INFORMATIONS
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8 days - 7 nights
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100% CUSTOMIZABLE TRIP
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From 1 695€ per person. See our price & conditions below.
YOU WILL LOVE:
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The traditions of the Ngada clans
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The cobwebbed rice fields of Ruteng
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The hobbit cave
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A 3-day cruise in the clear blue water of Komodo
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Spot the Komodo dragons
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Swimming with Manta rays & turtles
Day 1: Ende airport, Flores – Bajawa
Arrival in Flores and transfer to Bajawa
Arrival at the airport of Ende in the centre of Flores, you meet your driver who takes you to Bajawa. Situated 2000 metres above sea level, the town of Bajawa enjoys a cool climate. The road is long but winds through beautiful, lush countryside. Upon arrival at your hotel, enjoy the afternoon to rest and acclimatise. At the end of the day, your driver takes you to nearby Wolobobo Hill for the sunset over the Inerie volcano.
4 h drive. Accommodation: standard hotel.
Day 2: Bajawa
Visit the traditional villages in the Ngada region
This morning you meet Ryan, your local guide. Together you visit the traditional villages of the Ngada region to learn about their beliefs and traditions. First stop: the small, picturesque village of Bela, which has only 23 families divided into 3 clans. Life here is organised around the altars where the souls of the ancestors are celebrated. Castes, ceremonies, handicrafts, sacrifices, weddings, funerals, births, matriarchal system; these Ngada villages are of immense cultural richness that is difficult to capture in one day. You continue with a visit to the village of Bena, which is more touristy because its size is more impressive. The women here weave ikats and you can see them at work. From Bena, you finally set off on a short hike through the jungle to reach the last village: Tololeda. After the visit, your driver picks you up there and takes you to the hot springs of Malanage.
1 h drive. 2 h walk. With English speaking local guide. Accommodation: standard hotel. Meals: breakfast & lunch.
A Ngada traditional village
Women making ikat
Day 3: Bajawa
Visit the lost village of Rendu Ola
With Ryan, you drive to the remote village of Rendu Ola. On the way, stop at Boa Wae Market, the largest market in Flores, where you can buy fruit, vegetables, livestock and ikats. Then drive back to the village of Boa Wae, still ruled by a king. You arrive in the village of Rendu Ola, which has only about twenty inhabitants. You enter a world that hovers above the rest of the world's turmoil. You spend some time in the company of the inhabitants, probably over coffee. Time does not pass here, there is no stress and discussions are punctuated by long pauses. You have a picnic in the village and enjoy its tranquillity before returning to the hotel.
4 to 5 h drive. With English speaking local guide. Accommodation: standard hotel. Meals: breakfast & lunch.
Day 4: Bajawa - Ruteng
Transfer to Ruteng and Tengkulese waterfalls
This morning you leave Bajawa and reach the town of Ruteng. Located in the mountains, the road is hilly and lush with small houses and shops along the roadside. It offers superb views of the surrounding tropical mountains that you cross. After arriving at the hotel in Ruteng, you leave with Ryan for a walk in the rice fields that leads you to the Tengkulese waterfalls. The path is peaceful, you walk between rice fields, houses and irrigation canals before reaching the waterfalls.
4 h drive. With English speaking local guide. Accommodation: standard hotel. Meals: breakfast.
The traditional ancestor pole of Rendu Ola
Spider-webbed rice fields of Cancar
Day 5: Ruteng – Labuan Bajo
Ruteng, its spider web rice fields and its Hobbit Cave
You visit the Liang Bua cave, also known as the "Hobbit cave", where in 2003 archaeologists discovered traces of Homo floresiensis. Enter the cave and imagine how thousands of years ago little hobbit people went hunting for dwarf elephants from here. Unbelievable! Here it's time to say goodbye to Ryan, who returns to Bajawa, while you drive to Labuan Bajo, the starting point for your Komodo cruise tomorrow. On the way, you stop to admire the famous Cancar rice fields arranged in a spider's web. You arrive in Labuan Bajo in the afternoon. The capital of Flores is a disorganised and noisy city that contrasts strongly with the rest of the island.
3 to 4 h drive. With English speaking local guide. Accommodation: standard hotel. Meals: breakfast.
Day 6: Labuan Bajo – Komodo cruise
First day of cruise in the archipelago of Komodo: Manjarite & Kelor islands
Early this morning, your driver brings you to the port of Labuan Bajo where you board your private boat for your 3 days of Komodo cruise. First snorkeling stop at Kelor Island. Climb the small hill that leads to a superb panorama on Komodo Bay. Continue to Manjarite Island where you enjoy the beach and swim amongst the corals and fish. For sunset, you moore in a bay renowned for its thousands of flying foxes that wake up at dusk.
10 min drive. Accommodation: night on the boat in a double cabin. Meals: full board.
Long beach
Komodo dragon
Day 7: Komodo cruise
Second day of cruise and encounter with the Komodo dragons
This morning you set sail for Padar Island. Climb the steps to the top of the hill and enjoy the view on the Komodo archipelago. You then sail to Long Beach and its pink sand. Much better preserved than its sidekick Pink Beach, the sand is incredibly pink due to the tiny fragments of coral that are scattered around. After lunch, you dock in Komodo Island and go on a Komodo dragon walk. Accompanied by a ranger guide, you choose the duration of your walk which can last from 20 minutes via the shortest trail to over an hour via the longest.
20 min to 1 h walk. Accommodation: night on the boat in a double cabin. Meals: full board.
Day 8: Komodo cruise – Labuan Bajo Airport
Swim with turtles and manta rays
After breakfast you sail to Manta Point where the manta rays come to swim alongside you. Then the magic continues to Siaba Island where you swim amongst turtles, corals and hundreds of colourful fish. Final stop at the beautiful beach of Kanawa Island before returning to the port of Labuan Bajo. Back on land, your driver picks you up and brings you to Labuan Bajo airport.
20 min drive. Meals: breakfast & lunch.
PRICE INCLUDES
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5 nights in hotel in a double room
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2 nights on a boat
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Tours as per itinerary
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Private driver
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Private english speaking local guide from day 2 to day 5
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Private Komodo cruise for 3 days & 2 nights
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Snorkeling equipment (but it is highly recommend to bring your own equipment)
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Boat crew and cook during the cruise
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All transfers
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All entrance fees
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Meals: full board during the Komodo cruise; breakfast & lunch on days 2 & 3; breakfast only for the rest of the stay
PRICE EXCLUDES
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International & domestic flights
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Private travel & medical insurances
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Covid tests
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Additional drinks and personal expenses
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Costs for excess luggage
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Tips
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Sleeping bag for the cruise
