Just the very sound and idea of “Komodo Island” conjures up an air of mystique, intrigue and exoticness. Being constantly inundated by countless Instagram pictorial posts of the pretty pink sandy beaches and captivating aesthetic beauty of Komodo National Park triggered both my curiosity and wanderlust. I got envious and decided to set a personal intention that sprouted from a strong and sincere desire to go discover and explore the Komodo regions for myself. The universe must have heard me and answered my prayers, as I was lucky enough to be invited to have the golden opportunity to go on board the luxurious Kudanil Explorer; one of the world’s safest private charter dive expedition ships and set sail around the Flores Sea and the Lesser Sunda chain of islands that would advertently include the famous Komodo island as well. Just a short one hour domestic flight from the overly crowded tourist juggernaut of Bali, lies the small and relatively unknown fishing village town of Labuan Bajo, which is practically the only commercial available aviation pit stop and maritime gateway to all the islands surrounding the Komodo National Park. Rusty brown rugged hills, grassy savannas, mangrove swamps, and some of the world’s best coral reefs await all adventure seekers, physically fit hikers and passionate scuba divers alike. The entire Flores Sea and East Nusa Tenggara area are bursting with an abundance of land and marine biodiversity with unique plant, fish and animal species that are endemic only to the surrounding regions that are similar looking and akin to the Galapagos Islands. Thus, the entire region has earned its famed nickname of being the “Galapagos of Indonesia”. Komodo also has one of only seven pink beaches in the world. The sand appears pink when viewed from a distance, as it is a mixture of fine powdery white sand combined with crushed red foraminifera corals. While on this trip, I was fortunate and excited to have the chance to go on my first ever discovery scuba dive alongside dive masters with decades of experience. Diving underwater amongst the blooming coral gardens of the lush Flores Sea was akin to having a “Find Nemo” and a “Little Mermaid” oceanic fantasy dream come true. In the five open sea snorkelling and scuba dives that we did, we saw giant manta rays, Hawksbill sea turtles, reef sharks, sea urchins, eels, and a plethora of countless vividly coloured marine fish such as parrot fish, blue tang, butterfly fish, clown fish and much more swimming in and around large, ornamental and bountiful cabbage like coral beds. This Komodo island dive trip on-board the Kudanil Explorer with their professional dive team truly inspired me to eventually go get my own PADI open water scuba diving certification and license, which I immediately did once I got back home to Singapore. Other than the world class dive sites, one of the most compelling reasons to visit the region is of course for the rare opportunity to gawk at the endangered Komodo dragons; the world’s largest lizards basking in their natural environment and habitat. According to the latest government figures and statistics, around 1727 Komodo dragons live on Komodo Island itself. The entire Komodo National Park has been gazetted as a UNESCO world heritage site. The Indonesian government recently rescind their initial decision to close off the park to tourism for one year starting from January 2020 so that the Komodo dragons and vegetation can rehabilitate on the island without any human interference and potential threats from illegal poaching. The Indonesian environmental minister announced that the reason for this U-turn is because their scientific research suggests that tourists and visitors to the island no longer pose any threat and had no tangible negative impact on the Komodo dragon population. Starting from 2020, Komodo National Park will now be marketed as a premium tourist destination with a hefty price tag of US$1000 per person as an annual membership to enter. In spite of the hefty price tag, the Indonesian tourism board plans and expects to attract 50,000 visitors to the island on this new premium membership system.