BPOLBF Data Show Sea Traffic Rose as Komodo Airport Arrivals Fell

Labuan Bajo — Passenger movements in Labuan Bajo moved in opposite directions in January and February 2025, according to a BPOLBF public-information report. Sea embarkations rose 48.18% month on month to 21,077 in February, while Komodo Airport arrivals fell to 24,449 from 30,848 in January.

The report, titled Data Kedatangan Penumpang Data Pengunjung, is a BPOLBF document for 2025 and attributes the sea figures to the Harbourmaster and Port Authority (KSOP) Labuan Bajo and the airport figures to the Komodo Airport technical unit. The same BPOLBF material says sea disembarkations increased to 25,424 in February from 14,224 in January.

At the airport, BPOLBF’s data show total departures also declined, to 26,222 in February from 33,497 in January. International arrivals were broadly steady at 1,440 in January and 1,446 in February, while domestic arrivals dropped from 29,408 to 23,003.

The airport breakdown indicates that the decline was driven mainly by domestic traffic. International departures rose from 1,320 to 1,566, while domestic departures fell from 32,177 to 24,656.

BPOLBF’s report also compares January and February 2025 with the same months in 2024 for airport arrivals. It records a 19.59% year-on-year rise in January and a 6.97% decline in February.

The figures measure transport activity rather than confirmed tourist counts. The report uses mixed labels for passenger and visitor categories and does not explain whether the totals refer to unique people, trips, tickets or other counting methods.

Sea and air move in different directions

BPOLBF’s sea data show 14,224 passengers in January for both embarkations and disembarkations, rising in February to 21,077 embarkations and 25,424 disembarkations. The February increase in sea departures and arrivals suggests stronger maritime traffic during that month, according to the report.

On the air side, total arrivals fell by 6,399 month on month and total departures fell by 7,275. The data therefore point to a softer February at Komodo Airport even as sea traffic increased.

Because the sea and air figures come from different transport systems, they should not be combined into one tourism total without a shared methodology. BPOLBF presents them as separate indicators of movement into and out of Labuan Bajo.

What the report shows

• Sea embarkations: 14,224 in January and 21,077 in February.
• Sea disembarkations: 14,224 in January and 25,424 in February.
• Komodo Airport arrivals: 30,848 in January and 24,449 in February.
• Komodo Airport departures: 33,497 in January and 26,222 in February.

BPOLBF’s charted explanation links the February sea rise to higher travel activity during the month, but it does not establish an external cause. The report presents the data as a monthly snapshot rather than a full-year trend.

Sources

• BPOLBF, Data Kedatangan Penumpang Data Pengunjung
• BPOLBF, PDF Laporan Data Kunjungan Labuan Bajo 2019 - 2025