What to do in Alor Island
There are no modern buildings, cafes, malls, Starbucks, or other amenities you usually find at popular tourist destinations. This is the real Indonesia that some travellers want to experience.
What to do in Alor Island?
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One of the iconic structures at Alor Island in East Nusa Tenggara. |
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Takpala Village is one of the highlights of Alor Island. |
1. Visit Takpala Village
Takpala Village is a traditional Alornese tribe that lives on a hill. It is the only tourist-friendly attraction on the island that you can visit with a tour. You need a tour guide, as no one in the village speaks English; hence, translation is required.
To visit Takpala Village, it is about 30 30-minute drive from Kalabahi, and arrangements need to be made by the tour company. Here, you will witness the traditional lifestyle of the Abui tribe of Alor Island.
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The beautiful clear waters on Alor Island are ideal for scuba diving. |
2. Scuba Diving at Alor Island
Most of you will be visiting Alor for scuba diving as it is the only attraction here. Scuba diving at Alor Island will allow you to see one of Indonesia’s best dive spots.
The underwater landscape is rich with marine life and comes with crystal-clear visibility. For macro and leisure divers, you will be in for a treat when you dive here at Alor.
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A photo was taken with a GoPro during one of my dives at Alor Island. |
Diving at Alor can be done on land or with a live onboard. However, for my trip, we used a live onboard boat for our daily diving but stayed at the only hotel on the island, the Pulo Alor Hotel.
Those who are interested can find out about the dive sites in Alor Island. I highly recommend this place for those who want to experience cold water diving with crystal-clear visibility.
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The local Bubu Fishermen of Alor Island have huge bamboo fish traps. |
3. See the Alor ‘Bubu’ Fishermen
One uniqueness of the Alor fishermen is that they can dive deep underwater with only their handmade wooden goggles. These are called the Bubu Fishermen of Alor, where Bubu means bamboo fish traps in the local Indonesian language. These massive Bubu fish traps range from one to two meters in length.
The diving fishermen bring them down underwater and place them there to catch whatever goes in. The fish caught are consumed by the locals and not commercially sold. Seeing the Bubu Fishermen of Alor in action is one of the highlights when you go scuba diving around here. You may come across them at one of Alor’s dive sites if you are lucky.
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A seabird with its catch was spotted at Alor Island. |
4. Birdwatching in Alor Island
This is for those who are into birdwatching, as Alor is home to several island, sea, and land birds. As an amateur bird watcher, I must have spotted at least 20 to 30 species of birds during my trip here.
There are probably no bird guides available on Alor Island; therefore, you need to engage one from Labuan Bajo or Kupang. Bird watching in Alor is relatively new, as no proper guidebooks exist on this. I use the general Indonesian bird’s guidebook.
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The Cantik Homestay at Alor Island. |
5. Experience an Alornese Homestay
For the culture lover, you can book a homestay on the island in Kalabahi, and there are a few around. This will allow you to get to know the local Alornese people and their cultures and eat local food.
Most homestays in Alor cater to tourists and local travellers who speak decent English, which is good news for travellers. The rooms are basic and decent, while the local home-cooked meals are worth the experience. I had the pleasure of visiting a homestay and having dinner twice there.
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Locals at Pasar Kadelang Market in Alor Island. |
6. Explore the Local Alor Market
This wet and dry market in Kalabahi, Pasar Kadelang (Kadelang Market), is pretty raw and original. Therefore, if you are the type that enjoys a proper market, give this a miss. At the local ‘Pasar Kalabahi‘ or Kalabahi market, you will see how daily life revolves among the Alornese people.
The market sells a variety of local homegrown produce, dry goods, fish and meats, and some local Alor snacks and cakes. These are the ones to try, especially the local Alor popcorn. People are friendly and smile when you smile at them here.
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Mike, Nick, and Olly try betel nut chewing at the Pasar Kadelang market in Alor Island. |
7. Try Chewing Betel Nut in Alor Island
One thing on your must-try list at Pasar Kadelang is the Betel Nut or Areca Nut, a widespread habit among the locals. The Betel Nut is chewed with the leaf and is one of the unique, strange foods or customs in this part of the world.
The taste can be exhilarating and out of this world, but it is an experience of a lifetime. If you are a food lover, this is hands down a must-try. You need to engage a local guide to take you around here to do this.
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Inside the Museum Seribu Moko in Kalabahi. Photo by https://backpackerjakarta.com. |
8. Visit the Museum 1000 Moko
I wanted to see this place, but time did not permit me to; hence, I will still list it here. Located in Kalabahi, this Alor Island museum showcases the diverse culture of the Alor people and their old traditions.
The museum is also called Museum Seribu Moko or 1000 Moko Museum and is named after the Moko jar, which represents an essential Alornese cultural object.
You will find traditional looms, woven fabrics, pottery, and fishing equipment among the items on display. The museum is informative, and you can easily spend an hour here. It is open Monday through Friday only, from 8 AM to 2 PM and until 3 PM on Fridays.
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Sarah from Girls That Scuba spots some dolphins. |
9. Go Dolphin Watching
The fact that the waters around here are untouched guarantees you can spot dolphins easily. On my trip in September, I was an entire school of dolphins, numbering into the hundreds, which included a pilot whale.
The dive operators can arrange this, as they know the best places to spot dolphins on Alor Island. You should know that chartering the boat is best done in groups, as there are no dolphin tours here.
10. Learn an Alor Language
With so many different tribes found on Alor Island, the languages are said to be of Papuan or non-Austronesian descent. However, from one village to another, the locals communicate in their mother tongue rather than in Bahasa Indonesia, which is widely spoken throughout Indonesia.
For the linguistic traveller, you could probably learn a language from the Abui, Adang, Hamap, Kabola, Kafoa, Woisika, Kelo, and Kui tribes here. Unfortunately, I tried to learn a few words, but it was pretty hard, even for a Malaysian, so I can imagine this for others.
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One of the amazing beaches at Alor Island. Photo by https://www.pesonaindo.com. |
11. Explore the Alor Beaches
Quite a few beautiful beaches are found all over Alor Island, some of which are in pristine condition. This means it is generally untouched and visited only by the locals. You can only imagine what you will discover on some of the beautiful beaches at Alor Island.
Ling’al Beach – Found southwest of Alor Island and is known as probably the most beautiful beach on the island. Travelling from Kalabahi overland will take around five hours, while boat charters take around three to four hours. The closest village to the beach is called Halerman Village.
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A beautiful photo of Ling’al Beach by https://travel.tempo.co. |
Dola Koya Koya Beach – This beautiful spot is found in the eastern part of Alor Island and is known for its scenic views. People come here to take beautiful, postcard-perfect photos. Imagine no crowds or people in your photos.
Batu Putih Beach—Known in English as White Stone Beach, it is north of Alor Island. This beach gets its name from the white corals that dominate it. The turquoise waters and white beach make it a perfect place to relax.
Sakura Kalabahi Beach – Found northwest of Alor Island, Sakura Kalabahi Beach is famous among the locals. No actual Japanese Sakura trees are found here, but you can find the local cherry blossom species grown along the main road of the beach here. Sakura Kalabahi beach is quite popular among the locals, especially during the sunset hour, where you can get some beautiful photos of the Alor sunset here.
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The Sakura Kalabahi Beach in Alor Island. Photo from https://aroundguides.com. |
What else to do in Alor Island?
Generally, the above sums it up. Alor is considered a very new destination to many and is still in the infancy of tourism. Much needs to be done to cater for mass tourism, but I hope it stays as it is.
Indonesia already has many places that cater to mass tourism, like Bali, Lombok, Gili Trawangan and now Komodo Island. However, for those wanting to see the natural side of Indonesia, then Alor Island is the place to visit.
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The Alor Island Airport is known as Bandar Udara Mali Alor. |
How to get to Alor Island?
To save time, the best way to get to Alor Island is by flight. Only one flight lands at the Alor Island airport via Kupang in Flores. Direct flights from Bali or Jakarta are non-existent, so you must connect from the larger cities. Even in Labuan Bajo or Komodo, you must connect via Kupang.
Flights that codeshare and connect to Alor Island are Garuda Airlines, Lion Air, Sriwijaya Air, TransNusa Airlines and Wings Abadi Airlines. You can also check the AirAsia MOVE app to see what airlines fly to Alor Island and possibly even book hotels via the app, which was once known as AirAsia Superapp.
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I took the Wings Abadi Airline plane from Kupang to Alor Island. |
The other way to get here is via ferry; a few companies operate the Alor Island service. Ferries take a long time and are pretty tricky to time.
You can take the Pelni Ferry from Kupang to Kalabahi, Alor Island. Another good choice is to check Indonesia Ferry for the timings and schedules, and you can also book your ferry tickets there.
A car ferry runs daily from Kupang to Kalabahi, a 12-hour journey that is also an exciting way to get here.
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Me and the women of the Takpala Village. |
And for a seamless experience here, you will need an adequately registered tour company and a local guide. If you book an Alor Island dive package, the dive operator will provide all of your arrangements. Only your flights or ferry service will be done by you.
Additional tours are optional; therefore, if you want to explore Alor Island, you need to inform your operator. This guide on what to do in Alor Island is based on my trip there in September 2017.
It was a campaign with the Ministry of Tourism Indonesia to promote scuba diving and adventure in this part of Indonesia. If you have any questions, feel free to ask below.
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