Is Komodo Island closed? The 2026 quota, the PP 36/2024 fees and weather closures

The Komodo National Park Agency, BTNK, set the cap at one thousand visits a day from 1 April 2026, after a trial that started in January. The reason is in the numbers. According to ANTARA on 14 April 2026, the park received about 430 thousand visits in 2025, around 68 percent of them from abroad. That is more than earlier studies judged it could carry. Those studies put the yearly capacity at between about 366 thousand and 379 thousand, depending on which one you read.

Then the quota ran out. By August, CNN Indonesia wrote on 29 September 2026, the year's allowance of 365 thousand visitors was already spent. On 22 September BTNK signed a notice halving the daily limit to 500 for September to December 2026. Its acting head, Lugi Hartanto, blamed visitors who arrive earlier than their ticket date, which eats into the quota faster. He said the allocation would be reorganised.

Bookings go through SiOra, an online reservation system. During the trial, Floresa reported on 7 April 2026, it did not always stop taking bookings once the cap was reached. On one full day, visitors without a reservation were sent away from Padar.

Fees are set by Government Regulation 36 of 2024, in force since 30 October 2024, when it replaced the old tariff rules (ANTARA Kupang, 26 October 2024). The entry ticket now costs:

• IDR 250,000 per foreign visitor, the same on every day.
• IDR 50,000 per Indonesian visitor on a weekday.
• IDR 75,000 per Indonesian visitor at weekends and on public holidays.

A single ticket pays for trekking, wildlife viewing and snorkelling. Diving needs a separate ticket, 25 thousand rupiah per person per activity. A drone is not covered at all and needs its own permit, at 2 million rupiah per unit per day. Boat tariffs were not changed.

For a party on Elbark Cruises, none of this sits inside the charter fare; park tickets are quoted on their own. The ANTARA report says nothing about ranger or pier charges, so we confirm those in writing for your entry date.

Each closure reported in 2026 was a pause of a few days, ordered by the harbour authority, KSOP Labuan Bajo, because of a forecast. Not one closed the park itself. What they stopped was the sailing.

• 22 to 24 July: sailing routes to Komodo and Padar closed after wind raised waves to about 1.5 metres. Rinca stayed open for speedboats only, and phinisi were not allowed on that route (CNN Indonesia, 24 July 2026).
• 6 to 8 August: Komodo and Padar closed again and only Rinca permits were issued, because the forecast gave wind to 24 knots and waves to 2.4 metres (detikBali, 6 August 2026).
• 15 August: a strong earthquake struck Flores. Komodo National Park and Padar reopened after safety checks, and the regent counted more than 2.8 thousand boat departures in the following two weeks (ANTARA, 29 August 2026).
• 10 to 11 October: a warning went out for 17 to 22 knot winds and waves between 1.25 and 2.5 metres. The harbourmaster can delay sailing approvals when conditions are unsafe (CNN Indonesia, 10 October 2026).

Nothing we have read gives a 2027 quota, a 2027 daily limit or a closure date. CNN Indonesia's report of 29 September is silent on all three, and ANTARA's account of 25 April says only that the ministry will review the limit regularly.

One change is on the way. Visiting on 24 April, the Deputy Minister of Forestry said Padar would get infrastructure work in 2026, including a new trail layout and a new pier. A higher quota could be considered once it is done, he added. He named no dates. Whether the work will close the island at any stage, we do not know.

So three questions stay open: the yearly figure, the daily limit and any closure for the works. This page will be updated when BTNK publishes them. In the meantime 2027 charter dates are priced on the 2026 list, and any new fare reaches you before the balance is due.

For a party of 15 to 18, the cap turns the park day into something to fix early and then hold to. Tickets are bought for a date. Arrive on that date, because turning up early is exactly the habit BTNK blames for draining the quota.

The weather pauses in July and August each lasted two to three days. On a 4D3N charter, IDR 214,000,000 (≈ USD 13,129) for 18 guests, there is room to push a stop back by a day; on a 3D2N there is not. The captain settles the order of stops each morning. When a pause shuts Komodo and Padar, Rinca can be the only island left open, and July showed that a phinisi can be kept off that route as well.

If the boat itself cannot sail your dates, the replacement-boat guarantee in the booking terms applies. Park tickets are never in the fare; ask us for the figure for your entry date before you pay the balance.