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Colorful sunset over Sulawesi

Corals, Culture & Dragons

Example 14 Day Cruise aboard Katharina
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Get a glimpse of the incredible diversity of Indonesia on this 14-day cruise aboard Ombak Putih. From Bitung, explore multiple wildlife rescues and conservation centers to learn about the unique species that are found on these islands, from multiple species of monkeys, to sun bears, to flying foxes, to the unique Maleo bird. Snorkel brilliantly colorful coral reefs that support a myriad of tropical fish species, and swim in a protected lake with stingless jellyfish: a truly otherworldly experience! Visit local villages and small nomadic communities for a peek into everyday traditional life for the people who call this region home, and learn about their conservation efforts for protected species. Explore Komodo National Park to look for one of the most striking reptiles in the world: the legendary Komodo dragon. 
Snorkel the coral reefs of IndonesiaA pair of dragons on Komodo IslandExplore the culture of IndonesiaExplore SulawesiTraditional MealColorful sunset over Sulawesi
Highlights
  • Visit local nomadic communities to learn about their way of life
  • Learn about unique species at wildlife rescue and conservation centers
  • Swim with clouds of stingless jellyfish in protected lakes
  • Snorkel vibrant coral reefs and spot bright tropical fish
Places Visited
  • Asia
  • Indonesia
  • Banggai Islands
  • Bitung
  • Bonerate Island
  • Kakabia Island
  • Komodo Island
  • Komodo National Park
  • Pulau Malenge
  • Pulau Padei Kecil
  • Sulawesi
  • Wakatobi National Park
Activity Level: Relaxed
Involves minimal physical effort and is typically associated with leisurely activities. Activities are low-intensity or last less than a few hours each day.
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Full Itinerary

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Day 1: Bitung | Embark

Board the Katharina in Bitung and settle into your cabin. Meet the crew and your fellow passengers as the ship sails to the Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue Center, about an hour's cruise south. Take a guided tour of the center to learn of their conservation efforts and meet some of the wildlife that resides here, including monkeys, hornbills, cockatoos, and sun bears. In the afternoon, relax on deck as the ship continues on the journey south. 

Day 2: North Sulawesi

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
This morning take the opportunity to snorkel on a local reef and spend some time stand up paddleboarding, kayaking, and relaxing. In the afternoon, take a chance to meet some North Sulawesi locals when you head ashore to a fishing village. This afternoon, sail southwest for the overnight passage to the Togean Archipelago, one of Indonesia's wonderful national parks. 

Day 3: Malenge | Lake Mariona

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Great wildlife experiences await you today both in the water and the air, with birds, fish, and invertebrates as the main features. Enjoy a fantastic snorkel on the reefs near the island of Malenge before taking your snorkels and masks to experience a rare opportunity to swim with stingless jellyfish in nearby Lake Mariona, one of only 20 lakes in the world that are home to these amazing creatures. Later, visit a local village and meet the people who call this paradise home. Enjoy an afternoon walk in the forest before being witness to a most amazing show of nature as flocks of hornbills come flying in to roost in the trees, a memorable and once-in-a-lifetime sight. 

Day 4: Kabalutan Village

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Today encounter the Bajau sea gypsies of Southeast Asia, a people with a unique way of living with the sea. About 2500 people live in Kabalutan village, and they welcome visitors to introduce them to their world to meet and talk with them about their lives. Later, head to the southernmost tip of the park and have a long snorkel excursion nearby before setting sail to the southeast. 

Day 5: Maleo Bird Sanctuary

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
A very unique experience awaits you today, one you will very likely have never had before - an encounter with a 'Maleo bird'. One of Sulawesi’s most interesting birds, the Maleo is a flightless fowl with some very unusual characteristics and behaviors, and also the symbol of the province within which it lives. Visit a conservation project on the mainland where scores of Maleo live and breed. Entering in twos, watch them at their sandy nesting sites from a camouflaged hideout as they go about their business. Later that morning, cruise south and snorkel in the afternoon on a beautifully rich reef in front of Pulau Dua. 

Day 6: Bangaii

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Today visit the bustling Indonesian island port town of Banggai, filled with activity and commerce. Visit the local market, explore the neighborhoods, the sultan's palace and the maleo bird egg museum. Pay a hands-on visit to LINI, an NGO doing great work with coral restoration on the surrounding reefs, in addition to working with local fishermen in finding sustainable solutions for supplying fish for overseas markets and the live aquarium fishing trade. End the day with a snorkel on a local reef where you can spot the elegant, but endangered, Banggai cardinalfish, a darling of saltwater aquarium lovers worldwide. 

Day 7: Bokan Islands

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
The Bokan Islands are an area of unsurpassed beauty, and today will be a day of marine exploration and relaxation as you snorkel, swim, paddle, and kayak around the glorious reefs, beaches, and islands with many caves and snorkeling spots. You may also have the privilege to swim once again in another stingless jellyfish lake, the Danau Piasu Botangan.

Day 8: Padai Kecil Island

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Today, visit another Bajau community in the morning near Padai Kecil Island. In the afternoon, snorkel one of the local reefs before setting sail to the south toward Wakatobi National Park. 

Day 9-10: Wakatobi National Park

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Spend two days in this national park, consisting of a remote archipelago filled with fascinating culture and outstanding underwater life. Enjoy snorkeling excursions in the mornings and afternoons, and take a personalized tour of the island of Wangi Wangi, where highlights include a visit to a seaweed farm, meeting a traditional weaving community, and the ruins of a centuries-old Dutch fort, a relic of colonization and the spice trade. You might also visit the nearby Binongko Island, where local craftsmen use hand-operated bellows on the furnace in the blacksmith shop to produce machetes and knives that are highly sought-after across Indonesia. 

Day 11: Kakabia

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
This morning watch for brown- and red-footed boobies and lesser frigate birds as they circle the ship and try to land on the stays and masts. Today you'll be visiting the island of Kakabia, an uninhabited sea mountain in the middle of the Flores Sea, rich in upwelling nutrients and a perfect habitat for fishing. Spend the day here snorkeling and exploring, and if the tides and conditions allow, go ashore for an afternoon of swimming, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding. In the evening, tide permitting, enjoy a beach barbecue party with the crew. 

Day 12: Bonerate

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Today walk amongst the hulls of a huge unlaunched flotilla of pinisi ships being built on a remote island archipelago. Meet the shipwrights and discover their age-old traditions of shipbuilding that they have practiced for centuries in this forgotten corner of the world, using basic plans, wood, and a collection of simple tools and age-old techniques. Bonerate is rarely visited by tourists, and seeing this open-air boatyard is an experience to be savored. As you walk through the village and along the beaches and meet the locals, you will gain a new appreciation for island life and for the kind of boat you have been cruising with for the past twelve days.

Day 13: Komodo National Park

  • Ship
  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch, 1 Dinner
Giants will loom large in your day today: Komodo dragons, flying foxes and manta rays, three of the biggest and most impressive animals in Indonesia. Rising early in the Komodo National Park, take a privately arranged, ranger-led walk around the island of Rinca, where you will see not only Komodo dragons, but also their preferred menu of prey: monkeys, deer, pigs and buffaloes. After lunch on board the ship, go in search of manta rays as they glide by as they feed in the current. This evening, as the sun starts to set, gather on the deck to witness a most spectacular event as thousands of flying foxes leave their mangrove forest homes en masse on their nightly fruit-foraging missions. Tonight the crew will prepare a beach BBQ for you to feast, sing and dance the night away by a roaring fire under the stars

Day 14: Komodo | Disembark

  • 1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch
Your final day will be one of snorkeling and culture. After an optional morning swim and snorkel, take a private tour to a local village high up on a mountain plateau where you will be welcomed in by the elders and offered betel nut and arak, a potent local alcoholic brew. You will be witness to the traditional caci whip dance, and the "bamboo" dance, performed by the villagers for generations. After a final Indonesian lunch on the boat, say farewell to the crew, who have looked after you so well for the past two weeks, and transfer to Komodo airport for your flight back to Bali and your onward journey.

Ship/Hotel

Katharina

Sail on board the Katharina
Katharina ship
Katharina

Dates & Prices

My Preferred Start Date

Per person starting at
Katharina Cabin
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Cabin Deck
Cabin Deck. Spacious, air-conditioned twin-share cabins with twin bunks or double beds. Private bathroom with toilet, washbasin, and hot shower.

Notes

- All rates are quoted in USD and represent cost per person, based on double occupancy.
- Cabins are available for single occupancy at 1.75 times the published rate.
Included
  • 11 Breakfasts, 11 Lunches, 11 Dinners
  • 13 Nights Accommodations
  • Accommodations as listed
  • Ground transportation as listed
  • Activities as listed
  • Meals as listed
  • Access to a 24-7 Emergency line while traveling
  • First aid kit containing all major medicines.
  • Use of sleeping bags for sleeping on deck.
  • Complimentary cotton backpack, luggage tag, fan, and stainless steel water bottle, which guests are encouraged to take home and keep.
  • Two pieces of laundry each day.
  • Beach BBQ with complimentary wine, beer, and selected cocktails
  • English-speaking SeaTrek tour leaders
  • Full board including all meals and soft drinks, tea, coffee, snacks. Starting and ending with lunch on first and last days.
  • All port fees
  • Welcome drink and cold towel upon boarding the boat on the first day and each time guests return from all off-boat excursions
  • Daily room cleaning
  • Towels and linens
  • Sunscreen lotion but do bring your own
  • Soaps, shampoo and conditioner
  • Selected wines with special farewell dinner
  • Use of on-board TV and multimedia facilities
  • Library of books, kids’ games and TV documentaries
  • Unlimited use of espresso machine
  • All park fees, cultural performances, local guides, and off-boat activities
  • Use of all facilities on board, including snorkeling gear, paddle boards, kayaks, board games
  • All transfers to and from the boats in ports
Excluded
  • Gratuities
  • Travel Insurance
  • Personal Expenses
  • Additional excursions during free time
  • Domestic Flights
  • Alcoholic drinks outside of special dinners and beach BBQ.
  • Fuel Surcharge - to be invoiced separately
  • Transit hotels

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