Neptune
Neptune Phinisi
Photography at sunrise and dusk
Updated 4 November 2026
A Komodo photography trip on a private phinisi is planned around two hours: Padar at sunrise, 06:18 in July, and Kalong at dusk. Neptune's seven balcony cabins give each photographer a private door to the morning. Four guests on the 3D2N whole boat pay IDR 45,000,000 (≈ USD 2,761) each.
Light by level: balcony at dawn, upper deck at dusk
Light sets the programme. Across the year the sun clears Padar between 05:31 and 06:18, and it sets over Kalong between 17:49 and 18:27. Those two windows are the whole job. Everything else on the boat serves them: a cabin you leave before the others wake, a deck you can reach with a bag, a lunch that does not run over.
Every one of the 7 cabins has a private balcony, so a photographer steps out at first light without crossing a shared room. The boat is 40 m long and 8 m across. It has a foredeck at the bow and a long table on the open deck, so a party of four or six can spread cases and lenses without stacking them.
The day charter is no use for this. It returns to Labuan Bajo before sunset, and the sunrise sits in the night you are not aboard. Choose an overnight route.
Padar while the ridge is empty, Kalong while the colour turns
On the 3D2N route the first night is spent at anchor off Padar, so the ridge is a short move in the morning. The captain decides the anchorage with the weather, and we tell you if it changes. Plan to be at the top before the sun clears the horizon, with a head torch and shoes with grip in the bag.
The park sells entry in sessions and limits the day's visitors, so the slot is confirmed when we book the ticket in your name. A photographer who wants the first slot says so when booking, not on the pier.
Kalong is the evening. On day 2 the route reaches the island at sunset, when the flying foxes leave their mangroves. The table below gives sunrise at Padar for each month, and the sunset at Kalong follows it. In July sunset is 17:57; in November it is 18:01.
A longer voyage buys more mornings. On 4D3N the group sees Padar once and has two more sunrises at other anchorages, which is the practical case for the fourth day.
| Month | Sunrise | Leave the boat by | On the ridge by |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 05:54 | 04:49 | 05:34 |
| February | 06:05 | 05:00 | 05:45 |
| March | 06:06 | 05:01 | 05:46 |
| April | 06:04 | 04:59 | 05:44 |
| May | 06:07 | 05:02 | 05:47 |
| June | 06:14 | 05:09 | 05:54 |
| July | 06:18 | 05:13 | 05:58 |
| August | 06:12 | 05:07 | 05:52 |
| September | 05:56 | 04:51 | 05:36 |
| October | 05:39 | 04:34 | 05:19 |
| November | 05:31 | 04:26 | 05:11 |
| December | 05:38 | 04:33 | 05:18 |
Computed for the location; accurate to a few minutes. The crew shifts wake-up with the actual swell.
Equipment cases, charging and where they sit
Cases live in the cabins. The plan below shows the seven cabins by level; give the kit a Deluxe studio on the main deck and the people the upper level, or the reverse. A party of four sleeps in two cabins, and the other five stand free for kit and wet gear, since the whole boat is yours. Keep a dry bag for the snorkel stops and a second for the climb.
Two Mitsubishi generators of 30 kVA each supply the boat. Ask us about the outlets in your cabin, and bring a multi-plug and a power bank. Mains power is 230 V, and plugs are the two-round-pin type. Spare batteries and cards are the safer plan for the Padar morning.
Salt and humidity are the enemies. Rinse housings in fresh water after each snorkel, and keep silica gel in the case.
| Cabin | Rooms | Beds | Sleeps | with extra bed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mansard I | 1 | 1 double bed | 2 | 4 |
| Mansard II | 1 | 1 double bed | 2 | 4 |
| Junior Suite | 1 | 1 double bed | 2 | 4 |
| Deluxe (studio) | 4 | 1 double bed | 8 | 8 |
| Berths in total | 7 | 14 | 18 |
The extra beds in the three upper cabins could hold more people, but Neptune takes no more than 18 guests overnight.
Drone permit and film crew: priced separately, never assumed
Personal photographs inside the park are free. A drone is a different matter, and it is quoted, never assumed. It needs a park permit and a daily fee, and we arrange the permit through our own process and quote it before it is added.
A guide and photo and video documentation are not part of a private charter price. They are available on request, quoted separately. The shared 3D2N seat is different. The seat includes a guide and documentation, with drone, GoPro and DSLR named, never as an extra, and a Deluxe seat costs IDR 10,800,000 (≈ USD 663) per person.
Commercial filming has its own permit and its own fee. If your party is shooting for a client, tell us in the first message so the permit is on the quote and not discovered on the beach.
Prices for a photography party
A photography party is small. Four guests on the 3D2N whole boat share IDR 180,000,000 (≈ USD 11,043), so each pays IDR 45,000,000 (≈ USD 2,761). Six guests on the 4D3N voyage, with its extra sunrise, pay IDR 38,330,000 (≈ USD 2,352) each.
The sums are for the boat. The park package, drinks and tips sit beside them, and a guide and documentation are quoted when you ask for them. Because the boat is priced whole, the party adds a guest at no extra cost until the fourteenth.
Dates matter more than the price here. Tell us the month, and we reply with the sunrise and sunset times for it and the nights that put you off Padar at dawn.
| Group size | 1D | 2D1N | 3D2N | 4D3N | 5D4N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | IDR 55,000,000 | IDR 70,000,000 | IDR 90,000,000 | IDR 115,000,000 | IDR 140,000,000 |
| 4 | IDR 27,500,000 | IDR 35,000,000 | IDR 45,000,000 | IDR 57,500,000 | IDR 70,000,000 |
| 6 | IDR 18,330,000 | IDR 23,330,000 | IDR 30,000,000 | IDR 38,330,000 | IDR 46,670,000 |
| 8 | IDR 13,750,000 | IDR 17,500,000 | IDR 22,500,000 | IDR 28,750,000 | IDR 35,000,000 |
| 10 | IDR 11,000,000 | IDR 14,000,000 | IDR 18,000,000 | IDR 23,000,000 | IDR 28,000,000 |
| 12 | IDR 9,170,000 | IDR 11,670,000 | IDR 15,000,000 | IDR 19,170,000 | IDR 23,330,000 |
| 14 | IDR 7,860,000 | IDR 10,000,000 | IDR 12,860,000 | IDR 16,430,000 | IDR 20,000,000 |
| 16 | IDR 6,880,000 | — | IDR 12,000,000 | IDR 15,190,000 | IDR 18,440,000 |
| 18 | IDR 6,110,000 | — | IDR 11,330,000 | IDR 14,220,000 | IDR 17,220,000 |
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per person · Whole boat ÷ group size
FAQ
What time is sunrise at Padar in each month?
Across the year Padar sunrise falls between 05:31 and 06:18. In July it is 06:18; in November it is 05:31. The table on this page gives all twelve months, and we confirm the day's time when you book.
Which month gives the best light for photographs at Komodo?
No month guarantees a sky. The dry season runs April to November, with clear water from April to June and again from September to November. July and August are windier and busier. A wet-season sky is dramatic and the sea is rougher. Tell us what you shoot, and we suggest months.
Can you arrange a drone flight for us?
Only with a park permit and a daily fee, both quoted before they are added. We arrange the permit through our own process. A drone is not part of a private charter price. The shared sailing seat includes documentation as part of the fare.
Check availability — Neptune
Neptune sails with its own crew and captain; Komodo Explorer plans the voyage, takes your payment and answers every message before you board.