Culture News

Komodo National Park caps visitors at 1,000 a day: dragons protected, fishers worried

Indonesia has limited Komodo National Park to 1,000 visitors a day, about 365,000 a year, from April 1, 2026, state news agency Antara reported on April 15. The cap covers Padar, Rinca and Komodo islands and 23 surrounding dive sites. The park recorded 429,509 visitors in 2025, about 68% of them international, above its estimated carrying capacity of 366,108 a year.

Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said research shows “long-term overtourism will lead to habitat degradation.” His deputy, Rohmat Marzuki, said the ministry plans Komodo dragon breeding programmes outside the park as an alternative attraction.

Local outlet Floresa reported that the quota follows a trial that began in January, and that the park head, Hendrikus Rani Siga, called the policy “non-negotiable”. It also described early problems: the SiOra booking system failed to enforce the cap at least once, payments caused trouble, and some tourists were turned away at Padar. Siga told tour operators not to force entry when the quota is full. A community group questioned why investors may build resorts on Padar while visitors are limited; Siga rejected any link.

“Now the rules protect the sea but leave our nets empty.” — a fisher, via Asia Media Centre

New Zealand's Asia Media Centre visited Labuan Bajo and found crowds eased on some days but not others, plastic still washing onto beaches, and a dried-seafood vendor losing buyers as fewer tourists came back from the islands.

How each outlet framed it

• Antara — the government's conservation case and the visitor numbers.
• Floresa — enforcement glitches and the resort controversy.
• Asia Media Centre — who pays for conservation: fishers, guides and traders.

Where the numbers differ: Antara gives 429,509 park visitors in 2025; Floresa says 432,217, and Asia Media Centre roughly 432,000. Antara cites a 2022 study setting the maximum at 378,870 a year, while Floresa bases the cap on a 2018 study.