This guide explains the main ferry routes in Indonesia for motorcycle travellers with recent experiences and updates.
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Guide to Using Ferries in Indonesia With a Motorcycle
By Patrick Kohan
Round the world motorcycle traveller
When you look at a map of Indonesia, the thousands of islands quickly make it look impractical to travel there as an overlander. We want to ride our motorcycles – not get stuck for weeks waiting for them at airports or in shipping yards.
But don’t be put off, because it’s surprisingly easy to get ferries from one island to another. Most car ferry connections are operated by a state owned company (ASDP) running dozens of ports and hundreds of ships. So it’s in the country’s best interest to keep its nation connected with easy transport.
When preparing for my ride through Indonesia, I found the ASDP website outdated and never got any replies to my WhatsApp messages, but they are responsive to emails. So I tried my luck and managed to take all the ferries I needed to for an incredible trip throughout Indonesia.
So, we’ve put this guide together to help you take ferries in Indonesia with your own motorcycle by explaining my experiences on the main crossings.
Head’s up on ferry conditions
Just before we get into it. I want to add that these ferries are about from getting from A to B. They’re not about luxury ferry liners. You’re going to have to deal with cockroaches, trash, filth, basic bathrooms (at best) and smokers everywhere. You’ll find bunk beds where there are multiple basic mattresses right next to each other without gaps or privacy.
And except for the ferries between Java, Bali, and Lombok, I was always the only foreigner. This might be a great opportunity for some travelers to get to know the locals, but straining for others as most people will just stare the whole time and burst out in laughter instead of responding to your questions since a lot of people are quite shy in the country.
But at the end of the day, nobody means any harm, and so using these ferries is a cheap alternative to getting around and a whole other adventure in itself.
Booking tickets
The ASDP email address is: cs@asdp.id. Unfortunately, their website is useless. You may find some additional info on routes on ferizy.com too.
I often emailed ASDP, but more often I would just show up at the port hoping for a bit of luck. Sometimes schedules were off because of the weather, but I was generally lucky. And the short-high frequent routes run multiple times a day, like Bali-Java.
On that run, for example, the time between two departures is less than I would wait at the port if I was going there based on a schedule. I prefer having to wait an hour over leaving the hotel just in time to reach the ferry not knowing how the traffic is and how long it takes to get the ticket.
Only once when arriving in Balikpapan did I get the ticket before checking into my hotel. Every other time I just bought the ticket a few hours before departure, so don’t stress it.
Ferry connection times
The connection frequencies differ massively from just once or twice a week to multiple times per hour on the short but important connection between Java and Bali.
Of course, it also depends on the weather conditions. While I was in Sulawesi, there were heavy storms around Flores, my next destination. When I was already on the ferry, I found out that the previous ferry was stuck for five days in Jampea, which is an intermediate stop at a small village on a small island. So, research the timings but don’t always expect them to run when they say they will.
Motorcycle travel info for Indonesia
If you’re planning a ride in Indonesia, we recommend checking out the guides on Mad or Nomad and specifically the Motorcycle Travel Guide: Indonesia guide as it explains all the paperwork processes needed for entering and exiting the country, the best routes and lots of additional info.
Detailed Indonesia shipping guides
As well as the info on my shipping experiences listed below in this article, there are detailed shipping guides on Indonesia on the Mad or Nomad website. You’ll find the routes and links to those guide here:
How to Get the Ferry from Borneo to Java
Here’s how to use the RoRo ferry to ship your motorcycle between Pontianak, Borneo and Semarang, Java (both Indonesia).
READ MORE: The Borneo to Java Ferry
How to Ship a Motorcycle from Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) to Indonesia (Sumatra)
As this shipping route has only just reopened, you’ll find new info in this article with updated contact details.
READ MORE: Shipping from Malaysia to Sumatra
How to Ship a Motorcycle from Kuala Lumpur to Borneo (Malaysia)
Not in Indonesia, but useful if you’re heading to Indonesia Borneo. Here’s how to ship a motorcycle from Kuala Lumpur (West Malaysia) to Sarawak, Borneo (East Malaysia).
READ MORE: Shipping from Malaysia to Borneo
How to Ship a Motorcycle from Indonesia to Australia
Not a ferry service, but useful for those shipping in or out of Indonesia. Here’s everything you need to know about shipping your motorcycle between Indonesia and Australia.
READ MORE: Shipping from Bali to Australia
Indonesia ferry information
Here’s a table of info summarising the below ferries into routes, sailing durations, prices and the location of ticket offices.
| From | To | Time | Price | Tickets |
| Balikpapan (Kalimantan) | Pare-Pare (Sulawesi) | 16:00:00 | Rp1.055.000 | Map |
| Bira (Sulawesi) | Labuan Bajo (Flores) | 32:30:00 | Rp255.000 | Map |
| Ende (Flores) | Kupang (Timur) | 19:30:00 | Rp570.000 | Map |
| Kupang (Timur) | Aimere (Flores) | 20:00:00 | Rp582.000 | Map |
| Labuan Bajo (Flores) | Sape (Sumbawa) | 06:30:00 | Rp495.000 | Map |
| Poto Tano (Sumbawa) | Kayangan (Lombok) | 02:00:00 | Rp138.000 | Map |
| Lembar (Lombok) | Padangbai (Bali) | 04:00:00 | Rp350.000 | Map |
| Gilimanuk (Bali) | Ketapang (Java) | 00:30:00 | Rp60.000 | |
| Merak (Java) | Bakauheni (Sumatra) | 02:00:00 | Rp200.000 | Map |
Indonesia ferry map
Here’s a map highlighting the ferry routes listed in the table above and explained in further detail below.
Kalimantan to Sulawesi ferry
The first ferry I took was the only one operated by DLU, their mobile app seems quite good and regular meals are included in the price. Before boarding I received a red wristband and a description of included meals.
Food
Lunch was served at noon, dinner at 5pm. It was good, but don’t expect a lot. There’s also a food stand and two cafes: a small one for smokers and a bigger one with information and a second floor with couches and charging stations. Outside of the kitchen there’s hot water for instant noodles.
Sleeping
There are two dorms, one almost empty, the other one pretty full with a lot of families with small children. Cockroaches can be found in both, but I never saw a big one.
Toilets
The toilets are basic, and there was no soap, so I recommend bringing hand sanitizer.
Comfort
What surprised me was the playground including an area with gym devices. A stationary bicycle might come in handy for when one gets the zoomies on long voyages.
There’s another room with comfortable airline seats, but the room is closed when there’s no show on the stage. So unfortunately, not a room for relaxing. In the afternoon and evening there was a band including two singers.
Extras
The fact that I took the ferry during Ramadan seemed to have no influence. It was even an advantage when I had to check out of the hotel very early and they were already serving breakfast.
Sulawesi to Flores ferry
This ferry is a small one and boarding is a hot mess. It seems to be the only way Jampea is supplied with goods. The boarding process took around six hours with dozens of trucks driving onto the ferry, turning around, offloading and driving back out. At the end every square inch was occupied by goods needed mostly in Jampea. Then they squeeze in a few cars, trucks, and motorcycles. That’s why we only left at 1:30am in the morning after a five-hour delay.
Fortunately, right next to the ferry there’s a building with wooden ships for tourists to check out. The construction manager is a Swiss guy who I had a chat with while he showed me around one of his constructions. It’s impressive how they’re still building ships like this in the “Curse of the Caribbean”.
Sleeping
There were a lot of passengers, the mattresses were mostly taken off the bunk beds and scattered around everywhere. Every square inch was taken by somebody trying to get some sleep. I needed to be extremely careful not to step onto people while walking around.
Food
Meals are not included, but you can buy instant noodles for Rp15.000 a cup.
Comfort
The ferry’s passenger area is not really separated from the outside, nor the car deck. When it’s raining, only plastic panels in front of the windows keep the worst out, but wind will bring some water in.
The whole passenger area is littered in trash if it’s not thrown out into the ocean. Smokers smoke wherever they want to. The only room kept clean seems to be the mosque.
There’s an air-conditioned room with soft seats, but it’s hard to get a seat there. A separate ticket is not needed for it. Tickets got collected an hour before each arrival.
Process
As the only white guy I was invited to the bridge when we left Bira. Impressive to see the process of leaving the port at night.
When we arrived at Jampea basically the whole village was waiting on the jetty. Of course, I got a lot of attention when I left the ship to walk around. After I got off the ramp and walked 50m, I turned around and saw that the ramp was pulled up again and the ship moved away. I ran back scared and asked whether they’re leaving without me. Everyone laughed their asses off because the ship was just turning 90 degrees to open a small door on the side to unload the cargo. That process took five and a half hours (they said it would take four), so there’s plenty of time to walk around, have lunch and buy some stuff at the local convenience store.
After unloading all the stuff for the island, we sailed off, this time even slower at 15km/h. Fortunately most people left in Jampea, so I finally got my own bunk bed, although still without a mattress.
After all, this ferry ride was an adventure on it’s own and the longest I was on one ship in Indonesia.
Ende to Kupang ferry
The ship has two dorms in rooms with doors, it’s bigger than the one from Bira to Labuan Bajo. Basic food was sold. The ferry was almost empty, maybe five cars, ten passengers. We could go on the sundeck which is normally just for the crew. The VIP room was open to everyone and there were five mattresses per person. We could go to our vehicles at any time. Unfortunately, no tap water for washing hands.
All in all, one of the best experiences so far since it was so empty.
The ferry is supposed to leave Ende on Sundays and Kupang on Wednesdays. However, when I attempted to board it on Wednesday, April 17th, it was moved to Saturday, 20th. When I asked for the schedule per email, I got told to check the story of this Instagram account.
Kupang to Aimere ferry
When I wanted to return from Kupang to go to the West, I was looking at several options. The ferry to Ende was rescheduled to a later date and therefore too late for my plans. The first alternative I learned about was Larantuka, but the ride from Larantuka to Ende would have taken the two days I would have missed by waiting for the ferry to Ende.
So, I looked into going to Sumba in order to reach Sumbawa from there since I’ve already been to Flores before. While discussing this with the ferry company I learned that this ferry has an intermediate stop in Aimere, which is on the way from Ende to Labuan Bajo.
Like before, they sold me a ticket for the motorcycle category 2, although 3 would have been correct. This time the guy checking the ticket told me it’s not correct, so I went back to the ticket guy and he gave me one of category 3, without any extra charge (would have been just 8.000 IDR anyways).
The ship is the exact same model as the one used from Ende to Kupang, but worse. They tore all the beds out of the non-VIP dorm and put chairs in. They also put chairs in all the passages without windows, so those passages are now very narrow and if you have to sit there you’re close to the elements.
It was very full, they sold basic food and I could escape and get into the VIP room for 25.000 IDR extra, which was a little cold, but nobody was smoking. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a bed, so I had to share the couch with other people, leaving me to sit while sleeping. We could go to our vehicles at any time. Interestingly this time we got a security briefing at the beginning, like on an airplane.
Overall, this was one of the worst experiences since I couldn’t sleep lying down and I was either in the cold VIP room or the smoking room outside.
Labuan Bajo to Sape ferry
The official price is 461.100 IDR for the big bike category 3. But as soon as I approached the port entry, I was caught by an agent. He quoted me 595.000 IDR. I immediately went to the small booth from ASDP and asked whether I could buy the ticket there. The guy inside said no, so I showed the agent the official price listed right next to where they’re sitting.
He lowered it to 495.000 IDR immediately, just another hint about how untrustworthy they operate and how made up the prices are. He then went to the small booth and got the ticket from there. I don’t know whether the guy inside was lying to me or whether the agent ordered the ticket online and just got it printed out there.
The ship’s name is KMP Cakalang, it’s the third distinct model of ASDP I got to use. This one seems to be the smallest, when you go up there one main room without any walls. In the middle is the food counter with the usually stuff, behind are the beds and in front are the chairs. I paid 50.000 IDR to enter the VIP room, this one has seats instead of beds, but also some mattresses on piles in the front.
Sumbawa to Sumatra via Lombok, Bali, and Java ferry
The islands are close to each other, so the passages are quite short and there’s nothing new to mention about them anymore. It’s where there are also other foreigners (especially between Bali and Lombok). There are also no official ASDP salespoints anymore, so you rely on agents that add a fee on top of the official price.
When I wanted to leave Java I didn’t see too many and got my ticket from some officers loitering at the port entry. Their fee was over 70% on top, which feels like a scam. Other ports might have a lot of guys waving flags at everyone passing by, but that leads to competition and lower fees.
About the author
Patrick Kohan
I have never travelled that much in my life, so one day I decided to catch up with that. I rode all over Europe, from Portugal to Greece and everything in between, always in mind that I wanted to go East, since Asia is the perfect blend of beginner friendly and adventurous for overlanding.
I have always wanted to go to Iran, so I took a ferry with my motorcycle in Istanbul and that was the first time that I ever left Europe. From there I continued to Iran, through Central Asia to Russia, Mongolia, and through China. By the end of 2023 I had reached Southeast Asia where I am still today, planning my return to Europe in 2025.
It’s been 45 countries so far, from the western most being Portugal all the way to Timur-Leste, its former colony being the eastern most country.
Read more on motorcycle travel in Indonesia and Southeast Asia
Thanks for checking out this guide on ferry crossings in Indonesia with a motorcycle. We hope you enjoyed it! Here’s a few more articles on motorcycle travel in Indonesia and Southeast Asia that we recommend you read next.
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Are you planning a motorcycle trip in Indonesia? Do you have any questions, tips or suggestions? Let us know in the comments below.
hello
i will be in north sumatra tomorrow. do you know if there is a ferry option from sumatra to borneo.
i am not on a motorbike, although i have one, 500xls.
Dumenicu from Corsica