Raffles Cruise
Raffles Cruise
Four short guides written for people who snorkel and do not dive
Updated 24 October 2026
A Komodo snorkelling guide for non-divers, in four parts written around Raffles Cruise: swim confidence, manta etiquette, 2027 prices and the camera. Each is built from the route, the rate cards and the national park rules.
Four short guides on four snorkeller questions
Guests who do not dive ask four things before they book, and each has a guide. The guides run in the order the questions come.
- Swim a little or not at all? The swim guide climbs from the shallow reef to the drift at Manta Point.
- Sharing the water with a manta? The etiquette guide sets out what you do, and what the guide and the crew do.
- The cost of a Komodo liveaboard in 2027? The price guide reads the published card, cabin by cabin and boat by boat.
- Photographs without a tank? The camera guide covers the reef, the boat and the walks.
Each guide is about 1000 words. None repeats the booking page, and none repeats another. Read one. Or read all four, in the order the questions arrive, over a single evening.
Where to begin reading
If you swim a little or not at all, begin with the swim guide. It is the longest of the four and the one that changes what you book. If you have already decided to sail and want to know how to behave at Manta Point, begin with the etiquette guide.
If you are comparing dates, begin with the price guide, which is the only page that explains the 2027 seasons in words. If you carry a camera, begin with the camera guide, and read the photography page beside it.
The grid below links all four, with the stops and the figures each one draws on. A guest planning from far away reads the price guide first and the swim guide last, and the order makes sense. The money decides the date. The water decides the stops.
A confidence ladder for people who swim a little or not at allCan non-swimmers snorkel in Komodo? Yes, with a life jacket and the crew's decision on when you go in. Three rungs, from shallow reef to Manta Point.
How to share the water with a manta, and what the crew does at Manta PointManta ray snorkelling etiquette at Komodo: you go to the manta, never after it. What you do, what the guide and crew decide, and what if none comes.
What three days cost in 2027: six cabins, two cards and one whole boatKomodo liveaboard price 2027: the whole boat on three days from IDR 125,000,000 (≈ USD 7,669), seats from IDR 8,750,000 (≈ USD 537). Read the card by season, cabin and boat.
Underwater frames without a tank: GoPro, phone case and three shots worth takingA GoPro is enough for underwater frames without a tank: reef, a manta if the sea sends one, and the boat from a paddleboard. Three shots, the camera bag.
A question that is not here
Message us on WhatsApp and the reply comes in plain words. Short is fine. The guides are written from the route, the rate cards and the national park rules. No guide is a medical or a safety certification, and none replaces what the crew tells you on the day.
We advise arriving in Labuan Bajo one day before sailing, and destinations change with weather, currents and National Park or port decisions. Both lines sit under every guide, since they are the two things a guest forgets.
A question we cannot answer from the sources is marked as such in the answer, and we ask the boat before we reply. That is slower than a guess, and it is the only way the answers stay worth reading.
FAQ
Who writes these guides?
The booking team writes them from the route, the rate cards and the national park rules. No guide is signed by a diving instructor, a doctor or a lifeguard, and none claims a certification. Where a source is silent, the guide says so.
How are the guides kept up to date?
The guides follow the rate cards in force, and the price guide carries the date of the card it reads, 24 October 2026. When a card changes, the page changes with it. The other three guides change when the route or the park rules change.
Can I ask for a topic?
Yes. Send the question on WhatsApp, and we answer it directly. A question that several guests ask becomes a guide, or a section of one. Tell us whether you swim, how many are in your party and which month you plan to sail.
Check availability — Raffles Cruise
Raffles Cruise is booked through PT Komodo Explorer Indonesia. We arrange the pickup, take the payment and keep your booking in order. The boat sails with its own crew of 8.