/Pink Beach (Long Beach)-1-v4.webp)
/Sebayur Island (Turtle Point)-1-v4.webp)
Zara Ilsley
Dublin, IE
Solitude Among the Dragons
As a solo traveller, I’m wary of group dynamics on liveaboards, but the Helena Phinisi struck a balance—communal spaces that never felt crowded, and crew who treated solitude as valid, not awkward. My days unfolded quietly: reading on deck at Batu Bolong, then slipping into the water where reef sharks glide like shadows beneath. The real surprise was Rinca Island. Less photographed than Komodo, but equally potent. I spent two hours with a ranger tracking a large male through dry forest—the silence, the scale, humbling. Back on board, the lounge offered curated books on maritime history, not glossy brochures. The galley served miso-glazed eggplant that lingered in memory. One note: the charging ports in the cabin were oddly placed behind the bed—minor, but fiddly with packing. Still, the overall attention to detail—linen quality, water temperature on demand, even the cut of the bathrobes—spoke of quiet confidence. This wasn’t about impressing. It was about belonging.