How To Get From Bali To Komodo Island (Labuan Bajo)

In order to visit the Komodo Islands from Bali, you will first need to get to Labuan Bajo, Flores where boats to the Komodo Archipelago depart from. The easiest way to get from Bali to Flores is by taking a short flight from Denpasar Airport (DPS) in Bali to Labuan Bajo Airport (LBJ) in Flores.

💰Budget option: Alternatively, you can also take a tourist route from Bali to the Gili Islands and then onward to Lombok if you’re doing the “Backpackers Boat” that sails from Lombok to Flores.

Map of Komodo, Lombok, & Bali showing where Komodo Island is located in Indonesia. — Map of Komodo, Lombok, & Bali. (Photo by Google Maps).

Traveling from Bali to Komodo

Overland travel between Bali and Komodo is impossible because they are islands. Taking a direct ferry from Bali to Komodo Island is also not possible due to the islands of Sumbawa and Lombok lying between them.

To travel from Bali to Komodo you have the option to take an island-hopping route, traveling from Bali> Gili Islands > Lombok > and then Komodo, or fly direct from Bali to Flores, where you can take a boat out to the Komodo Islands.

The famous “Komodo Island” in Indonesia is only one of 30 islands in Komodo National Park.

How To Get To Komodo From Bali

There are two main routes to take depending on which tour you want to take of the Komodo Islands.

💸 If you would like to take an ultra-budget backpacker’s boat tour of Komodo Island, where you sleep on mats on the floor with 30 other people, shower outside via a hose fixed to the wall, and flush the toilet with a bucket (lol), these boat tours depart from Lombok Island.

🚢 If you would like to take a classic Komodo Boat Tour, with amenities like AC, proper beds, and even some luxury options, then your tour will be set sailing from and docking in Labuan Bajo, in Flores.

The “Backpackers Boat” departs from Lombok, and most travelers choose to visit the Gili Islands first as a stopover from Bali.

The Classic Komodo Cruise departs from Labuan Bajo, in Flores. The only way to get there from Bali is by flying.

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the ferry from Bali to the Gili Islands and Lombok is the first step to take for a Komodo Cruise from Lombok to Flores. — **🚢 The Fast Boat from Bali to the Gili Islands & Lombok can be booked here!**

🚢 For The Backpackers’ Boat: How To Get To Komodo From Bali Via Boat (Island Hopping)

👉 ROUTE:📍 Bali > ⛴ Ferry To Gilis or Lombok > 🚗 Overland Drive Across Lombok > 🚢 Boat Tour From Lombok Through Komodo National Park To Flores > ✈️ Fly Back To Bali

If you’re backpacking Bali then THIS is the perfect Komodo Itinerary for you! Taking the Backpacker’s Budget boat tour of the Komodo Islands is a 4-day/3-night all-inclusive adventure where you get to become really close with 30 or so random people as you sleep cheek to cheek while sailing from Lombok to Flores.

This boat tour is dirt cheap, at around under $200 per person for the entire all-inclusive 4-day trip, and includes overland transport across Lombok Island. The best way to take the budget Komodo boat tour is to visit the Gili Islands first, which are located right off the coast of Lombok.

So your itinerary would look like 👉 Bali > 2 days Gili > 4 days Komodo Boat Tour > 1-2 days Flores. In order to start the tour you need to get to the Gili islands from Bali, alternatively you could skip the Gilis altogether and go straight to Lombok, but most travelers choose to stop at the Gilis. The easiest way to reach the Gili Islands is via a 2-hour fast boat from Padang Bai ferry port in Bali.

You can easily reach Padang Bai ferry port by taking Grab or Gojek, which is Indonesia’s version of Uber, and you can 👉 book your ferry tickets online Here.

From the Gilis, your boat tour should include a short ferry ticket to get from the Gilis to Lombok, where they will be waiting with a van to ferry you to Kayangan Ferry Port on the other side of Lombok, where the Komdodo Boat Tours depart from. It’s a short 10-minute ferry from the Gili Islands to Senggigi Ferry Port in Lombok, and then from there, you drive roughly 3-4 hours across the island to Kayangan Sea Port.

If you want to go straight to Komodo without stopping in the Gilis first, you can take a fast boat straight from Pandang Bai in Bali to Senggigi ferry port in Lombok, where you get picked up by the boat company.

↳ Book Your Fast Boat from Bali to the Gilis and Lombok Here!

View out the window on the short flight from Bali To Labuan Bajo, Flores, from where you can visit Komodo Island.

✈️ For The Classic Komodo Cruise: How To Get To/From Bali To Komodo By Plane

👉 ROUTE:📍 Bali > ✈️ Flight To Labuan Bajo, Flores > 🚢 Boat Tour Of Komodo To/From Labuan Bajo > ✈️ Fly Back To Bali

The majority of Komodo Island Boat Tours set sail from Labuan Bajo, which is the main port city on the island of Flores. There is currently no direct ferry option from Flores to Bali, so your only way to get to Flores is by flying there. Flights from Labuan Bajo, which is the port city in Flores where your tour ends, to Bali run every day at 1:30 PM. Tickets are around $50 each way, and it’s only a 1-hour flight back to Denpasar Airport (DPS), which is the main airport in Bali.

✈️ Facts About Flying From Bali To Komodo

The airport you will fly into in order to visit Komodo is Labuan Bajo also known as Komodo Airport.
Flights take 1 hour and 10 minutes from Bali to Labuan Bajo.
Flights from Bali to Komodo run more than once per day each way, typically there’s one flight in the morning and one in the afternoon.
In addition to flights from Bali, there’s also a flight to Komodo Airport from Jakarta and Surabaya.
Flights from Bali to Komodo typically cost $50 each way but can be as cheap as $35 or as expensive as $90.

🚨 Note!! Regardless of which Komodo tour you take, the Backpackers Boat or the standard Komodo Cruise, you will need to fly back from Labuan Bajo to Bali – so budget for at least one flight