Is Komodo Island closed? What closed, what did not, and how to check

By See Komodo Dragons Editorial Desk

Is Komodo Island closed? No closure appears in the latest official statements: on 19 August 2026 the tourism ministry said sailing to the park had reopened after an earthquake. On 30 September the park office's acting head said the 2026 annual quota was booked and added daily places, so check SiOra or the park office for your date.

Is Komodo Island closed right now?

Each line below carries its date, whether it covers Komodo Island or the wider national park. Read them as a snapshot, last checked in November 2026.

• August 2026, tourism ministry: the ministry's release named Loh Liang on Komodo and Loh Buaya on Rinca among the park sites running normally.
• 19 August 2026, tourism ministry: Marina Labuan Bajo was operating normally and sailing to the park had reopened. Kelimutu and other Flores sites were closed.
• September 2026, Komodo Resort, a dive operator: the park has no published closed season.
• 2025 report, IUCN World Heritage Outlook: Indonesia reported new visitor regulations including ticketing and seasonal closures. The Outlook gives no dates, so these lines cannot be turned into a calendar.

A closed park and a full park are also two different problems. On 30 September 2026 the acting head of the park office said all 365,000 places for the year had gone, with 500 or more added each day from September to December. GoBajo, a Labuan Bajo travel site, reports the same pattern. Whether space remains on your date is a question for the SiOra portal or the park office. Komodo Resort also says tickets can no longer be bought at the gate and must be booked in advance through SiOra, so an open island can still be closed to you on a given day. Our page on the Komodo National Park visitor limit covers the quota itself.

What closures were announced and dropped?

The Komodo Island closure most people half remember dates from 2019. Per the BBC, Komodo Island was announced to close for a year from January 2020, and the plan was then reversed in favour of a membership scheme. Reports from that period describe a closure that did not go ahead in the form first announced. The stated reason, the BBC reported, was to stop tourism from interfering in dragon mating and hatching. National Geographic tells it slightly differently, saying tourists offering food and disturbing mating led the government to consider a temporary closure. Old articles still circulate, so check the date on anything you read.

Fee plans have followed a similar path. In August 2022 a steep ticket hike for Komodo and Padar led 700 tourism workers to strike, according to the BBC. Komodo Resort says the fee plan was later scrapped. That is an operator's statement. Neither event was reported as a formal closure, although a strike can obviously disrupt a trip.

What actually stopped visits?

The table separates events by what they did. Only some of these stopped travel, and the sailing stop rests on one operator's account.

The Rinca works gave rise to a nickname you may see in search results. The IUCN World Heritage Outlook records concerns about a reported "Jurassic Park" mass tourism development on Rinca, and the BBC reported a visitor centre and jetty with completion scheduled for June 2021. The nickname comes from that dispute. It does not describe any status of the island, and the same ministry release lists Loh Buaya as a running site in 2026.

The sailing stop from late December 2025 rests on an operator's account. The pattern it describes is worth taking seriously even so. On that account the park did not close the island, but tourist boats lost their approval to sail. Komodo Resort rates late December to February as the highest-risk stretch for such suspensions, and our guide to the best time to see Komodo dragons sets that against rain and the dragon's breeding year.

What did the 2026 earthquake change?

On the ministry's account, sites on Flores closed while sailing to the park resumed within days. The tourism ministry reported an M7.7 earthquake near Mbay-Nagekeo on 15 August 2026. By 19 August it said Marina Labuan Bajo was running normally and sailing to the park had reopened, while Kelimutu and other Flores sites were closed. It also told travellers to check official sources and the Labuan Bajo Flores authority's hotline before departure, with aftershocks continuing.

The same release contains a figure that needs a flag. The ministry reported more than 2,000 visits a day to Padar, Loh Liang, Loh Buaya and Gili Lawa on 17 August 2026. That is above the 1,000 a day cap in the forestry ministry's rule, and the release does not explain the difference. It may be that the two ministries count differently, but neither says so. We report the mismatch and leave it open.

All of this was written within days of the event and describes conditions in August. An August release is not evidence about your month of travel, or about any trail or jetty. Look for a newer statement before you commit.

How do you check before you go?

Use this order, and note the date on everything you read.

1. Park authority. The official park site lists its own contact channels. Ask whether your site is open on your dates.
2. Tourism ministry and the Labuan Bajo Flores authority. Use the hotline the ministry pointed to in August 2026 for anything linked to the earthquake and aftershocks.
3. SiOra. Komodo Resort says tickets must be booked through this portal, and GoBajo says the tour operator usually does it. Ask there whether space remains on your date.
4. Whoever carries you. On Komodo Resort's account, port authorities suspended approvals in late 2025, so a sailing can stop even with the park open. Ask your operator, in writing, what happens to your payment if sailing is suspended.
5. A plan for the gap. Leave spare days around a boat trip if your dates fall in the high-risk months. Our page on how to get to Komodo Island explains the route.

One more limit applies on the day itself. The park's visitor protocol prohibits trekking outside the timed entry in force or off the set routes, so an open site does not mean every trail is yours to choose.

What else do people ask about closures?

Is Komodo National Park open year-round for dragon sightings?

Komodo Resort said in September 2026 that no closed season is published, while sailing can still be suspended in rough months. IUCN notes seasonal closures as a reported measure without dates. Sightings are not guaranteed in any month.

Are park closures possible during Komodo dragon season?

Possible, yes, though we know of no dated calendar. The 2019 plan was justified by mating and hatching and then dropped, and IUCN's Outlook mentions seasonal closures as a regulation Indonesia reported. Check with the park close to your dates.

Can park officials close a trail because of dragons?

The published protocol does not spell that out. On the walk, the park's visitor protocol prohibits ignoring instructions from park officers or the guide on duty, and it prohibits trekking off set routes.

Is Rinca open?

The tourism ministry named Loh Buaya on Rinca among sites running normally in August 2026. That is the latest dated line on this page, so confirm it with the park authority before you rely on it.

Which sources support this page?

• Tourism ministry release, August 2026
• Komodo Resort: is Komodo Island closed
• IUCN World Heritage Outlook 2025
• RRI: park office adjusts quota distribution, September 2026
• GoBajo: Komodo National Park
• SiOra portal
• BBC: Komodo Island closure plan, 2019
• National Geographic: Komodo dragon
• BBC: ticket hike and strike, August 2022
• Komodo Resort: park entrance fees
• BBC News, October 2020
• Indonesian forestry ministry: visitor quota release
• Komodo National Park authority: official site
• Komodo National Park: visitor protocol

How do I reach the desk?

The desk is not an official source of park status, so treat any answer from it as a pointer to check. You can reach it on WhatsApp at +62 811-3823-875 or by writing to the desk. It does not guarantee a sailing or a ticket, and only a written offer binds. Enquiries can become paid bookings, so we have a commercial interest.