Komodo Island: Dragons, Pink Beaches, and the Flores Sea

Komodo National Park, in the eastern part of Indonesia's Lesser Sunda Islands, was established in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon — the world's largest living lizard, which can reach three metres in length and 70 kilograms in weight. The park covers three main islands — Komodo, Rinca, and Padar — and the surrounding sea, which contains some of the finest diving in Indonesia.

The Komodo dragon is a genuinely extraordinary animal — a monitor lizard that has evolved in isolation on a handful of Indonesian islands into the apex predator of its ecosystem. It hunts deer, wild boar, and water buffalo using a combination of ambush, venom (discovered only in 2009), and the bacteria in its saliva that cause fatal infections in prey that escape the initial attack. The guided walks on Komodo and Rinca islands, where the dragons are encountered at close range, are one of the most thrilling wildlife experiences in Asia.

Padar Island, in the centre of the national park, has become one of the most photographed landscapes in Indonesia — a series of dramatic bays separated by ridges of volcanic rock, with pink, white, and black sand beaches visible from the summit. The hike to the top takes about 30 minutes and offers a panoramic view of the park that is one of the finest in Indonesia.

Pink Beach (Pantai Merah) on Komodo Island is one of only seven pink sand beaches in the world — the colour comes from fragments of red coral mixed with the white sand. The beach is also one of the finest snorkelling spots in the park, with a reef of extraordinary colour and diversity just metres from the shore.

The diving in Komodo National Park is among the finest in Indonesia — strong currents bring cold, nutrient-rich water from the deep sea, supporting an extraordinary diversity of marine life. Manta rays are reliably seen at Manta Point, where they gather to be cleaned by smaller fish, and the drift dives through the channels between the islands are some of the most exhilarating in Asia.

The most practical way to visit Komodo is on a liveaboard from Labuan Bajo, the small town on the western tip of Flores that serves as the gateway to the park. Three-day, two-night liveaboards cover the main sites — Komodo, Rinca, Padar, Pink Beach, and the best dive sites — and are the most efficient way to experience the park. Day trips from Labuan Bajo are also possible but cover less ground.

The best time to visit Komodo is from April to December, when the seas are calm and the visibility underwater is at its best. The wet season (January to March) brings rougher seas and reduced visibility, but the park is less crowded and the dragons are more active in the cooler temperatures. The dry season (April to October) is the most popular, with July and August the busiest months.