Timber at the yard gate
Flores and the wider East Nusa Tenggara supply chain deliver dense tropical hardwoods without inter-island freight and the handling premium that comes with it.
Custom builds
Custom Phinisi Builder in Labuan Bajo
Two-masted wooden phinisi from 25 to 50 metres, built on our own Flores slipway and handed over on the water in the Komodo charter grounds.
Start Your Project- Hull lengths we build
- 25-50m
- Typical build programme
- 10-18mo
- Stages from contract to handover
- 5
- Generations of shipwrights
- 4
In short
A custom phinisi from our Labuan Bajo yard is a two-masted wooden schooner of 25 to 50 metres, built from Flores and eastern-Indonesian hardwoods over a 10 to 18 month programme and handed over in the Komodo charter grounds where it will work.
- Build budgets commonly fall between USD 650,000 and USD 4,000,000+, driven by length, timber class and fit-out.
- Every commission starts from your programme: cabin count, itinerary, class and flag rules, and how much of the rig stays working.
- Handover happens in the same waters the boat will cruise, with the yard within reach for the first seasons of service.
What a Custom Phinisi Build Involves
A custom phinisi is not a catalogue boat. Every commission starts from the owner programme: how many guest cabins, what itinerary the boat will run, which class and flag rules apply, and how much of the traditional rig should remain working rather than decorative.
Our shipwrights are Manggarai hands trained alongside Bugis and Konjo master builders. They lay the keel, shape the ribs and plank the hull in the traditional sequence, while marine engineering, wiring, plumbing and interior fit-out follow modern specifications.
Because the yard sits in Labuan Bajo itself, owners building for the Komodo National Park trade avoid the long delivery leg from Sulawesi yards. The boat is surveyed, trialled and handed over in the same waters it will cruise.
Programme
Build Stages and Timeline
A typical custom phinisi programme at our yard runs in five stages. Payments are staged against them, so you always know what has been reached before the next instalment falls due.
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01
Design and contract · 1-2 months
Naval-architecture drawings, general arrangement, timber specification and a staged payment schedule agreed in USD.
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02
Keel and framing · 2-4 months
Keel laying, stem and sternpost, and the full rib skeleton in ironwood or teak.
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03
Planking and decking · 3-5 months
Hull planking, caulking, deck structure and superstructure.
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04
Systems and fit-out · 3-5 months
Engine installation, tankage, electrical, plumbing, air-conditioning and interior joinery.
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05
Launch, trials and handover · 1-2 months
Launch ceremony, sea trials in the Flores Sea, survey, documentation and crew familiarisation.
Stage lengths overlap in practice and shift with the monsoon calendar. The dry season between April and November is the productive stretch on the slipway, so contract timing moves the finish date as much as hull length does.
Why here
Why Commission the Boat in Labuan Bajo
Three practical advantages define a Labuan Bajo build, and all three are about position rather than price alone.
Resident skilled labour
The town sits at the centre of the Komodo fleet, which keeps shipwrights, engineers and riggers working wooden boats here year-round rather than seasonally.
No delivery leg
A boat launched in Labuan Bajo enters service immediately, which matters when the vessel is meant to earn charter revenue in the park from its first season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Start a Build Conversation
Send us your programme: guest count, itinerary and budget band. The yard desk will reply with a realistic specification and timeline rather than a brochure figure.