Labuan Bajo tide times

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived.

Model-derived from a global ocean grid. Useful indication; expect about ±45 minutes on average vs. a local harmonic gauge, individual stations vary widely. See /methodology for per-region detail. Not for navigation.

Conditions as of 06:00 local time. Refreshes daily.

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived. · Not for navigation.

The angler tradition for major/minor fishing windows: major ≈3-hour windows around moon transit and opposition; minor ≈2-hour windows around moonrise and moonset. Times are Asia/Makassar local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Fri 08 May (range 1.2m). Next neap on Tue 12 May.

Spring tides cluster around new and full moons (biggest swings). Neap tides land on quarter moons (smallest swings). See the spring tide and neap tide glossary entries for the why.

Labuan Bajo is the western gateway to Komodo National Park, perched on the tip of Flores island above a harbour scattered with limestone islands, shallow reefs, and the masts of liveaboard dive boats. Twenty years ago it was a modest fishing town; today it is the fastest-growing tourism hub in eastern Indonesia, with a new international airport (upgraded to receive wide-body jets in 2021), a redesigned waterfront, and an accommodation range that runs from basic guesthouses to resort liveaboards at $400 per night. The town faces northwest across the park; the islands of Rinca, Komodo, and Padar are visible on the horizon from the hilltop sunset viewpoints above the harbour. The tidal regime is semidiurnal, spring range approximately 2.5 m above Chart Datum. The harbour itself is sheltered by the ring of small limestone islands — collectively known as the Labuan Bajo island cluster — and the tidal current in the inner harbour is manageable. The channels between the islands and between the park islands further out are a different matter. The channel between Flores and Rinca Island carries tidal currents up to 4 knots at springs; the main park channels around Komodo Island, the Linta Strait, and the Molo Strait see 4–8 knots at peak springs. These currents make Komodo a world-class drift diving destination: the walls and pinnacles around the park are swept by clear, nutrient-rich water that supports manta rays, reef sharks, giant trevally schools, and the highest fish biomass in Southeast Asia. Dive operators in Labuan Bajo plan every dive site selection around the tidal current state. The day-trip and liveaboard briefing always includes the current prediction: which sites are running on which phase, and what the current strength will be at the scheduled dive time. Cannibal Rock (south Rinca) and Crystal Rock (north Komodo) are best approached on a specific current phase each day — operators have site-specific current charts that go beyond the generic high-low tide prediction. The komodo dragon sites — Rinca Island (closer to Labuan Bajo, 2 hours by day-trip boat) and Komodo Island (3–4 hours) — are visited by day trips and liveaboards. The animal encounters at the ranger stations are independent of tidal state; the landing beaches on Rinca and Komodo are accessible at any tidal stage, though on the very lowest spring lows the boat approach to the Komodo Island ranger station beach (Loh Liang) requires careful navigation in the shallows. Pink Beach (Pantai Merah) on Komodo Island's east coast is the most photographed beach in the park; it is reachable by day trip from Labuan Bajo in 3 hours and combines a snorkel stop on the reef with the beach visit. The pink colour of the sand — from Foraminifera (Marginopora vertebralis) fragments mixed into the silica sand — is most vivid under overcast light, which softens the direct-sun bleaching that can wash out the colour in midday conditions. At low spring water, the beach widens to 50–60 m and the reef flat in the bay is accessible for snorkelling at 0.5–1.0 m depth. At high spring, the beach narrows to 20–25 m and the reef flat has 2.0–2.5 m of water — clearer, more comfortable depth for snorkellers. The Padar Island viewpoint is 45 minutes by boat from Labuan Bajo. The hike from the landing beach to the ridge viewpoint takes 30–45 minutes on a stepped path; the landing beach at Padar is accessible at all tidal stages. The view from the ridge shows three bays below, each a different colour depending on sediment and depth. The best photography window is the 40-minute bracket around sunrise, which requires leaving Labuan Bajo by 04:00. Fishers in the Labuan Bajo harbour area work the reef and the shallow channel margins; the early morning pre-dawn departure of the local fishing fleet (03:00–04:30) is a harbour scene that coincides with the start of the dive-boat preparation day. Tide predictions on this page are from Open-Meteo Marine, a gridded global ocean model, accuracy ±45 min / ±0.2–0.3 m. BIG (Badan Informasi Geospasial) publishes the authoritative Indonesian tide tables and current charts used by park operators.