Misool in West Papua is one of the four major islands in the Raja Ampat Archipelago. This island is off the west coast of the main island of Papua and is directly adjacent to the Seram Sea, which is a traffic lane for many large sea creatures, including whales. Misool Island’s mainland consists of hills, dense forests, and mangrove swamps.
The island’s east and west sides are covered with limestone cliffs jutting into the sea. That’s not all. This 2,034-square-kilometre (km) island is home to ancient cultural sites. There are about 5,000-year-old petroglyphs on cave walls throughout the island. Do you want to visit Misool in West Papua without a travel agent?
Backpacking to Misool Island? Here’s How!
The cost of an open trip to Raja Ampat through a travel agent to explore Raja Ampat for 3 days and 2 nights usually starts at IDR 3,500,000 (excluding airplane/ship transport). That’s for a trip to Piaynemo usually the fare is more expensive. If you take an open trip to other Raja Ampat, such as Misool, the price will be higher.
A backpacker style will spend 3 days and 2 nights in Raja Ampat without a travel agent to get to Piaynemo. The cost that I spent for a 3-day 2, night trip to Raja Ampat was Rp. 2,560,000 (excluding airplane/Pelni transport).
That compares the trip cost to Raja Ampat with and without a travel agent. Compared to joining the tour, you can save 1 million rupiahs for the same time duration.
Misool in West Papua
Misool island is located in the southern part of Raja Ampat. Misool Island is also currently very popular because of its surreal tourist destinations. Some famous ones include Love Lake, Lenmakana stingless jellyfish lake, and the cluster of karst islands at the top of Harfat (similar to Wayag or Piaynemo).
Transportation to Misool Island
The entrance to the Misool in West Papua is through Sorong. Sorong is not the capital of West Papua Province, but the city is already crowded, and flights are also with large planes.
If you want low prices, be diligent in hunting promo plane tickets. Try to open airline websites regularly, hunt at online travel agents (OTA) such as Traveloka, tiketdotcom, and so on, or hunt at travel fairs.
In addition to planes, you can also use the Pelni ship transportation mode. You can use the Pelni ship from Ternate at the cost of Rp. 397,000 (Class 2A). Incidentally, at that time, I was also exploring North Maluku.
Sorong-Misool Route
Ferry Boat Fast boat to Misool does not depart every day. Sorong – Misool will depart on Monday, Wednesday (12.00 WIT), and Friday (13.00 WIT). On the opposite route, Misool – Sorong departs Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Departure hours vary depending on which pier you leave from in Misool. Fafanlap Pier at 07.30 WIT, Yelu Pier at 08.30 WIT, and Foley Pier at 09.50 WIT. The ticket price is IDR 250,000 and the journey time is 4 hours.
Choose a Community Owned Homestay
The choice of staying at a homestay managed by the local community is exceptionally qualified to save costs. This community-managed homestay is relatively cheap and affordable.
Tourists are advised to book a homestay for a few days to avoid expensive boat rentals. That way, you can enjoy a pick-up service from Misool in West Papua to the homestay.
Wrapping Up
That’s our guide for backpacker-style travel to Misool in West Papua without a travel agent. It turns out that the cost to Raja Ampat can be thrifty, and you can get there without a tour operator. Now, don’t you have any doubts about traveling to Misool Island?
