Komodo Island - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)
Komodo Island
Komodo Island
4
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Monday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Tuesday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Wednesday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Thursday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Friday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Saturday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
Sunday
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
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Duration: < 1 hour
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  • abquilter
    49 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A fab experience if you are lucky enough to get to see a dragon.
    Definitely visit and see these amazing reptiles. We arrived and were the only ones in the island as our private boat got to the island before the other boats arrived. Our guide was fab snd we saw 5 dragons and were lucky enough to get some amazing footage. It was a highlight for our boys 18 and 19. You are not guaranteed to see them especially later in the day as on the walk we only saw one large Male but saw 4 on the beach at the end of the walk. Also buy your souvenirs here. We made the mistake of thinking it would be expensive on the island however back at Lauban Bajo the souvenirs are 3 times more expensive.
    Visited July 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written July 1, 2023
  • LittleAffy
    Sydney, Australia58 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Incredible experience seeing more than 8 Komodo Dragons
    We visited Komodo Island as part of a day tour organised by our hotel AYANA Komodo. I had hopes of seeing at least a couple of Komodo Dragons but my whole family were blown away by this experience. We saw 2 baby Komodo Dragons and at least 6 large Dragons (to be honest I lost count in the end due to the excitement !). Our guide was an excellent spotter and told us many interesting facts about these magnificent creatures. I have read other reviews and was shocked with people saying that guides were hitting the dragons with sticks but thankfully this was not our experience. I highly recommend this unique experience to see Komodo Dragons in their natural habitat.
    Visited July 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written July 4, 2023
  • Visitor23_13
    Adelaide, Australia45 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    What a beautiful day & Dragons.
    I love seeing wildlife in their natural setting and this doesn't dissapoint. The dragons are big and fast and chased all the visitors into the jungle which was exciting. The rangers, however, had it all under control and made us safe. Definately woth it. We embarked from Lubuan Bajo which is also a wonderful place to visit.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written August 3, 2023
  • Melissa
    London, United Kingdom133 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Rather disappointing
    Glad we went but rather like going to a zoo. Dragons were surrounded by many visitors and the guides appeared quite aggressive going up very close to the dragons. However our guide was even more aggressive when asking for a quite large tip at the end. In addition children on the island quite rude to some tourists who didn’t want to buy plastic toys. A sad end to the experience having paid entry fees. Probably wouldn’t recommend a visit
    Visited July 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written August 7, 2023
  • Zsuzsa.Guide
    Targu Secuiesc, Romania695 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Highlight
    Before I came here, read a lot about what to expect. I have seen dragons treated well at Komodo & Rinca islands. There are two times a day U can visit and get there by boat. Rangers going with tourists, no danger.. Amazing experience! Thank you a lot.
    Visited August 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written August 19, 2023
  • Ozz
    5 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    An amazing visit with friendly Venny
    We arrived in Labuan Bajo just before the Asian summit was held there in May. The whole town was shut down, we could hardly find businesses that were open. Thanks to Venny Dcredo Tours, we managed to find both an island tour and the last scuba diving tour that set out before entering a curfew. She was like like our angel, taking care of us and arranging everything, making all the inquiries. We heartfully recommend her to anyone seeking a professional and friendly guide.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written August 20, 2023
  • patricia c
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Dragons!
    A unique experience. The dragons are huge and look slow but they are NOT! Stick with you guide and do exactly as he says. Wear long trousers and stout shoes/boots. I also wore long sleeves as I dislike being bitten and there are a huge number of insects about. You may be introduced to civet cat coffee. Watch out for juveniles up the trees as the adults can be cannibals
    Visited October 2022
    Traveled solo
    Written August 31, 2023
  • Mei-Mei F
    49 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great Komodo National Park
    My boyfriend and I saw on 1 hour trip many Komodo dragons, older on the sand and younger on the trees. The youngers ones were moving a lot :) The guide was really serious with our security which was good and gave us a lot of informations. It was interesting. We also saw warthogs.
    Visited September 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 9, 2023
  • RS
    London, United Kingdom76 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great - awesome to see the dragons
    Thoroughly enjoyed our experience to Komodo Island. We were lucky to see 5 dragons and all quickly. We arrived early afternoon when it was hot. Near the harbour and entrance there are shops and stalls (as you would expect), just past the entrance we saw a Komodo hanging around the toilets! Then we saw 3 others (some large, one baby) before we started our trail. This is of course a popular tourist attraction and there were many people getting photos with Komodo’s who were ultimately just looking for some shade from the heat! It was cool and a little daunting to be so close to them, but ultimately we felt safe at all times. We started the walk and the guide cut it short because we had seen so many dragons before we had started, which we didn’t mind because it was so hot already. On the trail we saw another baby dragon and some different wildlife. Overall a great visit and the star attraction for anyone heading out to Flores.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 27, 2023
  • AndyEight
    Leeds, United Kingdom425 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Amazing Adventure
    Amazing place to visit but the going is not for the infirm. It’s in a beautiful location but the trails through the national park are barren and on a hot humid day hard work. We had people with us collapse and had to be carried out. To be fair they were warned but decided to go anyway. Saw plenty of dragons and they are impressive up close in the wild. Had to run a gauntlet of hawkers at the end but wasn’t bad enough to detract from the experience
    Visited December 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written December 1, 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.0
4.0 of 5 bubbles987 reviews
Excellent
557
Very good
234
Average
108
Poor
45
Terrible
43

bsmith
8 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020
28 JAN 2020 My wife and I took a daily tour package to six different sites from Labuan Bajo. Most of the tours follow the exact same itinerary.

We arrived at Komodo Island about 11:30. After a short introduction to the island by a National Park guide, he began to lead us on an ‘hour’ trek looking for the dragons. My wife and I, independently of each other, noticed that the guide was only looking at the trail and not scanning each side of the trail for the dragons. Not once did he ever appear to be looking at anything else than the trail itself. This, as it turns out, was not looking for dragons - it was killing time.

We ended our tour at the island cafe. And there, alongside the cafe, surrounded by about 30 adventurers, were two apparently sleeping komodo dragons. One did struggle to stand, moved a little bit, and slumped back down. They seemed stuporous.

Advice: if you want to see the dragons, spend the extra money and go to Komodo Island early when the real dragons may be more active.
Written January 28, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

josep a
Jakarta, Indonesia78 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019 • Family
There are 2 islands normally people see Komodo, Komodo Island and Rinca Island. We can go to this island by boat from Labuan Bajo or with Cruise. In Komodo Island, we can have a tour but need an escort by local Ranger to assist and protect us. There are 3 route, short, medium and long route to go. Please follow the Ranger instruction to make sure we not disturb the Komodo and make them angry. People said, Komodo in this Island is bigger than in Rinca Island.
Written January 10, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Andika D
Jakarta, Indonesia156 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2021
Komodo island is about 60 minutes from labuan Bajo by speedboat that you can rent it 2000-2500K in a day. when you arrive on that island, in the first gate there are saveral sign such as welome and watch out komodo crossing. suddenly you will realize that place is not like a zoo. all animals live freedom (Komodo, Pig, deer, buffalo, etc)

Enjoy the journey by tracking island with ranger who direct and guard your activity. dont forget to capture your moment esspecially with Komodo, ranger always offer you to do it. this place is quiet incredible, not only the Komodo but the atmostphere also.
Written August 24, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Kenai Drift Anglers
Soldotna, AK52 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
It's a must do to see the dragons, but it was a little pricey when we got on the island for the park fee. The dragons were very cool and guide was really fun. It just was a pretty short tour and not a lot of activity however the guide made it very enjoyable. Just make sure you bring enough cash for the entrance fee and all the other fees attached to that.
Written February 25, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Daan S
Bangkok, Thailand5 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2022 • Family
I got scammed.

We booked a tour with an agency, then the day before the trip they said they had troubles with the boat. We booked two nights on a boat with 5 people, 3 rooms. They gave us a horrible small boat with 2 rooms. They didn’t want to refund or do anything about the price.

Then they charge more for entrance fees in the park etc.

So negotiate in real life! Don’t book a boat without seeing it with your own eyes first!

The trip was disappointing as the tour on Komodo island is 45 minutes long and the Komodo dragon is drugged. I’m sad I supported this nonsense.

Don’t go in rainy season by the way, half of our trip the rain was very bad so we had to skip some activities like hiking and snorkelling.
Written February 22, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mike P
Cowboys Heaven, Montana, United States8 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2023 • Friends
The dragons are teased to come out for the tourist with meat on a stick. This continued even after everyone took their photos. Kinda sad. My biggest complaint is all park entrance money, 400 rupiah, no matter who you book through, become backsheesh money. This is quite common in Indonesia. But as this is expensive the stealing is bigger profits and more important as less miney goes to conservation/preservation efforts. I asked as others did for used ticket stubs (actually colorful and nice souvenirs) and we were told someone would bring to our hotels. Never happened. Quite dissappointed.
Written July 3, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

DanielaKLI
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam218 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2023
There are 3 different trails you can take with a guide - a short, a medium and a long. They will push you to take the medium (around 2.5K) because the guides don't want to walk around 8K. Very annoying, but we accepted the medium length. The guides (we had 2 for 8 people) tell you some interesting facts, but you will not see any dragon during the trail - the guides don't even bother looking around, they know there aren't dragons there. The total population is around 1.500 dragons and the island is massive. The landscape is nice though,
Your best chance to see Komodo dragons is actually the beach where you'll disembark. We saw 4 adult ones there, and three juvenile.
There is a big market on that beach with food stalls. Market: they'll try to rip you off (10 USD for a fridge market....) but you can negotiate. Food stalls: they'll "forget" to give you your change.
The pier is surprisingly big and we were told that big cruise ships dock there, so if your agency is good, hopefully you'll avoid going there at the same time. We were lucky, there were only four other tourists when we visited the island.
Written April 13, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Haelen
10 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2022 • Couples
It was great to do the Komodo medium walk. We saw 4 Komodo Dragons nearby. There are plans to increase the entrance fee till 250 USD starting in January 2023 in order to reduce the number of tourists. Please do follow the instructions of your guide in order to reduce the impact of your visit.
Written March 19, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mark
Godalming, UK26 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2024 • Solo
Visiting the Komodo Dragons was rather underwhelming and over priced. The guides (Harry in particular) were rude, surly and belligerent. Vocally unhappy about the tips they were getting (maybe if they were more cheerful tips would have been larger).
Written April 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

abquilter
49 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Family
Definitely visit and see these amazing reptiles. We arrived and were the only ones in the island as our private boat got to the island before the other boats arrived.
Our guide was fab snd we saw 5 dragons and were lucky enough to get some amazing footage. It was a highlight for our boys 18 and 19. You are not guaranteed to see them especially later in the day as on the walk we only saw one large Male but saw 4 on the beach at the end of the walk. Also buy your souvenirs here. We made the mistake of thinking it would be expensive on the island however back at Lauban Bajo the souvenirs are 3 times more expensive.
Written July 1, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Komodo Island - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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