Komodo trips by occasion on Princess Lala

Cabins 1 to 5 each have a double bed and a single bed beside it, so two parents and a child share one door. Two adults and a nine-year-old fit in Cabin 4, on the main deck, with no climb to the upper deck at bedtime. Each cabin has air conditioning and a sea-view window. Cabin 6 holds two on an open trip, and a charter adds its single berth.

A child under 3 sails free with a parent or guardian; past that age the full fare is due. The third guest in a cabin pays the extra-bed fare shown in the fare table.

There are two tables, one indoors and one at the stern under a timber roof, and a chef who cooks every meal. For a child who eats only a few things, raise it with us first.

The open trip leaves every Monday & Friday. A grandparent will find the shaded side deck with its two canvas deck chairs, and the tender takes you ashore at the beaches.

On the open trip a local guide and the open-trip photographer are part of the fare, and the photo and video record of your days comes with them. You do not hire anyone and you do not carry a drone through the airport.

The route gives a camera good hours. You walk the Padar ridge early on day two, with a torch for the first steps. You are off Kalong at sunset, when the bats stream out across the sky; a long lens and a charged camera help. Cabin 1 has windows on three sides and a private balcony furnished with a bean bag, Cabin 6 has a balcony of its own, and the bow sundeck is laid with green turf and bean bags. Every cabin has power sockets, so batteries charge overnight.

On a private charter neither the guide nor the photographer is in the fare. Both can be added and are quoted on their own, so mention them when you ask for a price. Park fees come on top, whichever trip you take.

Cabin 3 is the cheapest cabin, IDR 3,250,000 (≈ USD 199) per person on the three-day sailing, and the reason is the bathroom: it is shared and outside the cabin, while the other five cabins have their own. The room itself has a double bed with a single beside it, air conditioning and a sea-view window, like the others. If a shared bathroom is more than you want to give up, take Cabin 2, 4 or 5 and the fare rises accordingly.

The two-day fare on the same sailing starts at IDR 2,750,000 (≈ USD 169). You board on the same Monday or Friday and visit the same stops on days one and two, then land on the second evening, between 19:00 and 20:30; dinner that night is for the three-day guests. Sailings that start in 2026 take IDR 100,000 (≈ USD 6) off each person's fare.

For the money you get transfers both ways, all meals, water, tea and coffee, snacks and soft drinks, mask and snorkel, linen and towel, a local guide and photo documentation. Park fees, tips and flights are yours to budget; the park fee alone is IDR 250,000 each day for an international visitor.

Two cabins have a private balcony. Cabin 1 is the master on the upper deck, with windows on three sides and a bean bag on its balcony. Cabin 6 is the master on the main deck, with one double bed and a private balcony of its own. Cabin 6 takes two guests on an open trip, which makes it the natural choice for a couple.

The fares for those two cabins are the highest on the boat, and they are shown in the fare table. What you pay for is the room and the balcony.

For the whole boat on a private charter, the price is per boat, from IDR 31,750,000 (≈ USD 1,948) for two days with up to four guests. The chef, the crew and both tables are yours, with the bow sundeck for the evenings. If you are planning an anniversary or a proposal, tell us the date when you write.

For friends, a company outing or a graduation, take the whole boat: up to 18 guests, two tables, a karaoke and sound system and the bow sundeck. A private charter runs two to five days, on any date the boat is free.

For adventure, the sailing gives you the Padar ridge, a ranger-led dragon walk on Komodo and a drift snorkel at Manta Point. It does not give you anything harder than that, and a few of the walks are steep.

For a solo traveller, fares are per person for a cabin, and we do not publish a single-occupancy fare. Ask us, and we tell you what applies on your sailing.

And for divers, we say it early: Princess Lala is a snorkelling boat. She carries a snorkel and mask for each guest, no fins, no scuba tanks and no compressor. A diver who is happy to snorkel will enjoy her; one who needs tanks on board should book a day with a dive centre in Labuan Bajo, and we say so before you book.