Padar Island: The Walk Up to Three Bays

A short, steep climb leads to Padar's ridge and its view over three bays of white, dark and pink sand. How to time it, what to bring and how to walk it gently.

The boat goes quiet before dawn. A small tender carries you to a wooden jetty, and the first steps rise into a dark hillside. By the time the sky turns pale, you are high enough to see three curved bays at once, each with its own color of sand. This is the view from Padar's ridge, and the walk to it is short, steep and worth planning.

An island of grass and light

Padar lies between Komodo and Rinca inside Komodo National Park and is the third-largest island in the park. There is no village here, and nothing is sold on the trail itself, which shapes how you prepare.

Most of the island is open grassland. A field study published by Indonesian conservation researchers described roughly 70 percent of Padar as savanna, with trees limited to valleys, beach edges and mangroves. Indonesia's official tourism site notes how the hills change with the seasons: green in the rainy months, dry and sand-colored in the dry season. The same ridge can feel like two different places depending on when you come.

From the ridge, three bays curve away on different sides of the island. Their beaches are white, a dark gray close to black, and a soft pink. The pink comes from tiny red fragments of coral and the shells of microscopic sea creatures mixed into pale sand. You usually cannot walk down to all three as part of the hike, so many boat trips pair Padar with a separate beach stop.

Choosing your hour

Light and heat decide when to climb. Sunrise is the popular choice: the air is cooler, the light is soft, and color comes into the bays as the sun clears the hills. The cost is an early start and a climb by flashlight.

Sunset brings warmer tones, but you come down in fading light, which asks for more care on the steeper sections. Midday is the hour to avoid. The slope is exposed, shade is scarce, and the high sun flattens the view. Indonesia's tourism site also advises skipping noon if you mind the sun on the trail.

Sleeping aboard a boat anchored near the island makes a sunrise climb far easier than leaving Labuan Bajo in the dark. If you are on a day trip, ask your operator what time you will actually reach the jetty.

What the trail is like

Larger boats usually anchor offshore and bring guests in by a smaller boat, while speedboats often tie up at the wooden jetty where the trail begins. From there the path climbs the ridge. Most of it is now a built stairway, neat wooden steps lower down and rougher, rocky steps higher up, with dust and loose gravel in places. It is not technical, but it is steep in places and there is very little shade.

Plan on roughly half an hour to an hour to reach the main viewpoints, depending on your fitness and how often you stop to look back. The route passes a series of numbered posts on the way to the summit, and the panorama most people photograph is taken partway up, so you do not need the highest point to see the three bays. For a picture with a sense of scale, let one person stand small on the ridge in the foreground.

Take the descent slowly. Loose gravel on a steep step is easier to slip on going down than coming up. Some walkers like a hiking pole for the way back.

What to wear and bring

• Shoes with grip: sneakers, trail shoes or sturdy hiking sandals. Leave the flip-flops on the boat.
• Water, more than you think you need. Nothing is sold on the trail, and the slope is hot and exposed.
• A hat, sunscreen and a light shirt that covers your shoulders.
• A headlamp or flashlight for a pre-dawn start.
• A small, light bag with a few first-aid basics such as adhesive bandages.
• Your park ticket, booked ahead through the park's online system. Fees change, so confirm the current figures with your operator or the park authority.
• A little cash for small purchases. Local vendors sometimes sell coconuts and souvenirs near the jetty.

Walking lightly in a protected park

Padar is part of a national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its rules exist to keep the place intact.

Stay on the marked path. Leaving the stairway is prohibited for safety, and a single path keeps the wear in one place. Rangers are stationed at posts along the route; follow their directions, including when you are looking for a photo angle.

The grassland is home to Timor deer, wild boar and long-tailed macaques, and the forestry ministry reports a small, monitored population of Komodo dragons on the island. Watch all wildlife from a distance and never feed it. Carry out everything you bring in, bottles and wrappers included.

Visits are now managed more closely. At the time of writing, a daily visitor cap introduced in April 2026 covers the park's main sites, Padar among them, and tickets are booked through the park authority's online system, SiOra. Indonesia's forestry ministry says the aim is to keep overtourism from degrading habitat, and officials have said the quota will be reviewed periodically. If the day's quota is full, a visit cannot be forced, so book early in busy months and let your operator confirm the permit. Fees and rules change; check the latest before you travel.

At the top, stay a few minutes after the sun clears the hills. The light moves across the bays, the wind runs through the grass, and the boats below look very small.