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Kanawa island, my favorite mini island in Indonesia

When people ask me questions like What is your favorite city? Your favorite beach? Or your favorite place on earth? I try to avoid answering because it is always hard to choose one particular city, beach or place on earth as my favorite. But if someone ask me about my favorite island I would answer without any hesitation…my favorite island is the tiny Kanawa island in Indonesia!

This tiny island is located next to the Indonesian island Flores in the Komodo national park. It is so tiny that we even swam around it!

Kanawa island is own by an Italian man who bought it some years ago and turn the island into Kanawa Resort. When we were there in 2014 there were bungalows, bale bale and tents to choose from but by looking at their website now it seems as there are only bungalows for rent.

That’s a real pity because I belive that sleeping in a bale bale made this island and our stay so special.

If there are bales available, ask for one by the beach otherwise you will risk having yours behind the toilets!

I was sceptical at first sleeping in a bale because I was afraid that it would be to hot, to cold or that we would get attacked by the mosquitos. But nothing of that ever occurred! We slept like two babies! There were always a nice breeze during the night and the bale came with a mosquito netting.

If you need some privacy from the curious eyes there are bamboo blinds you can slide down on all four sides.

Sleeping and waking up in a bale with the sea right next door is an unforgettable experience!

Going to the loo?

Unless you have a bungalow you will need to share the shower and the toilets. Don’t worry about that because it was completely clean and everything was made out of bamboo. Very cute!

Photo: Here

Photo: Here

Where to eat?

Well, you won’t have much choices because Kanawa island has only one restaurant that serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. The price was a little bit higher than on the mainland but totally ok. Out of the menu, there were pasta, pizza and Indonesian dishes to choose from.

Photo: Here

What to do?


Don’t you like underwater world? What a shame because what makes this tiny island so awesome are the corals full with sea life that comes in all sizes, shapes and colors! I was snorkeling all the time, all day long and non-stop because I was so obsess with my new-found hobby!

It was here at Kanawa island where I actually fell in love with snorkeling!

We swam with turtles everyday!

It was on Kanawa island where I aswell learnt to love underwater photography!

There is even a diving center on Kanawa island! We did three amazing dives with them. Especially two of them were spectacular!

Photo:Here

Our favorite was the Manta ray point. The current was very strong and there were times I hardly could advance. We saw about 9 sting rays 5 times bigger than me up close but unfortunately the photo doesn’t make any justice!

Our absolute favorite dive site was the Batu bolong. Here aswell, the current was very strong. In spite of having a hard time advancing I have never seen anything this beautiful in my entire life! You will cross the path with turtles, sharks, huge Napoleon wrasse…everything and anything at the same time coming right at you!

If you are not into snorkeling or diving, perhaps some bird watching?

I love the birds hanging outside our bale!

The kingfisher that chilled by the tree in front of our bale.

And also a big family of Zebra finches came by!

Otherwise there is also a hike up to the sunrise and sunset point with beautiful views of the surrounding and the island.

But doing nothing than to procrastinate on a paradise island as Kanawa island isn’t a crime…

If I remember correctly you will be chilling with not more than 50 guests at the time so you will not have to fight for the perfect spot on the beach.

 

Now it is your turn, what is your favorite tiny island?


P.S

Before I wrote this post about Kanawa island I had a look around for gathering some new information. It seems as the island has changed the management and the island is now in a completely mess! As I mention above there are no more tents and bale bale for rents. And the diving center doesn’t exist anymore on the island! Many have left a comment on the tripadvisor how they fell in love with Kanawa island some years ago and now when they have return to their paradise island, they got their heart-broken because Kanawa island has changed to the worse than the worse!

 

 

 

 

 

Family Earth Trek

57 Comments

  1. Abigail Sinsona Reply

    This island is spectacular - in every sense of the word. That second and third photo had me gasping in awe. This is the first time that I’ve heard about this island but it has sure won me over. I’d keep this in mind should I travel to Indonesia soon!

  2. Hi,
    I was there in May 2017, and the resort is far to be a resort as it is in ruin. However the tiny island is one of the best.

    I tried to get in touch with the owners to see what it is possible to do to improve the situation but no way as the local workers block this type of contacts.

    If anybody come to know the owners, pl let me know.

    Ricc

    • Ohh I am sad to hear that the situation on the Kanawa island hasnt got any better!😔 The Kanawa island itself is amazing just need a good person who care about it.

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