Katharina: Komodo, 8 nights, Komodo return

Starting and ending in the Komodo National Park, this is a journey through the volcanic epicenter of Indonesia’s Ring of Fire, where you will see the results of countless millennia of Earth’s shifting tectonic plates, mighty forces that have helped shape the landscapes, cultures, and habitats that exist both on land and in the sea.

– Visit local villages to experience local customs and see how the people live their lives and make their living from fishing, farming, and boat building.

– Visit a highly successful coral restoration project on Hatamin Island to learn, where you can get a hands-on experience in creating and placing coral racks into the sea.

– Walk on an active volcanic island and witness the building of a UNESCO-heritage pinisi using the same traditions and techniques used to build your own SeaTrek ship.

– Trek the hills and forests of the park’s prehistoric islands in search of Komodo dragons in the wild. Listen to the early morning birdsong as you hike through the dry tropical and monsoon forests of the region.

– Experience being in the water with whale sharks and learn how they live in symbiotic harmony with local fishermen. Swim with manta rays and sea turtles as they glide along the reefs and “cleaning stations”.

– Swim, kayak, paddle, and play on remote island beaches and feel the soft pink sand between your toes.

– Soar weightlessly through warm tropical waters as you snorkel on kaleidoscopic coral reefs teeming with underwater life.

– See thousands of giant fruit bats fly high above the boat as they emerge from their forest roosts on their nocturnal quest for food.

You will be met at the airport in Komodo by your tour leaders and taken straight to your boat. After settling into your new home for the week, we will head off for our first of many snorkeling expeditions.

Go ashore on Rinca Island in search of the fearsome Komodo dragons, found only in the Komodo National Park. This is the world’s largest lizard, growing up to a length of three metres and weighing up to approximately 70 kilograms.

Another highlight will be when we anchor off a small island to witness the nightly departure of thousands of flying foxes that fly at dusk to feed on the mainland.

Enjoy a fantastic drift snorkel as we visit Gili Lawa Darat, an island in the north of the park, from where we can trek to the viewpoint and watch a majestic sunset across the park.

Go ashore on Sangeang Island, an active volcano, where we will visit the local village and enjoy snorkelling on the colourful coral reef just offshore.

Experience one of our famous SeaTrek beach BBQs under a night sky filled with millions of stars as you feast on the amazing local delicacies prepared by our chef, and all accompanied by live musical entertainment from our talented crew.

We will go ashore on the forested Moyo Island, where we will travel to the interior of the island to visit a scenic waterfall in the rainforest, where we can bathe in the refreshing cool water.

Prepare for an exhilarating opportunity to swim with whale sharks, the majestic gentle giants of the sea. These massive but harmless animals have long congregated here in the bay, but now, thanks to travellers like you, we have formed a mutually beneficial alliance with the local fishermen, who have their traditional small floating fishing platforms in the bay that attract the sharks.

Visit a local village and witness their age-old practice of buffalo racing, where the local men ride their prized beasts through a mud-filled rice paddy, an exhilarating sight to behold.

Visit a strange and mystical volcanic island with a sunken crater lake in its centre, and visit a small coastal community to see pinisi ships being built on the beach.

Enjoy a unique snorkeling experience where volcanic gas escapes in the form of bubbles from the sea floor among the corals, with the metallic black volcanic sand below being home to an abundance of very interesting invertebrates.

Entering the Komodo National Park again, we will go drift snorkelling in one of the best and healthiest coral reefs in the park.

You will have a hands-on experience at a coral conservation project on Hatamin Island, where you will learn about the work and get a chance to create your own coral rack and place it in the sea.

Snorkel at a favourite hangout of sea turtles, where we will have a chance to swim with these gentle reptiles as they cruise along the shallow water of the reef. Swim with manta rays as they feed on the current and circle the so-called cleaning stations, where small fish remove parasites from their skin.

After breakfast on our last day, we will take you on a scenic drive towards Melo Village, where you will witness the traditional Caci dance performance. Local strongmen perform a ritual whip-fight between two rivals in which the players, each armed with a rattan shield and a whip, will try to hit each other while dancing to the rhythm of traditional acoustic instruments.

We say farewell to the crew and your fellow shipmates as you disembark and continue onto your next destination.