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East Indies Seatrek
14 days/13 nights - Gateway: Denpasar, Bali
Standard Tour: from £1299pp
Valid for selected departures in 2008
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| Indonesia has been called the "Archipelago of the Gods" and is certainly an exotic destination! We spend 10 days cruising aboard our Schooner, visiting tropical rainforest, remote beaches and seeking the famous Komodo dragons. |
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Day 1: Join tour Denpasar; to Sanur Beach
The tour starts today at Sanur Beach. Passengers travelling on group flight from London will arrive in late afternoon and are transferred the short distance to the beach.
2 nights hotel H+
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Day 2: Free day
Today has been left free for you to explore a little more of this area at your leisure. You may wish to just relax and enjoy the long white beach, stroll through the village and revel in the tropical atmosphere of this small coastal resort. The off-shore reef is about a kilometre off the beach, for those wishing to investigate the clear, warm waters, and Sanur has a number of watersports operators offering a variety of more active pursuits, including windsurfing, kayaks, parasailing, fishing and diving. Anyone wishing to venture farther afield may like to travel back into Denpasar to investigate something of Bali’s bustling capital. |
Day 3: Fly to Lombok and board schooner; sail to Gili Isles and Sumbawa
Leaving Sanur behind, we head back to the airport and fly to the neighbouring island of Lombok, where we embark on our schooner, the “Katherina”, for our sea voyage through the beautiful and untouched isles of Eastern Indonesia. After meeting our crew and settling into our cabins we cruise to the Gili Isles off West Lombok. We stop at Gili Trawangan, the largest of the three tiny muslim islets. With it’s white sandy beaches, beautiful coral reefs and abundance of iridescent tropical fish, this is a snorkellers paradise. We’ll spend the afternoon relaxing on the beach and snorkelling on the reef before setting sail later this evening to cruise overnight to Sumbawa Besar. Our home for the next nine days is an elegant two-masted Pinisi schooner, of a type that has been used for centuries as cargo-carriers by the Bugis people of South Sulawesi. Adapted for more modern living, the boat nevertheless has the charm and grace of its more traditional forebears and Pinisi are still hand-built by native craftsmen from tropical hardwoods and fitted out with traditional riggings.Facilities aboard comprise eight airconditioned, en-suite cabins,a cozy dining/recreational area and large deckspace with comfortable deck-chairs.Games, body boards, deck-mattresses, hammocks and snorkelling equipment are provided to make life on board as pleasant as one can imagine.
9 nights aboard Schooner |
Day 4: Sumbawa; visit Sultan’s Palace; sail to Moyo
Arriving at Sumbawa this morning we disembark and explore the town of Sumbawa Besar, on the west side of the island. We will visit the Sultan’s Palace this morning, built in 1885 by Sultan Jalashuddin. Once the centre of the old sultanate capital, the palace is a raised wooden building, built on huge pillars on the site of three former palaces. We also aim to visit a traditional Sumbawanese village before lunch, after which we will sail to the southern tip of the island of Moyo to enjoy some swimming and snorkelling in the crystal waters of the Indian Ocean. This evening we will sail to Bima. |
Day 5: Visiting Wawo Maria traditional villages, sail to Sangean Island
By dawn we are generally berthed in the bustling port of Bima, at the eastern end of Sumbawa. Leaving the colour and confusion of the harbour behind, we will visit the traditional villages of Wawo Maria. Located on high land, the houses of this village ("lumbung") are the finest examples of traditional Bima architecture. From there, we will get a chance to watch the traditional dances performed by local people.Returning to the boat we set sail towards Sangean Island, an active volcano towering some 2000 metres above the tranquil waters below. Later this afternoon we stop to visit the small settlement on the island, before resuming our voyage to the Island of Rinca. |
Day 6: Wildlife trek on Rinca; sail to Sabalon Reef for snorkelling
Rinca is a wild looking place. Barren rock towers above the ocean waters, its slopes covered with lontar palms and shrub. We will stop here this morning, in a beautiful bay where dolphins can often be seen playing in the wake of passing boats and sperm whales and dugongs are occasionally seen offshore. There is the option to take a hike into the islands interior, in search of wild horses, buffalo, monkeys, boar and also the extraordinary megapode bird. There is even the prospect of a Komodo dragon or two! Around midday we will set sail again, towards the Sabalon reef, where we will stop for more snorkelling and a chance for some beach combing, before heading for the Riung archipelago, north of Flores. |
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Day 7: On Riung; optional trek/activities; afternoon sail to Ropa
Riung is a small archipelago of some 17 islets, known as Pulau Tujuhbelas, that lie just off the coast of Flores’s verdant shores. This morning we have the chance for some more optional activities around the area. You may of course just prefer to relax on deck and take in the beautiful idyllic setting, or perhaps swin and snorkel in the clear waters – this is some of the best snorkelling in Flores. For the more active amongst you though, a trek up to one of the nearby summits might be more to your liking, with some fabulous views of the surrounding islands. This afternoon we will continue sailing, to the small harbour of Ropa. |
Day 8: Visit Kelimutu Volcano; sail to Labuhanbajo
Arriving in Ropa this morning we take a bus to Kelimutu Volcano (1620m), without doubt one of the highlights of any visit to Flores. This now extinct giant is a magnificent volcano with three craters, all containing lakes of differing colours, which seem to be continually changing over time. It is believed that the colour change is due to the dissolving of chemicals in the waters. The locals believe the lakes to be the final resting place of the souls of the dead – one for the young, one for the old and one for thieves and murderers. Returning to the schooner we set sail again, for Labuhanbajo, at the western edge of Flores. Flores is a breathtakingly beautiful island, with imposing mountains and lush, verdant slopes. The Portuguesue called it the Cape of Flowers and as we sail along its shores we can more than appreciate the majestic beauty of its setting. |
Day 9: Visit villages; sail to “Red” Beach
Early this morning, if weather conditions permit, we hope to have a sailing demonstration aboard ship. The boat is equipped with engines to make our journey more practical and less dependant upon Mother Nature, but the vessels of old would have very much relied on the prevailing winds to take them through these waters, and we will hopefuly get some idea this morning as to what that entailed for the crew. Later this morning we arrive at Labuhanbajo and disembark in this small port and visit a nearby village, where we will attend the socalled caci (whip) dance. Midday will see us setting sail again, for a ‘red’ beach. Many of the beaches are red because of traces of red coral in the sand – we intend to have a barbecue lunch on one of these beaches and perhaps do some swimming or snorkelling around the coral this afternoon. |
Day 10: Komodo Dragon spotting; optional climb to Lawa Darat summit
This morning we land on Komodo Island – one of the greatest wildlife regions of the world. Only 37km long by 21km wide, Komodo is a rather desolate place inhabited by a few fishermen and their outriggers. Walking through dry and dusty scrub we head to a point from which we can observe the awesome Komodo Dragons. The largest of the monitor lizards, they have been extinct elsewhere since the Jurassic Age and almost identical fossilised remains date from the age of dinosaurs. Up to three metres long and weighing up to 150 kilograms, their unique size and bulk results from the lack of any serious competing species or predator. Yet they can move swiftly to hunt and their powerful jaws and sharp claws can easily tear apart wild pig, goat or deer. This afternoon there is the option to climb to the summit of Lawa Darat, before we set sail again, heading west. |
Day 11: Arrive Satonda, visit crater lake
Later today, we land on the sunken volcano of Pulau Satonda and walk up to its caldera in the centre of the island. The island has a colony of flying foxes living here and hopefully we will see some of these, before spending the remainder of the afternoon relaxing on the beach or snorkelling off the fine reef. If time allows we may also be able to continue on to the island of Moyo and hike up to its waterfall and rock pool. Late this afternoon we sail back to Lombok and our journey’s end. |
Day 12: Visit southern Gili’s; disembark
boat Lembar; fly to Bali and drive to
Sanur Beach
Arriving at the southern Gili’s this morning we aim to take lunch with a local family, before disembarking the boat for the last time in Lembar and transferring to the airport for our flight to Bali. On arrival we will transfer back to Sanur Beach.
2 nights hotel H+ |
Day 13: Free day
The day is once again left free for you to enjoy the delights of this small coastal resort and perhaps reflect on the sights and experiences of the past two weeks. |
| Day 14: Tour ends Sanur Beach |
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Price includes accomodation based on twin share, meals as specified, tour leader, domestic flights and boat crew on schooner. Excludes International flights and transfers. An ability to swim is essential for this trip.
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