Komodo and Flores Bird Photography

📍 Distances and journey time: Komodo Airport – Harbour (3 km): 10 mins

Upon arrival at Komodo Airport, Labuan Bajo (suggested morning arrival) meet and greet by the local representative and you will then transfer to the harbour.  

Onboard the cruise and start sailing to Komodo National Park, for the possibility to encounter any raptors or water birds. The day will be spent birding with the night photography, to search for the Wallace's scops-owl and Moluccan scops-owl. Dinner and overnight onboard the cruise.

Key targets: 
Black-naped tern, Little Tern, Lesser Frigatebird, Pacific reef egret, Crested tern, White-bellied Fish Eagle , Brahminy Kite. Wallace’s scops-owl, Moluccan Scops-Owl.

Overnight onboard

Inclusions:

🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Harbour - Hotel (4,2 km): 10 mins

Starting with a morning trek at Komodo National Park, the island presents a dry, starkly beautiful wilderness, with towering cliffs forming a formidable skyline upon approach. If not for a unique twist of nature that made it home to one of the world's most captivating creatures, few would venture to this remote area. The Komodo dragon, or ora as locals call it, is perhaps the most tangible link to our Jurassic predecessors—a modern dinosaur existing solely on Komodo and a handful of neighboring islands.

We’ll explore birds and Komodo Dragon within a 3 hours trekking, before returning to the boat for a hearty breakfast as we cruise back to Labuan Bajo. A stop will be made at Pink Beach for swimming and snorkeling activities, and the opportunity to encounter waterbirds. 

Arrive at Labuan Bajo, transfer to your hotel. In the afternoon time, birding around the ricefields at the southern part of the town till the sunset. 

Return back to the hotel, dinner and overnight at leisure.

Key targets: 
Yellow crested Cockatoo, Komodo Dragon, Black naped Oriole, White bellied Sea-eagle, Black-naped Tern, Brahminy Kite, Timor zebra finch, Group of cattle egret and Mees’s Nightjaar .

Overnight in Labuan Bajo

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Hotel – Puar Lolo (38,2 km): 1 hr 10 mins Puar Lolo - Werang (18,4 km): 45 mins

Today we’ll leave in the morning at approximately 6 am, you will then drive to Puar Lolo Forest. This small forest patch lies alongside the main East-West of Ruteng road east of Labuan Bajo, offering a destination to appreciate Flores's unique wildlife.

Afterward we will drive to Ndengo Village, where the critically endangered Flores Hawk Eagle soars overhead. From the village of Ndengo, you'll trek 2 km to the magnificent Cunca Rami waterfall. After enjoying a dip in its natural pool and birdwatching along the river, you'll have a local lunch box before continuing your journey to Werang, where you'll spend the night with a local family.

Key targets: 
Flores Monarch, Chestnut-capped Thrush, Red Cheeked Parrot, Ruddy Cuckoodove, Crested Heleia, Thick-billed Heleia, Tenggara Whistler, Flores Minivet, and more.

Overnight in Werang

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Hotel – Lembor (37,7 km): 1 hr 10 mins Lembor – Nteer (28 km): 45 mins Nteer - Cancar (21,7 km): 40 mins Cancar – Ruteng (16,2 km): 35 mins Ruteng - Hotel (2,3 km): 10 mins

Early morning birding exploration around the lake close-by, known for its sulfur-rich lake and hot springs, offers a scenic, off-the-beaten-path experience. Back to the homestay for a simple  breakfast before proceeding to the other side of the forest for another birding exploration, specially for Flores Lorikeet, this species is Near Threatened due to its declining population, a result of habitat loss from logging, agriculture, and trapping. 

Drive further to Bamboor to reach Flores Highway then continue to Lembor, known for its vast, traditional rice fields, making it a popular destination for tourists seeking to experience serene rural life and agriculture. Here we will look for the opportunity to encounter any raptors or water birds.

Stop at Cancar, a rural area famous for its incredibly unique rice fields, to see remarkable "cobweb" fields from the  perfect vantage point. 

After dinner at a local restaurant, arrive at the hotel and rest for the night.

Key Targets; 
Flores Crow, Black-naped Oriole, Nusatenggara Paradise Flycatcher, Black-naped Monarch, Flores/leaf Lorikeet, Glithering Kingfisher, Variable Goshawk.

Overnight in Ruteng

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Hotel – Ranamese Lake (21,8 km): 45 mins Ranamese Lake – Ruteng (22,5 km): 45 mins Ruteng - Hotel (2,3 km): 10 mins

Rise early at approximate 4am and drive for Ranamese Forest for owling trip to search for Flores’s scops-owl then continue with morning birding within this mountainous natural reserve, an ideal birdwatching location due to its location within lush, tropical vegetation, including mosses, scrubs, and tropical woods.

Back to the town for lunch break, before visiting the nearby rice fields for wetland birds. The day will be spent birding until dark, followed by a final owling trip to search for the Wallace's scops-owl. 
Arrive back at the resort, rest and overnight. 

Key Targets:
Flores's Scops-owl, Bare-throated Whistler, Flores Hanging Parrot, Ruddy Cuckoodove, Flores Green Pigeon. White breasted waterhen, Buff-banded Rail, Lewins Rail (very rare), Crakes, Five-coloured Munia, and any other munias. Night Wallace's Scops-owl.

Overnight in Ruteng

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Hotel – Golo Lusang (8,7 km): 25 mins Golo Lusang - Plantation (12,5 km): 30 mins Plantation – Hotel (7.5 km): 20 mins

Leave hotel in the morning at approximately 6:30 am and drive to Golo Lusang Forest 4km south of Ruteng, a mountain pass in Flores, offering excellent birding in its foothill rainforests, particularly known for spotting the endemic Flores scops owl, along with other Flores endemics like the Flores Crow and Flores Hawk-Eagle. 

Continue with birding exploration in the coffee plantation and enjoy the ricefield landscape. After savoring a local lunch in town, proceed to Labuan Bajo for your dinner and overnight stay.

Key targets: 
Flores Shortwing, Flores Flowerpecker, Cream-browed Heleia, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, and Flores Hawk Eagle.

Overnight in Labuan Bajo

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch, 🍗 Dinner

📍 Distances and journey time: Hotel - Komodo Airport (4,9 km): 15 mins

Leave the hotel in the morning at approximately 6 am for Pota Wangka Forest, one of the most visited birding sites close to Labuan Bajo, for a half day birding exploration.

Conclude around 11am, back to the hotel, check out the hotel. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant prior to your transfer back to Komodo Airport for your departure.

Key Targets; 
Flores Hawk Eagle and Flores Hanging Parrot, Black-naped Fruit dove, Flores Lorikeet, White-rumped Kingfisher, Common Kingfisher, Variable Goshawk, Strawberry Finch, Timor zebra Finch, and more.
 

Inclusions:

☕ Breakfast, 🥘 Lunch