board the plane directly from the tarmac!
How Long Does it Take to Get to Komodo Island from Bali?
It’s an hour and a half long flight on a pretty small plane and then you arrive in Labuan Bajo at the Komodo Airport. Then you can walk or take a taxi into Labuan Bajo which takes about 30 minutes.
From there, you take a tour to get to the islands, which usually takes 2 days, but you can choose to do it all in one day if you want.
How Many Days Do You Need in Komodo Island?
I would recommend at least a 2 day trip on a Komodo island tour, with a day in Labuan Bajo at the end. So you need about 3-4 days to visit Komodo Island.
You definitely don’t want to cut it too close so that you’re rushing to get back to Bali, that never works well in Southeast Asia.
Give yourself a good amount of time as a buffer so that you can enjoy your trip without stressing.
Plus, you won’t regret spending more time in this part of Indonesia! Labuan Bajo is amazing, you can rent a bike and find some local swimming spots or waterfalls.
It’s a lot less developed than Bali, so you get the feeling that Bali used to have before over-tourism.
Can You Do a Day Trip from Bali to Komodo?
Absolutely not. No, you can’t do a day trip from Bali to Komodo. It definitely requires a couple of days and it wouldn’t be much fun as a day trip even if it were possible.
Is Komodo Island near Bali?
Komodo Island (which you can get to from Flores Island) is about a 1.5-hour flight from the island of Bali, which means it’s near enough to do if you are planning a longer trip to Bali.
If you’ll only be there for a week, then you should probably skip Komodo Island.
How to Get from Labuan Bajo Airport to Komodo National Park
It’s only a 30-minute walk to the port from the Labuan Bajo Airport if you choose to walk.
To get directions, we used Google Maps and got walking directions when we had internet (either before you leave your Airbnb or you can get a SIM card for your unlocked phone).
From Labuan Bajo, you can take a boat to the Komodo Islands, and you get to choose how many days and how much you get to see!
You don’t really need to try to find a Komodo tour before you get there since they will probably be cheaper there and there are plenty of companies to choose from.
However, the tours do fill up with tourists pretty quickly, and if you are traveling with more than 2 people then you should probably book a tour in advance.
Here is a great tour option if you are looking for an easy way to get to Komodo Island from Labuan Bajo.
The tours usually include snorkeling, spotting giant manta rays, a trip to Padar Island, as well as a pink beach with pink sand!
If you’re looking to spot a ton of wildlife and marine life, hike to incredible views around volcanic islands, and have an all-around incredible adventure, Komodo Island is perfect.
It’s definitely not for those looking for a luxurious cruise, but it’s one of the best experiences I’ve ever had!
More Posts About Bali:
- Reasons You Should Definitely Move to Bali
- The Ultimate Guide to Using a Scooter in Bali
- The Perfect 3-Day Itinerary for Uluwatu
- The Best Tours to Komodo Island
- 10 of the Best Bali Beach Villas
Dayna Brockbank is a travel and language-learning blogger who has lived around the world but has now settled in Nice, France. She speaks 3 languages at varying levels of fluency: Spanish, Italian, and French, and graduated with a Bachelor’s in Spanish Education. She and her husband focus on making travel part of life by living cheaply and traveling on a budget.