Banda islands ... getting there, logistics, Ramadan

I'm hoping to get to the Bandas for some snorkelling late September/early October. Attempts to find a decent online Pelni schedule have proved fruitless but a recent post by Lazlo said that the ferry from Ambon leaves every Saturday. Would that still be the case during Ramadan or do ferry timetables tend to get modified then?

Also, I'll be travelling from Bangkok but planning to meet up with someone else going there en route, probably either in Penang or KL. Any suggestions about the best/cheapest way to get to Ambon from either of these places? Online air ticket booking doesn't seem possible so we'll probably have to buy airline tickets once we are there. Last year I was in Indonesia during Ramadan and flights seemed to be a lot more expensive during that time, flights often full too. Ferries to Ambon are also an option I guess as we'll both have 2 month visas.... but ferry from where?

Basically I'm rather clueless about the best and most economical/logical route.... any help would be MUCH appreciated! Thanks in advance.

Online booking is possible though this travel agent and possibly others:
http://www.mysmailing.com/</a><BR>I have not used their online service but I have used their offices. They are one of the larger agents in Indonesia.
Some airlines may only issue paper tickets which would have to get to you somehow.

As for travelling in Ramadan... I avoid it, especially in Java and other Muslim areas. It can be a nightmare. No idea on the Pelni question.

Pelni doesn't care about Ramadan.
You could catch the ships to Ambon in Jakarta (4 days), Surabaya (3 days) or Makassar (2 days).
The first two are accessible from Malaysia by cheap Air Asia flights.
Note that two of the ships heading for Ambon would be continuing to Banda, so if that's your only target, there is no need to stop in Ambon at all. Certainly Pelni ships are an option for you with 2 months visas, you could consider them the bck-up plan in case flights are expensive.

Lazlo you're a star! Which two of the ships would be heading for the Bandas after Ambon please? At least one of em should have a cheap Air Asia flight connection.... don't suppose you have any idea what day of the week they leave?

If I recall well they are the Ciremai and Bukit Siguntang, but not sure.
Anyway, you will find out when buying your tickets, so no need to know in advance.
Air Asia flies several times daily, so any Pelni ship will have a cheap connecting flight.
What time Pelni leaves? Calculate, but fly to Jakarta a day or two early to be safe.

Silk Air flies Singapore Manado at reasonable prices.

I recommend that you fly to Makasar and pick-up the ship there because 4 days on a ship would be just too much, and, in my opinion is "false economy" if you purpose for taking the ship is merely to save money.

Thank you for all your suggestions, I really appreciate them.

Ferries
The most useful site I've found for Pelni so far seems to be this one even though the schedules are for 2006. As Lazlo said, it seems Ciremai and Bukit Siguntang are the two ships that go to the Bandas. They both go via Makassar and Surabaya and they also go to Tual afterwards.

From what I've been able to work out, it seems we'll probably have to go via Jakarta anyway to get to Surabaya or Makassar.

Flights
Do both Lion Air and Mandala fly to Ambon? I can't find any real info on the Mandala website but wikipedia says it does. Seems to be possible fly to Ambon from Jakarta, Makassar and Surabaya on Lion Air according to their website but their flight route map doesn't show any very direct flight route from Makassar!

PS Garuda ... looks like it MIGHT be possible to book online now? It's one of the rare airline sites that actually give flight details and some of the Jakarta -Makassar economy fares don't look too bad to me for what will be a very busy period. Someone on another thread I saw today said you could book in advance and pay at the airport. Sounds better than giving credit card details by phone or email but is it really an option?

Lion does fly to Ambon.
However if you are hapy with the fares offered by Garuda online, why not book with them?
But unless you pay in advance by card make sure your booking doesn't get deleted by the time you land in Jakarta!

BTW, unlike Steve, I do find Pelni an appealing option, certainly between Makassar and Banda.
It's a very nice ride past many islands like Buton in South-East Sulwesi, and sailing into the beautiful Bay of Ambon is a far more scenic and interesting intro to Maluku than simply flying in there. The 2-day voyage from Jakarta to Makassar is far less interesting, so a compromise option could be flying to Makassar and riding Pelni from there to Banda.
And yes, you could continue from Banda to Kei by Pelni, but it means spending a full week in Banda.
Then you could stop in Ambon to explore around Lease and Seram on the way back.
This itinerary would allow you to see all the highlights of South Maluku, rather than just the Bandas.

Yes I think the boat from Makassar sounds a very good idea....my prospective travel partner wanted to take the ferry from Makassar anyway and I now see why. With a two month visa hopefully there'll be enough time to see more than just the Bandas.

Unfortunately the prospective travel partner is a bit difficult to contact about booking the Garuda and Air Asia flights, half way up Everest or something and I've a feeling they'll want his passport details. Never mind, I'm sure we'll manage somehow. If we have to hang around waiting for transport I think Makassar would probably be the best place to do it ... if we manage to get there!

One last question if I may ... do you have to book first class cabins on Pelni a long time in advance? Particularly around the end of Ramadan. From what I've read they are worth the extra $$$?

# 8 (Laszlo): My recommendation was to FLY from Jakarta to Makasar, and to then take the PELNI SHIP from Makasar to Ambon. See # 6 above.

That's right.
So we agree on that one. :-)

Good, that's one thing settled then! ;-) Actually I'd noticed Mistersteve recommended Makassar too, definitely seems to be the way to go.

Has anyone got any idea about how long I'd need to be in Makassar before the ferry leaves to book a cabin? Would a day or two be enough?

Just had a brainwave, dodo the penman is a name I've often seen recommended in connection with Makassar. He might know and also be up to date on ferry schedules? I've just emailed him anyway...will post again if he replies in case anyone else needs current ferry info.

You can usually book cabins even once on the ship! ;-)

I take it that means I'll just have to apply my very dubious charms and 10 words of Bahasa with the crew members to get them to let me have one of their cabins? Hmmm, delete members, or that will be horribly misconstrued but I'm ever so good at sign language. This trip is going to be very memorable and fun, I can tell. ;-)

???
Nobody rents crew cabins on Pelni ships!
What are all the various classes for?
Everything above Ekonomi (or Kelas III Wisata, not offered on those 2 ships) is in a cabin.

Sorry Laszlo I'm rather a novice (as you've probably gathered) ...only been to Indonesia twice and I've never actually travelled on a Pelni boat yet.

I did try to find out if there was a Pelni ferry from Gorontalo to Luwuk during Ramadan last year. The Pelni office in Gorontalo assured me that there was....there had been a boat that had left the previous week... but they didn't know when the next one would be, some time within the next month they thought.

I have travelled overnight on two Indonesian ferries so far.

One was a small wooden boat called the Puspita. They had a few minute airless cabins with 4 bunks @90,000Rp/bunk or you could sleep on "shelves" on deck without paying a supplement. I thought the shelves were the better option as the bedding in the cabins (which were also used by the crew) didn't look that clean and there were the remnants of several meals on the floor.

The Puspita cancelled the next week's sailing (because of Ramadan) so there were no boats back for two weeks from Katupat. However my resort owner kindly took us to Wakai in his outrigger boat as there was a ferry leaving from there. The name of the ship escapes me but was a bigger ship, quite modern and made of metal, not wood. The resort owner recommended that we pay a crew member for the use of his cabin ... MUCH better deal. 50,000Rp for a large clean cabin with two beds which even had a wash hand basin. The crew members in question didn't seem to mind sleeping on deck at all...in fact they looked delighted. My apologies, in my ignorance I assumed that's what your wink in #14 meant!

Indeed, crew member cabins might be the only ones available on smaller, local ships, but rest assured that travelling on Pelni ones is an entirely different experience. I think you might be pleasantly surprised! For one thing, it's all air-con (even Ekonomi). Also, many cabins do have windows.