Sailing to the Island of Komodo Dragon, you definitely need a boat as means of transportation, and Komodo Liveaboard budget often become a hot item among many budget travelers. To get the cheapest price, however, many adventurers are forced to go totally frugal and take the most modest wooden boat around Labuan Bajo and left their comfort in the shore. Often times, this means using the small, wooden ship bench as both chair in the daylight and humble bed after dark. Sometimes it means rolling out your sleeping pad and lie in the open deck when the night comes. Sure, it sounds adventurous with sleeping under the stars and such, but it also gives you shill from the windy night, post-sleeping backache, and water spray literally everywhere. Almost all of the cheapest liveaboard Labuan Bajo also rely on natural air circulation, and without air conditioner installed, your days will be hot and humid. When you are not careful, you can end up with decades old boat which engine frequently died at very unexpected time. Trust me, this happened to a lot of people.
This is why you need to have thorough research before booking any Komodo sailing trip. When I was planning to go to Flores, I stumbled across a bunch of awesome tour. Some are very luxurious, but they have quite strict schedule that I cannot tweak. Some have ridiculously high price for what I perceive as a standard liveaboard. However, one day I met the owner of Hello Flores tour and when he showed me his boat, I was hooked.
They have a good range of boats. Some are obviously luxurious, while the rest seems like a three starred hotel which, surprisingly, still on my budget! I was ecstatic to find three Komodo Liveaboard budget that actually fit my budget, do not force me to sleep in poor station, and allow me to rest in style. All of them also provides meal by their own chef! As someone who values life so much, I don’t want to spend half of my adventure getting sea sick in the middle of the ocean, or waste a lot of precious time just to move from one island to another.
Wisesa
The first one, Wisesa, cost $280 for 10 person, which means each person need to pay $8. It’s a converted traditional boat form Sulawesi and I saw they have good cabin for each passengers.With real bed, blanket, and pillow. The ship has two teak decks where I can lounge without getting splashed by waters. One thing that I like, even though this is a Komodo Liveaboard budget, the ship is equipped with a lot of water equipment—one can go kayaking, paddling, and snorkelling anytime. This can be a huge plus.
Maki
Second is Maki, a white-painted pretty ship with crimson sail and teak wood. It’s cost USD 220 for eight person, roughly about 27.5 for each. Though it’s a medium boat, it feel very spacey as you only share the ship with other 7 person. I found that its cabin is the nicest among the three, with two-pillar bed and lovely windows, allowing plenty of light flooding to the room. The lovely blend of white, teak, and red in the deck surely will help me taking picture-perfect holiday trip which will make everyone go envy. It’s so gorgeous and I cannot believe how cheap it will cost me. Bonus: the ship also come with 2 kayaks and stand up puddles!
Royal Fortuna
The third and cheapest Komodo Liveaboard of the three, Royal Fortuna, only need USD 159 to sail. It got even cheaper as 11 traveler can go on board and everyone only need to pay USD 14.5 each. It’s even less than $20 and you can get comfy cabin with stylish interior. I can picture a perfect group travel with my bestes in this liveaboard. They even got beanbag and loungers in the upper deck which will make the island hopping very relaxing and enjoyable. Such price already include meal in classy dining area when we can dine and absorbing the surrounds. They don’t get water equipment, but with such price, i cannot complain. It’s already good as it is!
I hope this information is helpful for another fellow travelers who are looking for a Komodo Liveaboard budget that will not forsaken the comfort of sailing. Good bye sleeping on deck, see you never!
