KLM Neptune 138: 40 m, 260 GT, seven cabins

She is registered as KLM Neptune 138: a two-masted Buginese schooner phinisi of ulin (ironwood) and teak, built in Bulukumba, South Sulawesi, and finished in 2022. She flies the Indonesian flag.

She measures 40 m in length, 8 m across the beam and 4 m in depth of hull. Gross tonnage is 260, a measure of enclosed volume rather than weight, so it tells you how much covered and open space the hull holds. The register board on deck carries the same figure.

She makes 6 to 10 knots and carries 5 t of fuel and 10 t of fresh water.

For anyone comparing boats, two ratios are worth having. The hull is five times as long as it is wide, 40 m to 8 m, and 7 cabins share it, each with a balcony and bathroom of its own.

Seven cabins at two guests each make 14. That figure sits on the base price, and every whole-boat quote we send starts from it.

Extra beds lift the overnight total. Mansard I, Mansard II and the Junior Suite, the three cabins on the upper level, each take an extra bed for one or two guests, which lets a single upper cabin sleep four. The four Deluxe studios on the main level have no room for one. Fill every extra bed and the overnight maximum reaches 18, with guests 15 to 18 paying the extra-person rate. A party larger than 18 overnight needs a second boat.

The day charter follows different arithmetic, carrying up to thirty guests between Labuan Bajo and the stops; since nobody stays the night, cabins and beds set no limit.

The numbers that matter are guests: 14 on the base plan, 18 at most overnight, or 30 on a day charter.

Start with power and water. Two W Marine 8D16 main engines move the boat, and two Mitsubishi engines of 120 PS each turn a 30 kVA generator, which between them supply the electricity on board. Two water makers each produce 9 m³ of fresh water a day, with a 10 t tank as the reserve.

For navigation the sheet lists Garmin, a Furuno GPS, a magnetic compass and a VHF radio, plus CCTV.

Signal is what most guests ask about first. We promise no connection at sea, so expect to be offline on the water, let your office know before you sail, and do not plan a video call. Your phone works normally in Labuan Bajo before you board.

The cabins occupy two levels, and four spaces are listed for everyone to share. Each one is somewhere to sit or eat; none is sold as an activity.

• Cabin levels: four Deluxe studios on the main level; Mansard I, Mansard II and the Junior Suite on the upper level.
• Indoor lounge: sofas, wide glass windows, air conditioning.
• Indoor dining room: a long timber table, with windows onto the sea.
• Outdoor dining table: a long timber table on the open deck.
• Foredeck: sunbeds and deck seating at the bow.

Seen from the water upwards, the cabins fill two levels, the lounge and dining room are enclosed, and the open deck holds the outdoor table, with the foredeck forward at the bow.

Three meals are served each day, plus coffee and a snack in the afternoon. On a calm evening dinner goes on the long outdoor table; in rain or the midday heat, the indoor dining room takes over.