5 days · 4 nights · Pick-up in Kendari, departing from Tanasa Port
Lagoons and Sea Nomads
Five days on a private boat across both island groups. The further lagoons, the Bajo stilt village at Mbokita, and time to swim rather than tick off stops.
Times are indicative. Sea conditions and tides may change the order of stops. Confirm your return flight with us before booking.
Pick-up on the mainland, the run to Tanasa Port, and the crossing to Labengki by wooden boat. Check in, eat, then Long Sand Beach and a snorkel before dinner. On the longer trips this first day matters less as an itinerary and more as a reset: the days that follow are full, and starting them tired is how people end up skipping the climbs.
The crossing from the mainland, by wooden boat.
The long white beach on the Labengki side, and usually the first stop off the boat.
Reef time, at whichever site the crew judges best on the day.
Red Sand Beach first, then a reef stop, then both Kayangan viewpoints back to back. The afternoon is the one the shorter trips do not reach: Mbokita, the Bajo stilt village built out over the water, followed by a swim at Air Kiri. Mbokita is a place people live, not an attraction, and how you behave there is covered before you step off the boat.
A distinct reddish-orange strip, strongest at the waterline where the sand is wet.
A named reef stop the crew uses on the Sombori side.
Both viewpoints on the Kayangan ridge, one after the other.
The Bajo stilt village, built out over the water.
A swimming stop on the Sombori side between the caves.
A full Labengki day, worked in the order the water allows. The swimming pool cave first, then the lighthouse above the village and the beach on the smaller island, then Blue Lagoon before lunch. The afternoon runs Twin Lagoon, Toros Kampali and a snorkel, finishing at Tobelo Lake if the tide is right. That last one is written as a maybe on purpose, because it is one.
The swimming pool cave, entered from the water.
Laguna Mahumalalang, where fresh and sea water mix over white sand.
Two connected bodies of water enclosed by karst on the Labengki side.
Only reachable when the tide allows, which is why it is written as a maybe rather than a promise.
Back to Sombori for the lagoon with the stingless jellyfish, then a beach stop before lunch. The afternoon takes the two caves, Diamond and Allo, and ends at the Five Lagoons, a cluster of connected water in the karst. Four days in, the crew knows what you like doing and the order of an afternoon like this bends around that rather than around a printed schedule.
An enclosed lagoon holding stingless jellyfish.
A beach stop on the Sombori side, usually paired with the caves.
The second of the Sombori caves, named for the way light catches inside.
A cave in the Sombori karst, reached from the water.
A cluster of connected lagoons in the Sombori karst.
Kimaboe Hill in the morning, back to pack, then check out and the transfer to Kendari. The five-day trip ends earlier in the day than the shorter ones because the crossing is the same regardless, and there is no sense arriving somewhere at dusk with a flight to catch. Plan the onward leg for the following morning if you can.
A short climb on the Labengki side, looking down over Love Bay.
Five days, four nights. This is where the trip stops being a circuit of well-known stops and starts being time spent in an archipelago.
The difference is not really the number of places. It is that you stop moving between them at pace.
The further stops come into range. A three or four-day trip works the accessible core of both island groups because that's what fits. On five days the boat can reach lagoons and beaches that a shorter schedule simply can't justify the running time to.
Mornings stop being about getting somewhere. On the shorter trips there is always a next stop and a reason to move. Here there is room to stay somewhere because it is good, swim for an hour longer, and let the crew pick a lunch beach rather than a lunch slot.
Weather stops being a threat. By day five, anything the tide or the sea refused you earlier has usually had another chance. Goa Allo needs the water to drop. Some lagoon entrances need the same. Crossings need a workable sea. With four nights out there, the crew is planning around conditions rather than betting on them.
The village becomes a visit rather than a stop. More on that below.
The comparison against the shorter options is on how the five-day Labengki itinerary compares.
The name of this trip comes from the Bajo, and this is the length where that part of it gets proper room.
Mbokita is a Bajo village built on stilts above the water on the Sombori side. The Bajo are a maritime people with a long history across this part of Indonesia, and Mbokita is a working village. People live there, fish from there, and build boats there. It is not a heritage exhibit and we do not treat it as one.
What that means in practice: we go at a reasonable hour rather than at dawn, we ask before photographing anyone, and we buy something if there is something to buy. Those are not rules we impose on guests so much as the ordinary courtesy of walking through somebody's neighbourhood.
On a shorter trip Mbokita is a stop between other stops. On five days there is time to sit, which is a different experience and a better one. More on the Bajo village at Mbokita.
Five days is the length we would point a keen snorkeller at, with one honest caveat.
This is a karst, cave and lagoon destination with snorkelling attached. It is not a dedicated reef destination and we would rather say that plainly than have you find out on day two. If world-class reef is the reason you travel, read whether Labengki is worth it for you before booking anything.
What five days does give you is time in the water rather than time getting to it. Longer stops, more swimming, and the chance to go back somewhere that was good.
It also gives room for the conservation side of this place. Around Labengki Kecil there is long-running work relocating kima, the giant clams of the genus Tridacna, onto reefs the community treats as no-take zones. Look, photograph, do not touch and do not stand on anything. More on the Labengki Kecil giant clam no-take zone.
Pick-up in Kendari at around 08:00 on day one, road transfer north to Tanasa Port, then a wooden boat out to the islands.
From there the days answer to the water. We publish no hour-by-hour schedule because it would be fiction. The crew reads the tide and sea each morning and builds the day accordingly, which on a five-day trip means genuine choices rather than a fixed loop.
Most landings are wet. No piers. You step off into shallow water and walk in, so anything that must stay dry lives in a dry bag for the whole trip.
Two tiers, homestay and cottage. Identical itinerary in both. The only differences are where you sleep and what the trip costs.
The cottage tier gives you more comfort and more privacy. Both are basic against a mainland hotel, for structural reasons: no grid electricity, no plumbing network, a generator running for part of the day, and rooms sleeping two.
Four nights is long enough that this matters more than it does on a short trip. Book knowing what you're getting.
Telkomsel is the SIM that works. Buy it in Kendari; other networks largely do not reach.
No ATM on the islands. Bring cash, and slightly more than you would for a short trip if you plan to buy anything at the village.
Generator power only, for part of the day. Over four nights a decent power bank matters more than it does over two.
Snorkelling gear is not provided. On this trip in particular, bring a mask that fits you. Five days is a long time with a leaking borrowed one.
Drones are welcome at our sites with no permit needed from us. Indonesian national rules apply and change, so check them before you travel.
This is a private trip. The boat is yours and the route is yours within what the sea allows.
Is five days too long? If long days on the water sound like the cost rather than the point, yes, and four days will serve you better. If they sound like the point, no.
How much of it is Sombori and how much Labengki? You sleep on the Labengki side and reach Sombori by day boat. On five days both sides get multiple days, which is not true on the shorter trips.
Will we definitely visit Mbokita? It is a normal part of this itinerary, subject to sea conditions on the day like everything else out here.
Is this the right trip for snorkelling? It is the best of the four for time in the water. It is still not a dive destination and we won't pretend otherwise.
Can we do a day of nothing? Yes, and on five days it is a reasonable thing to want. Tell the crew.
What if the weather is bad for two days? It reorders the trip rather than stopping it. Five days absorbs that far better than three, which is much of what you're paying for.
For families: our operator accepts children from age 2 but does not provide child-sized lifejackets. Discuss suitable safety equipment before booking.
Most days are easy, but there is no pier at many stops, so expect wet landings: you step off the boat straight into shallow water and wade in. The viewpoints at Kayangan and Kimaboe involve a short steep climb on rock and wooden steps. You should be comfortable in the sea and able to manage uneven ground.
This itinerary changes with the weather, the waves and the tide. If a stop cannot be reached safely, the guide reorders the day and returns when conditions allow. Several stops are marked tide permitting for that reason.
| Group size | Homestay | Cottage |
|---|---|---|
| 1 person | ≈ $921 | ≈ $975 |
| 2 people | ≈ $600 | ≈ $630 |
| 3 people | ≈ $469 | ≈ $561 |
| 4 people | ≈ $423 | ≈ $478 |
| 5 people | ≈ $375 | ≈ $450 |
| 6 people | ≈ $347 | ≈ $425 |
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