72 hours in one of the seven natural wonders of the world
Day 1
11:00 a.m.: Arrival
I land at the airport Labuan Bajo . Getting to Flores is quick and easy if you do it from balinese . Several flights operated by different companies depart daily from the island of the gods and the prices are affordable (for an average of 100 euros round trip they will drop you off on the island).
The arrival in Labuan Bajo already announces the peace and charm of the place: a tiny airport, surrounded by nature and very close to the sea they welcome travelers who have just landed.
The drive from the airport to my hotel shows me a place that is still very virgin, quiet and that marks an important contrast with the bustling and touristic island of Bali. No traffic, no buildings, no modern shops or restaurants here. Just a tiny fishing village made up of a main street and small rudimentary houses that populate a coastline of crystal clear waters overlooking a sea full of small islands.
Ayana Komodo
**12:00 am: Check in at the Ayana Komodo hotel **
For my stay, I choose to stay in the first (and only to date) five star hotel from the Labuan Bajo region.
The hotel is so impressive that it is hard to describe it in words. Lying on a cliff of Waecicu beach , this complex of 205 rooms (all with sea views) has several restaurants, three swimming pools, a gym, a diving center, another marine biology study center and a spa.
From the terrace of my room, I only see the sea, islands, some boats... and a pier that ends with a bar and a semicircle of sun loungers in the middle of the water. In addition, they tell me that the hotel has a unspoiled private island that can be accessed several times a day by boat . Paradise exists and it's called Labuan Bajo!
The spectacular colors of sunset in Kalong
16:30: A spectacular sunset
To watch the sunset, I join an excursion aboard the Lako Taka , a boat whose floor is made of glass and that allows you to see the seabed, which takes me to the island of kalong . This island is inhabited only by bats , whose flight at sunset is a real spectacle and an activity that I recommend to anyone who visits the Komodo area.
Many excursion and fishing boats depart every afternoon from the port of Labuan Bajo city to attend the show, and some boats with cabins that accommodate travelers who venture to visit the area sleeping on board, also stop at the site to see night fall
The village of Ranko
20:00: A fresh dinner by the sea
I dine at Kisik , the hotel's fish restaurant, located on the sand of Waecicu Beach. Here, no menus: the diner chooses the fresh fish of the day charged by weight and displayed on a restaurant counter to taste it accompanied by delicious salads and a traditional soup from the Flores region. All cutlery is made of natural materials, and the dim light of giant fire torches they liven up the evening.
DAY 2
11:00: Introduction to Komodo and its marine life
I meet with Jing, the marine biologist from the Ayana hotel. I ask him about the government's recent intention to close access to Komodo Island to the public , and reassures me by explaining that the national park has about 27 islands , and that the island of Komodo is only a small part of that whole world to explore.
Pulau Gusung
The 2,000 square kilometers of Komodo go a long way, and that is why many travelers choose to stay in boats-hotels to tour the area and dive non-stop for days. On the other hand, many one-day tours already allow you to visit the most important points, and Jing tells me that it is possible to see dragons, clown fish, turtles, manta rays and even dolphins on those tours. My impatience to check it grows by the second.
14:00: Excursion to Rangko Cave
The trip to Rangko cave is done in motorized boat from a tiny fishing village made up of modest little houses that bears the same name. After about ten minutes of traveling through a turquoise sea, I arrive at a virgin beach backed by an ascending path.
Ranko Cave
I walk it for a few meters and there it is: a tiny cave whose green waters seem unreal. But everything does not end there: the way back by boat to the little town has a mandatory secret stop: Pulau Gusung, a bank of white sand in the middle of the sea surrounded by coral and spectacular clown fish.
20:00: Japanese dinner
Dining Japanese cuisine is possible at Labuan Bajo, and the place is named after HonZEN . The AYANA Komodo restaurant invites you to savor all kinds of sushi and traditional tapas of Japanese cuisine, teppanyakis or ramen around a bar, wooden tables or facing the sea, on the restaurant's terrace. The menu is endless and the product is very fresh. I recommend the lobster and the macerated vegetable salads!
AYANA Komodo restaurant
DAY 3
08:00: Komodo National Park Day Tour
My visit begins at eight in the morning, the time at which the ship Lako Bed part of Waececiu beach pier.
We will spend the day around the islands of Rinca and Padar , and each stop of the day is a real show. The starting trekking gives a view of the island whose famous peculiarity is to observe the he three colors of sand on the beaches of Padar: black, white…and pink!
And precisely the Pink Beach is the next destination... and the most amazing beach i have ever seen in my life. The presence of pieces of red coral color the sand of this beach with crystal clear waters in a surreal pastel pink tone. Stopping in that place to dive is a dream come true. I share an hour of happiness with turtles, fish of all colors and sizes, stars and corals.
Pink Beach, a beach from another world
But the journey is not over! I'm about to fulfill a dream me, who doesn't even dive . After stopping at a well-known 'Manta point' in the middle of the sea and swimming a few meters with a mask and snorkel, there they are: three manta rays dance under my body and their dance is so majestic that I feel like I've started to cry.
Now that my emotions have recovered, after a few more minutes on the boat, we stop at Taka Makassar , a white sandbank of a few meters surrounded by unreal turquoise waters. Time to enjoy the most surreal picnic of my traveling life!
Taka Makassar
Before returning to the hotel, fulfilling the must see of the region, we visited a Rinca Island nature reserve to get closer to some Komodo dragons. These true modern dinosaurs are a major claim to the area, and their protection could lead to the closure of the island that gives them their famous name.
When I ask a park ranger about this 'threat', he tells me: "We don't care at all. Flores has much more than Komodo Island." I could not agree more: Komodo is only a part of this authentic marine and terrestrial paradise . I will leave here with indelible memories…and I will not even have set foot on the famous island that will soon be closed!