Komodo National Park Fees and Permits for 2026

Komodo National Park Fees and Permits for 2026, Explained in Plain Numbers

In 2026, a foreign visitor pays IDR 150,000 (about USD 9) on weekdays or IDR 250,000 (about USD 15) on weekends and holidays to enter Komodo National Park, plus a ranger trekking fee of IDR 200,000 per group of five. Divers pay roughly IDR 300,000 per day combining marine entry, diver surcharge, and harbour fee. Permits are booked through the SiOra system under a 1,000-visitor daily quota.

I have been running boats and arranging permits in and out of Labuan Bajo since 2017, and the question I field most often is some version of “wait, the price you quoted doesn’t include the park fees?” So let me put every 2026 number in one place, in the order you actually pay them, and clear up the surcharge confusion that costs travelers money and tempers at the harbour.

Komodo National Park Entrance Fees and Diving Permits for 2026

The park separates its charges into components rather than one flat ticket, which is why two travelers on the same boat can pay different totals. For 2026, here is the full foreigner schedule as enforced by the Balai Taman Nasional Komodo authority.

USD figures use a mid-2026 rate near IDR 16,200 to the dollar, so treat them as a guide rather than a quote. The park collects in rupiah, and the totals shift with the exchange rate the day you pay.

The Komodo daily fee for liveaboard divers in 2026

This is where the “IDR 300,000 per day” figure comes from, and it trips up almost everyone. A liveaboard diver does not pay one diving ticket. On a multi-day trip you are charged the marine entry, the diver surcharge of 25,000, and the harbour fee of 25,000 for each calendar day you are inside park waters. Stack those against a weekend entry and a single day lands close to 300,000 rupiah, roughly USD 18. A four-day liveaboard that crosses two weekend days and two weekdays therefore carries materially different totals per day, which is exactly why your invoice is itemized. If your dive schedule includes deep sites like Castle Rock or Crystal Rock at 25 to 30 meters, the fee is the same as a shallow reef day — the park charges for presence, not depth.

Komodo Ranger Fees and Dragon Trekking on Rinca in 2026

You cannot walk among the dragons alone. Every land trek on Komodo Island or Rinca Island is led by an armed ranger, and the IDR 200,000 ranger fee in 2026 covers a group of up to five people for one guided walk. Six people means two groups and two fees. Rinca’s Loh Buaya route is the one I send most first-timers to: the boardwalk loop runs 45 to 90 minutes depending on the trail you pick, dragon sightings around the ranger station are near-certain in the dry months of May through October, and the trek fee is identical to Komodo Island. Padar Island, which is the famous three-bay viewpoint and not a dragon habitat, carries the lower 150,000 group fee because there is no ranger-protection requirement — just a steep 30-minute climb best done before 7 a.m.

Do Komodo Prices Include Park Fees, or Is There a Fuel Surcharge?

Here is the honest industry answer most brochures bury. There are two common models. Budget open trips and many day tours quote a low headline price excluding park fees — you settle the 150,000 to 300,000 per day at the ranger post or harbour desk, in cash, and you also absorb any fuel surcharge if diesel prices spike that season. Premium private and liveaboard operators usually quote an all-inclusive rate where park fees, ranger fees, and fuel are already baked in, so the number you book is the number you pay.

When you compare quotes, the only fair comparison is total landed cost. A trip advertised at USD 90 “plus park fees and fuel” can finish higher than one at USD 140 all-in once you add four days of marine entry, diver surcharges, harbour fees, and a fuel adjustment. Always ask the operator one direct question: does this rate include all national park and ranger permits, and is there any separate fuel surcharge? Get the answer in writing.

• Excludes fees: lower headline price, you pay rangers and harbour in cash, fuel surcharge possible.
• All-inclusive: higher headline price, zero surprises at the dock, fuel locked in.
• Watch for: “park fees on arrival” tucked into fine print on otherwise cheap quotes.

We break this down line by line in our Komodo permit cost and pricing guide so you can sanity-check any operator’s math before you transfer a deposit.

The 2026 Visitor Quota and How to Secure Your Permit

The single biggest change for 2026 is the hard cap. From April 1, 2026, Komodo National Park enforces a strict daily quota of 1,000 visitors, and entry is managed entirely through pre-booking — you can no longer simply turn up at the gate and pay. Permits are issued via SiOra (Sistem Informasi Online Reservasi Wisata Alam), the park’s official online reservation system, and slots for July, August, and the Christmas-to-New-Year window sell out weeks ahead.

To secure a permit, your operator (or you) registers each traveler’s passport details, selected park date, and chosen activities into SiOra, pays the fees, and receives a dated e-permit tied to that day’s quota. Miss the date and the permit does not roll over. For peak-season liveaboards I lock permits 4 to 6 weeks out; for a quiet February weekday, a few days is usually fine. The widely circulated proposal for a IDR 3,750,000 annual conservation membership was officially cancelled and is not in effect for 2026 — if anyone quotes you that figure, they are working from outdated news. Our full booking walkthrough lives on the how to book Komodo permit page, and you can always message our desk to have us handle the SiOra registration for you.

2026 Regulations for Liveaboard Boats and Drone Photography

Two regulation areas catch travelers off guard, so plan for both before departure.

Liveaboard boat rules

Under the 2026 framework, every liveaboard operating inside the park must hold a valid operator permit, declare its passenger manifest into the booking system, and pay the per-person daily marine, harbour, and surcharge fees for each night spent in park waters. Anchoring is restricted to designated zones to protect coral, mooring buoys are mandatory at popular sites, and the harbour fee applies each day you remain inside the boundary. Reputable operators handle all of this invisibly; the regulation simply means a cheap “ghost” boat with no permit can be turned back, stranding your trip.

Drone photography regulations inside the park

Drones are allowed but tightly controlled. Flying a drone anywhere inside Komodo National Park in 2026 requires a paid permit of IDR 2,000,000 (about USD 123) per unit per day, declared in advance. Unpermitted flights are confiscated on sight, and rangers do check — Padar’s viewpoint and the Pink Beach areas are actively monitored. Drones are also prohibited near dragon habitats where rotor noise stresses wildlife. If aerial footage of Padar’s three bays is on your list, budget the permit, register it with your park date, and fly only in the cleared zones your ranger confirms.

What Is Included in a Komodo Price vs the Park Fees

Think of your total trip cost as two buckets. The operator price covers the boat, cabin, crew, fuel, food, dive equipment and guides, transfers, and the experience itself. The park fees are the government charges above — entry, conservation, ranger, surcharges, harbour, and any drone permit — which the park collects regardless of who you book with. A genuinely all-inclusive operator merges both buckets into one quote; a budget operator hands you the second bucket at the dock. Neither is wrong, but you deserve to know which one you are buying. For the full picture of how everything fits together, start at our Komodo permit homepage, and check the figures against the official structure rather than a screenshot from a 2024 blog.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much are Komodo National Park fees per day for a diver in 2026?

A foreign diver pays roughly IDR 300,000 per day inside the park in 2026 — combining the marine entry, a IDR 25,000 diver surcharge, and a IDR 25,000 harbour fee, with weekend entry rates pushing the total higher. On a multi-day liveaboard the charge repeats for each calendar day spent in park waters.

Do I need to book a Komodo permit in advance for 2026?

Yes. Since April 1, 2026, the park enforces a 1,000-visitor daily quota and all entries run through the SiOra online reservation system. Walk-up entry is no longer permitted, and peak dates like July, August, and late December sell out weeks ahead — register passport details and your park date early.

Is the drone permit really IDR 2,000,000 per day?

Yes. Flying a drone inside Komodo National Park in 2026 requires a IDR 2,000,000 (about USD 123) permit per unit per day, declared in advance. Unpermitted drones are confiscated, and flights near dragon habitats are banned. See more answers on our FAQ page.

Have Us Handle Your 2026 Permits and Quota Booking

Quotas tighten as peak season approaches, and the SiOra registration is fiddly if you have never done it. Send us your travel dates and we will confirm availability, lock your permits, and give you a single all-in figure with no surprise fees at the dock.

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