Komodo Resort

We stayed for 2 weeks and had a great time! Staff are very welcoming and polite. Food was also excellent. Our bungalow with panorama sea view window was beautiful and clean, with mosquito net installed for the bed. We went for a total of 17 dives with the dive center. They are professionally run and very safety concious. Both the manager and the guides went out of their way to meet all of our wishes. Marine wildlife in Komodo is world class and never disappointed. We warmly recommend staying and diving here!

Best part of the stay This is an absolutely underrated gem. The resort is situated on the island of Sebayur (45 minutes by boat) from Labuan Bajo (Flores airport) and in addition to being the gateway to a UNESCO Heritage site, has an incredible house reef teeming with life. Getting there- We stayed at Bali overnight and took a morning flight to Labuan Bajo (Flores Island) via Batik AiThe resort arranges for an airport pickup. If you arrive early, you can stay at the resort office in Labuan Bajo near the port. The staff there were very friendly and attentive. A private speed boat to Sebayur departs around midday and the staff will get you to the boat on time. The island- The highlight of the island is the reef and as I mentioned above, it is amazing. Not so much schools as clouds of fish in every direction. There can be quite a bit of tourist traffic through this area and I had tamped down my expectations as a result but it was probably the best house reef I have seen. The resort also offers a guided night snorkel expedition and I would highly recommend it as well although it may not be everyone's cup of tea. In 7 days of snorkeling, I saw turtles, several species of damselfish and angelfish, titan triggerfish, Moorish idols, grouper (night snorkel), blue clawed lobster (night snorkel), batfish, wrasse, coral trout, parrotfish, surgeonfish and sweet lips to name just a few. It's also nice to canoe in the lsland waters. We took our 3 year old out for a paddle while she listened to her favourite Moana songs. Apart from the reef, it's also worth climbing to the top of the island to take in the sunrise over the bay. Accommodation- The accommodation consists of individual raised Moana-style cabins. Right opposite each cabin and adjacent to the beach are a pair of pool lounger chairs under an umbrella, looking out over the water. Each cabin has a verandah with chairs, a small table, a drying rack and beanbag. The cabin itself has a king bed, a wooden cupboard with a safe and decent air conditioning. Wifi is decent at the dining area and near the jetty but is patchy at the cabin itself. Food- For dining options, you have a large covered eating area, right on the beach opposite the jetty. The kitchen is open for breakfast (6 to 9), lunch (12 to 2) and dinner (6 to 9). Mostly the food was fresh and delicious with the exception of things such as ice cream. The lunch menu was a bit limited but the dinner menu is great. My highlights for the food were the beef rendang, pisang goreng, pizza, seafood basket, the dessert fruit platter and for my daughter, the pasta. There was also a small crate of old toys which provided my daughter with enough entertainment most nights and allowed us to eat our dinner in peace. There is a bar up near the waterfront and some comfy loungers to relax in. Staff- The staff were just fantastic, always ready to lend a hand or get you what you need. Alex, the resort manager, was always available for a chat for any concerns or questions, as were Rifa and Claudia. The rest of the staff were great as well, so much so that my normally reserved 3 year old knew all of them on a first name basis and by the third day, would confidently walk up to any of them to take her to the jetty or to investigate a crab or some strange insect she had just found. The resort can also arrange for informal babysitting at 150000 Rp an hour and it was absolutely worth it, as it allowed both of us to go snorkeling together. I also wanted to thank the owners Joe and Julian who arrived on the third day of our stay and took the time to come and meet us and ask us if anything could be done to improve our stay. We are deeply indebted to Joe as she always made the time to accompany us on many snorkeling excursions on the house reef and always tried to find interesting things for us. She also accompanied my wife when they visited Manta point on a custom trip with the dive boat and it was a far better experience than the full day excursion, both in the lack of crowds and in the number of mantas they saw peacefully feeding.

The dive center here is world-class — professional, well-equipped, and located in one of the most spectacular marine environments on the planet. This is the main reason to come, and it delivers. The setting is breathtaking, and the excursions offer unforgettable experiences. The resort itself is basic but functional. It’s more of a dive camp than a true resort, and that’s fine — as long as you know what to expect. There’s no luxury, no curated design, and no pretense of offering it. Beds are comfortable, everything works, and the natural surroundings are the real draw. However, the deeper you look, the more unsettling the experience becomes. The staff are kind, hardworking, and the heart of the operation — yet their living conditions are extremely poor. After seeing the remote, trash-filled campsite they walk to and from multiple times a day, often via an unsafe trail over rocks and hills, it fundamentally changes your experience on the island. It’s hard to enjoy your stay knowing that those making it possible live in such undignified conditions. Unfortunately, the management does not appear to have experience in hospitality or people care. The food is a consistent low point: small portions, outdated menus, and many items permanently “out of stock.” After a day of three dives, you need nourishing meals — not meals that leave you hungry. The overall service lacks warmth, energy, and proper oversight. After we left, we also heard reports of guests and staff getting sick from the food — which is alarming. This resort has incredible potential, and it’s clear it may have once lived up to that. Today, the diving still shines — but the human and service elements are far behind. Until the new owners invest in proper staff housing, trained kitchen staff, and real hospitality management, the imbalance between what this place could be and what it is will continue to grow — and that’s a real shame.