Gandiva
Gandiva Phinisi
Twelve months of light and sea, read for one phinisi
Updated 3 November 2026
The best light to sail Komodo changes by month: Padar sunrise falls between 05:31 and 06:18, Kalong sunset between 17:49 and 18:27. The flattest water arrives in April, May and June, then again in October and November. Gandiva sails open trips from March; January and February 2027 are maintenance.
The calendar read as light and sea state
The year splits in two. Dry weather holds from April through November, and December to March is the wet stretch. That is the first thing to know, and the table below adds four columns to it: sea, visibility, mantas and crowds.
A photographer reads the sea before the sky. A flat sea gives you the reflection of the sails at first light. A wind-ruffled one gives you texture and spray instead, and a rougher crossing between stops. April, May and June are the flat, clear months. October and November bring the calm back after the windy middle of the year.
Treat all of this as a general pattern for Komodo and not a forecast for your week; that caveat is stated here once and not repeated. On the day, it is the captain who reads the water and picks the first stop.
| Month | Sea | Visibility | Mantas | Crowds | Rain | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | rough | low | peak | low | wet | Wet season and the roughest sea of the year, with low visibility and few boats. Mantas are at their best, but Gandiva is docked for annual maintenance in January 2027: no trips. |
| February | rough | low | peak | low | wet | Wet and choppy still, with the poorest visibility of the year. Mantas stay strong, but Gandiva is docked for annual maintenance in February 2027: no trips. |
| March | moderate | medium | good | low | wet | The last wet month. Showers ease, the sea is moderate and the water clears. Open trips begin on 1 March 2027. |
| April | calm | high | fair | medium | dry | The dry season begins. A flat sea, clear water and a medium number of boats; mantas are fewer than at the peak. |
| May | calm | high | fair | medium | dry | Dry, calm and clear: a flat sea for treks and reef stops, and a medium crowd. |
| June | calm | high | fair | medium | dry | Dry and clear on calm water. From June the south-east wind builds a little more each week. |
| July | rough | medium | peak | high | dry | A dry month with more wind and the crowds at their height. Visibility is medium, mantas peak, and the captain reorders stops around the wind. |
| August | rough | medium | peak | high | dry | The windiest dry month and the busiest stops. Mantas are common, and the sea can be rough. |
| September | moderate | high | peak | medium | dry | Less wind than in August, the water clears again and mantas stay at their peak. The crowd is medium. |
| October | calm | high | fair | medium | dry | Hot days over calm, clear water, with anchorages emptier than in high summer. Mantas are fewer. |
| November | calm | high | fair | low | dry | Dry season, last month: calm water, clear visibility and quiet stops with few boats. |
| December | moderate | medium | peak | medium | wet | Rain comes back with a moderate sea and middling visibility. Mantas return, and the weeks around Christmas fill the anchorages. |
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Sunrise on Padar across twelve months
First light is the earliest frame of the trip, and it moves by only a few minutes across the year. In March the sun rises over Padar at 06:06. In July it is 06:18. Over twelve months the range is 05:31 to 06:18, and the table gives every month.
On the three-day route the Padar climb is the second morning, and the ridge is walked in the dark before the light arrives. The practical meaning is simple: the earlier the sunrise in your month, the earlier the tea and the head torch. We confirm the wake-up time in writing once the captain has set the sequence of stops.
Light check. Wear shoes with a grip and a layer you can take off on the way up. Carry the camera in one hand, the torch in the other, and nothing else.
| 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.
Sunset over Kalong across twelve months
The evening frame is Kalong, where the flying foxes leave their island at dusk. Kalong sees the sun drop at 17:57 in July, or at 18:01 in November. The other ten months sit in the table. The yearly range runs from 17:49 to 18:27.
Be on deck twenty minutes before the time in the table. The sky colours before the sun touches the horizon, and the bats begin to leave in the light that follows, not at the minute of sunset. If the sky is clouded over, the captain's choice of anchorage still holds, and you have the sails in the dusk instead of the sun.
We cannot promise a sunset, only the best place to stand when it comes. The sky decides the rest.
| Month | Sunset | Bats fly from about |
|---|---|---|
| January | 18:27 | 18:42 |
| February | 18:26 | 18:41 |
| March | 18:15 | 18:30 |
| April | 17:58 | 18:13 |
| May | 17:49 | 18:04 |
| June | 17:50 | 18:05 |
| July | 17:57 | 18:12 |
| August | 18:00 | 18:15 |
| September | 17:58 | 18:13 |
| October | 17:55 | 18:10 |
| November | 18:01 | 18:16 |
| December | 18:14 | 18:29 |
Computed for the location; accurate to a few minutes. The crew shifts wake-up with the actual swell.
The choppy months, named without softening
July and August are dry, and they are the windiest months: the south-east wind raises the sea, the anchorages are the busiest of the year, and visibility is medium. Mantas are at their peak in the same weeks. You trade a flat sea for a better chance of the animals, and the captain reorders the stops around the wind.
December to February is the other rough stretch. The wet season brings showers, a moderate to rough sea and lower visibility, and January and February are the roughest of all. Mantas peak in those weeks and the anchorages are empty. For this boat the point is academic for two of those months, because she is docked.
When a calm crossing counts for more than a manta, aim for the spring months of April to June, or for the quiet end of the dry season. If you choose July or August, bring a layer for the spray and an open mind about how the day unfolds.
January and February: the boat is docked for maintenance
Gandiva is in annual maintenance in January and February 2027. No trips run then: no open trips, and no private charters. The same pattern held in January 2026, so it is a yearly routine and not a surprise.
Open trips are on sale from 1 March to 31 December 2027, on Mondays and Fridays. A private charter can start on any date in that stretch when the boat is free.
If your anniversary falls in January or February, we do not offer a sailing on the date. We can suggest the nearest sailing in March, or the last weeks of December, and you decide. A late-December date has its own reasons to choose it, because the wet season has only just begun and the sea is moderate, though the anchorages fill with holiday travellers.
Securing the date before another party takes it
Friday, 6 November 2026 is the next open-trip sailing, out of 101 dates on sale. Ask for Arjuna first and the date second: it alone has the balcony and the bathtub, and it is the first cabin to be taken.
Peak months fill first, and a date is secured by the deposit of 50 percent, not by a message. Until the deposit lands, another party can take the cabin. Once it has, our written confirmation names the cabin and the date.
Write to us with the month you have in mind and how many of you there are. Our reply holds a cabin plan, a price and the Monday or Friday closest to your wishes.
FAQ
Is it safe to sail after a weather warning, and what happens if sailing is closed?
The captain decides each day by wind, tide and port rules, and weather is never guaranteed. If port rules close sailing, we tell you in writing and agree the next step with you under the booking terms. If Gandiva cannot sail at all, you get a replacement boat or a refund, transferred within 2 days (2×24 hours) once the conditions are met.
Is July or August a good time to sail, or is the sea too rough?
July and August are dry yet windy: the sea runs rougher, the anchorages fill, and mantas peak. The captain reorders the stops around the wind. For flatter water at the cost of fewer mantas, look at April to June or October and November.
Check availability — Gandiva
Gandiva sails with its own crew; Komodo Explorer is the booking partner and answers for your reservation.