Every list of underrated Indonesian islands tells you what is beautiful. Almost none tell you what it costs to stand there. The difference between two islands on the same list is usually a domestic flight, a few hours of boat, and a permit nobody mentioned. This is that comparison: the same islands, ranked by what they ask of your time and your budget rather than by how good they look.
If you are still deciding where to go at all, the full beyond-Bali guide covers all ten regions properly. This page is narrower on purpose: it answers what each one costs you.
Nusa Penida
- Getting there from Bali
- Fast boat from Sanur, under an hour
- Boat time on top
- Minimal
- Permits
- None
- A trip with us, per person
- 3D2N from IDR 3,500,000
Sumbawa
- Getting there from Bali
- Flight or ferry via Lombok
- Boat time on top
- Short hops
- Permits
- None
- A trip with us, per person
- Whale sharks in Saleh Bay, from IDR 800,000
Komodo and Flores
- Getting there from Bali
- 1.5 hour flight to Labuan Bajo
- Boat time on top
- One to three days aboard
- Permits
- Park fees per person per day, SiOra booking required
- A trip with us, per person
- Day trip from IDR 1,450,000, liveaboard from IDR 6,000,000
Banggai Islands
- Getting there from Bali
- Flight via Makassar to Luwuk
- Boat time on top
- One to three hours
- Permits
- None
- A trip with us, per person
- 3D2N island hopping from IDR 4,500,000
Raja Ampat
- Getting there from Bali
- Flights via Jakarta or Makassar to Sorong, usually overnight
- Boat time on top
- Ferry to Waisai plus a boat transfer
- Permits
- Tourism fee IDR 1,000,000 foreign, IDR 300,000 Indonesian, under-12s free (Perbup 34/2025)
- A trip with us, per person
- Built to order
Sumba
- Getting there from Bali
- Flight, then a car
- Boat time on top
- Little
- Permits
- None
- A trip with us, per person
- Built to order
| Island or region | Getting there from Bali | Boat time on top | Permits | A trip with us, per person |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nusa Penida | Fast boat from Sanur, under an hour | Minimal | None | 3D2N from IDR 3,500,000 |
| Sumbawa | Flight or ferry via Lombok | Short hops | None | Whale sharks in Saleh Bay, from IDR 800,000 |
| Komodo and Flores | 1.5 hour flight to Labuan Bajo | One to three days aboard | Park fees per person per day, SiOra booking required | Day trip from IDR 1,450,000, liveaboard from IDR 6,000,000 |
| Banggai Islands | Flight via Makassar to Luwuk | One to three hours | None | 3D2N island hopping from IDR 4,500,000 |
| Raja Ampat | Flights via Jakarta or Makassar to Sorong, usually overnight | Ferry to Waisai plus a boat transfer | Tourism fee IDR 1,000,000 foreign, IDR 300,000 Indonesian, under-12s free (Perbup 34/2025) | Built to order |
| Sumba | Flight, then a car | Little | None | Built to order |
Travel times above start in Bali because most trips do. If you are flying in from Singapore, Kuala Lumpur or China, our arrival guides work the routes out from those cities instead, and several of these islands are quicker to reach than the table suggests.
Two notes on fees. Komodo's park fees are charged per person per day and every operator bundles them differently, so treat any single figure with suspicion and check our Komodo park fees guide for the components. Raja Ampat's fee changed in 2026 and older guides still describe a separate regency ticket on top of it, so we confirm the current figure at booking rather than print one that might be wrong.
Sulawesi: the cheapest way to get Raja Ampat scenery
Sulawesi is the cheapest way to get this kind of scenery. The Banggai Islands cost less than a Komodo liveaboard, three days two nights from IDR 4,500,000 (about $252) against IDR 6,000,000, and see a fraction of the boats. One flight via Makassar to Luwuk, then an hour or three on the water, and there are no park permits to buy. Labengki and Sombori in the southeast are the same trade: karst islands and lagoons that get compared to Raja Ampat, reached from Kendari for a fraction of the money. A longer version, six days through Luwuk and Gorontalo with whale sharks, lakes and caves, is IDR 7,500,000 (about $420).
Komodo and Flores: the most expensive thing here, and usually worth it
Komodo is the one place on this list where the boat is the trip, and it prices accordingly. A day trip runs from IDR 1,450,000 (about $81) and a three day two night liveaboard from IDR 6,000,000 (about $336) per person, with park fees on top of both. Flores behind it is cheap by comparison and barely visited: the overland road east to the Kelimutu crater lakes costs little more than a driver and a few nights. One thing to plan around: since 1 April 2026 the park has capped entry at 1,000 visitors a day and sells permits only through the official SiOra system, so walk-ins are gone and popular dates go early. That is a scheduling cost as much as a money one. If you would rather not share the boat, the whole-boat private charter is IDR 45,000,000 (about $2,520) for the vessel and up to five guests rather than per person, which works out per head once there are enough of you.
Labuan Bajo, Flores
What the Komodo column looks like
Three days two nights sleeping aboard around the park, from Labuan Bajo. Wildlife, viewpoints and snorkelling in one trip.
Southeast Sulawesi
Three days off the Bali track
Drowned karst, enclosed lagoons and a wooden boat instead of a shuttle bus. Kendari pick-up, two nights in a simple homestay, no air conditioning and far fewer people.
Sumbawa: the least effort for the least money
Just east of Lombok, not to be confused with Sumba further south-east, and skipped by almost everyone heading to Komodo. Our Saleh Bay whale shark snorkel starts at IDR 800,000 (about $45) per person, which makes it the cheapest genuinely memorable thing in this table. Add the waterfalls of Moyo Island and the surf breaks along the south coast and it is a week that costs less than three days in Komodo.
Raja Ampat: the biggest jump in both axes
Flights via Jakarta or Makassar to Sorong, usually overnight, then a ferry to Waisai and a boat to wherever you are sleeping. Budget a day and a half each way. You also pay the tourism fee set by Raja Ampat Regent Regulation 34/2025: IDR 1,000,000 (about $56) for foreign visitors and IDR 300,000 (about $17) for Indonesians, with under-12s free, paid online or at the counters at Sorong airport, Waisai port and Marina Sorong (IDN Times, January 2026). It is the most expensive and most involved trip on this page, and the reef is why people do it anyway. Our guide to what Raja Ampat really costs has the detail, and we build these to order. Keep the payment proof, physical or digital, with you for the whole stay.
Sumba, and the ones further out
Sumba is a flight and then a car: megalithic villages, empty surf beaches and the Pasola festival, with almost no packaged tourism. We build these to order too. Further out again, Belitung has granite boulder beaches a short flight from Jakarta, and Karimunjawa is a quieter marine park off Java. For the genuinely remote end of the country, our hidden gems guide goes further than this page does.
Which Indonesian islands are cheaper than Bali?
Lombok, next door, is the easiest swap: a fast boat or a short flight from Bali, and our cheaper Lombok and Gili route shows how the days fit. Sumbawa, one island further, costs little once you are there, with whale sharks from IDR 800,000.
Flores, the Banggai Islands and Sumba are cheap on the ground, but the domestic flight is most of the bill. Komodo and Raja Ampat cost more than Bali, not less, once boats and permits are added.
Which one fits the trip you have
With a long weekend and no appetite for logistics, Nusa Penida or Sumbawa. With a week and a real budget, Komodo, where the boat is the trip. With a week and a preference for empty water over famous water, the Banggai Islands, which cost less than a Komodo liveaboard and see a fraction of the boats. They are also the only natural home of the endemic Banggai cardinalfish, which is a better reason to go than the saving. With ten days and the money to match, Raja Ampat, where the journey is a day and a half each way and the reef is worth it.
If what you actually want is a daily number rather than a per-island one, our Indonesia trip cost guide breaks down what a day costs by travel style, and two weeks under a thousand dollars shows how far a tight budget goes.
Written by
Asik Travel Editorial
Local travel editors
We write from the islands we sell, with first-hand notes from our guides and operators.
Frequently asked questions
Where should I go in Indonesia beyond Bali?
Choose by what you want rather than by which island sounds least discovered. For empty reefs and snorkeling on a budget, head to the Banggai Islands or Labengki and Sombori in Sulawesi; for dragons and dramatic islands, Komodo and Flores; for surf and whale sharks, Sumbawa; and for the dive trip of a lifetime, save up for Raja Ampat.
Is it worth leaving Bali if I only have a week?
With only a week, Bali may still make the most sense. Leaving it does not automatically mean a better trip, it means a different one: you trade convenience for quieter water, more local logistics and bigger distances. With ten days or more, the case for adding a second island gets much stronger.
What is a cheaper alternative to Raja Ampat in Indonesia?
The Banggai Islands off the east coast of Sulawesi deliver the turquoise theatrics of Raja Ampat at a fraction of the cost and crowds. Labengki and Sombori in the southeast are also frequently compared with Raja Ampat for their karst islands and blue lagoons. Sulawesi alone could fill a trip once you add the Togean Islands, the funeral culture of Tana Toraja and the diving of Bunaken and Wakatobi.
Is Flores worth visiting, or just Komodo?
Flores is a destination in its own right, not just the gateway to the national park. It is a long, mountainous spine of villages, the tri-coloured crater lakes of Kelimutu and traditional hamlets like Wae Rebo. Plenty of people fly in for Komodo and leave without realising Flores was the bigger prize.
Where can you swim with whale sharks in Indonesia?
Saleh Bay on Sumbawa is one of the better-known places in the country to swim with whale sharks. Sumbawa, just east of Lombok, is the big, dry island most travellers skip, and it also has serious surf breaks with far fewer crowds than Bali plus the waterfalls of Moyo Island. It takes more effort than Lombok, so it suits travellers with a clear reason to go.