Flying to Sorong - options?

[Shasta_man]

I took the flight mentioned by Julie above. I think it was $650.

Couple things:

- I'd strongly suggest using an agent which works with agents in Indonesia. Dealing with the flights in Indonesia requires lots of knowledge and connections. I was booked and confirmed on the Express Air flight to Sorong. 1 hour before the flight, at 4 AM Indo time, I found out they didn't have me booked and I had no seat. Only through working with my agent in Manado that booked the travel was I able to finally make the plane. And it took some real arguing by the agent to get me on the plane, and I got on with less than 15 minutes to go. And actually, it was the guy from the Jakarta Airport transit Hotel that I had paid to check me in that was able to speak Indonesian, get in the airport to the ticket counter and get the cell phone in the hands of the airline personnel which made the difference in getting on the plane. Luckily, since it was Indonesia, they could change things just as quickly as they got screwed up.

- The flight out of Sorong is much more likely to be delayed (we were delayed over 2 hours). So either book a subsequent flight you can change without losing money or give more time.

 

[JasonG]

Thanks JasonG. Good to get an example - and I was worried about getting back to SIN in one day since the layover in Manado seems pretty short (~1.3hr) on the way to Sorong.

Until nwflyboy mentioned it, I didnt think about Thailand. I am using United miles as well, so I could probably swing some multi-city deal and check out Thailand diving instead of (most likely) Komodo. Could be a little easier on the travel time.

Jeremyl,

I wouldn't worry too much about the layover in Manado on the way out. My Lion Air flight detarted Sorong on time at 9:15, arriving in Manado at 10:05. The Silk Air flight departing Manado for Singapore leaves at 13:05, so there is a 3 hour lay-over (or margin for error should the Lion Air flight be delayed).

Note that your United Miles (Star Alliance) will not be good on the Silk Air flight, even though it is owned by Singapore Airlines. Also note that on your way in to Sorong, if you will enter Indonesia through Manado on the Silk Air flight, you'll need to spend one night in Manado in order to catch the Express Air flight the next day which leaves at 06:15 (bear in mind that the Express Air flight that I took had a 10kg baggage allowance; IDR34,000 for every 1kg over that).

In general, when I fly domestically in Indonesia, I prefer to fly in the morning as there is less chance of a delay. I also prefer the most direct routing that I can find (hence my choice of Manado as a port of entry to get to Sorong).

Coming back to your though about getting a flight from Singapore to Thailand on the same day that you depart Sorong, I would think that this is very possible. I would only mention that flights from Singapore to Phuket are far less frequent than to Bangkok.

My comments pertain to flights/schedules in March 2010.

Jason

 

[jeremyl]

I was using this posted schedule for Manado -> Sorong planning... which should allow me to get from SIN to Sorong in one day.

MANADO - SORONG JT 1178 14:25 - 17:15
SORONG - MANADO JT 1177 09:25 - 10:15

So I guess this is incorrect. Is this another airline, or just a non-existant flight? I don't mind staying in Manado if required, although it would be great to be able to get from SIN to Sorong in one day - and low overweight fees would be great, as I will likely have a DSLR rig and my dive gear, as well as luggage for 1mo.

 

[bc08]

I flew this exact route in November '09.
JAKARTA - UJUNG PANDANG MZ 762 05:00 - 08:20
UJUNG PANDANG - SORONG MZ 806 09:30 - 12:40
SORONG - UJUNG PANDANG MZ 807 13:20 - 14:30
UJUNG PANDANG - JAKARTA MZ 775 15:10 - 16:20

I paid R3,885,900 = USD$376 at that time. The flights were
thankfully uneventful.

Frogfish's timing are exactly the same as mine when i last spoke with papua last week. Frogfish, are you looking to dive with Papua diving?

I also checked with another Indo-based LOB and were given the following:

FLIGHT INFORMATION

Based on Jakarta (DAILY)

JAKARTA - UJUNG PANDANG MZ 762 05:00 - 08:15

UJUNG PANDANG - SORONG MZ 806 09:35 - 12:45

SORONG - UJUNG PANDANG MZ 807 13:50 - 14:25

UJUNG PANDANG - JAKARTA MZ 791 15:10 - 16:25

Jakarta - Sorong - Jakarta is Rp 5,138,000 or around US$ 571 per person



Based on Manado (every Monday, Wednesday, Friday)

MANADO - SORONG JT 1178 14:25 - 17:15
SORONG - MANADO JT 1177 09:25 - 10:15

Manado - Sorong - Manado is Rp 2,360,000 or around US$ 263 per person. Flying Lion Airlines.

 

[nwflyboy]

Thanks everyone.

bc08 - I assume those flights were on Merpati (MZ) - right?

I think I've got the logistics mostly figured out at this point. Looks like we will go through Jakarta rather then Denpasar (Bali) for a number of reasons: flight availability (using FF miles) looks impossible via Bali, and as nice as Bali is (we loved it in fall 2007), we won't have time to dive there on this trip, and we're looking at a quick side trip to some monuments on central Java (Borobudur, near Yogyakarta) on the way back. So we'll go outbound from Jakarta -> Sorong (probably on the Express Air flight recommended by Misool). Looking at 12 days there.

Returning will be a bit more creative. Current plan is to fly Sorong to Yogyakarta (on Merpati, via Makassar); schedule says the flight departs Sorong 13:20, arrives Yogyakarta 19:10 (we'll see about that). 2 nights at Borobudur, then we fly Yogyakarta to Jakarta (on Garuda - flights roughly every hour), then we'll get back on the FF ticket for the long haul flights home out of Jakarta (next day).

So now I'm looking for real-world experience reports on the domestic legs within Indonesia on three airlines: Express Air, Merpati and Garuda - specifically how reliable the flights are, and what to expect for baggage limits. We usually travel fairly light, but we will be bringing some dive gear and some photo gear, so we need to be careful.

I know that there can be flight delays in Indonesia (been there once and experienced that). I'm not concerned about the flight to Sorong (the resort coordinates with that flight so if it's late, everybody is late). Going from Sorong to Yogyakarta is a little more of a concern (I'd rather not arrive late in the evening but could survive that). My primary question is about the Garuda flight from Yogyakarta to Jakarta. Looks like a milk run (flights every hour) so I'm guessing major delays are not a major worry there (although I've heard delays are not unusual with Garuda).

As for baggage, looks like we should be fine on Garuda and Merpati. Can anyone tell me what the baggage limits are on Express Air?

Thanks.

 

[frogfish]

Wouldn't be to concerend about Yogja - Jakarta with Garuda, as worst comes to worst they'll put on the next flight. I have done it many times in the past, and it generally worked ok. Would be more concerned aout Makassar/ Yogya on Merpati...

Luggage limit on Express air is 20kgs from Jakarta and Makassar to Sorong, 10kg if you fly via Manado (at least that's what the resort told me).

 

[JasonG]

NWFLYBOY,

My understanding, having flown on Express Air from Manado to Sorong, is that the baggarge weight limits vary depending upon the type of aircraft being used. In my case, it was a turbo prop, so the limit was only 10kg. From Jakarta, they will use a jet and I believe that the allowance is more like 20kg. Also, from my experience, these limits are faily strictly enforced (ie be prepared to pay if you are overweight).

Jason

 

[Tapas bali]

Some unrelated points ...

Unless schedules have changed, if you fly the Denpasar/Makassar/Sorong route, you can't make it all in one day. By the time you arrive in Makassar, the one daily flight to Sorong has already departed, and you have to overnight in Makassar(not fun) and do the second leg the next day. On the return, you can do it all in one day.

@Nwflyboy:
High Dessert is totally right about you can not make Denpasar - Makassar - Sorong in one day. But unfortunately Misool Eco Resort will only wait for this specific Express Air (XN) flight for their transfers so unfortunately despite the fact that Express Air is a small airlines, you will still need to take it. :cool2:

The (XN) Makassar - Sorong flight actually a continuation of the flight from the XN flight from Jakarta mentioned by frogfish above.

If you choose to come to Denpasar, Bali below is the itinerary that I would suggest you.
1st Day
fly Denpasar - Makassar with Lion Air JT 740 18:30 - 19.45
Luggage allowance 25kg
Overnight Makassar there is a 3* Hotel cost approximately USD 55/room/night

2nd Day
fly Makassar - Sorong with Express Air XN 800 (I'm not putting the time as they keep changing their schedule)
Luggage allowance 20kg

My suggestion to you is: book the tickets 30 days before your departure date. The reason is small airlines like Express Air do not take reservation before that.

Another strong recommendation for everyone:
give two nights between your flight from Raja Ampat (or Komodo or another remote diving area that caused you to use small airlines) and your international flight. There are many cancellation/delay happen.

Tickets rate always change subject to economy seat available. Recently I managed to book Denpasar - Makassar - Sorong USD 264/person.

Last month on our LIDS press release we actually offer free air tickets for guests who book Misool Eco Resorts with us.

About luggage problem: Please make sure you arrive 1.5 hours before your domestic flight departure time to do check in to make sure the airline will take all of your luggage. Big airlines such as Garuda or Lion air usually have no problem about taking your luggage.

 

[Tapas bali]

I was using this posted schedule for Manado -> Sorong planning... which should allow me to get from SIN to Sorong in one day.

MANADO - SORONG JT 1178 14:25 - 17:15
SORONG - MANADO JT 1177 09:25 - 10:15

So I guess this is incorrect. .

Hi Jeremy,

The above flight is real. It is by Lion air.

Would suggest you to follow, Jason's suggestion. Overnight in Manado. Although Silk Air arrival time is 13.00 and the Lion Air's schedules leaves at 14.25, Most likely you will not have enough time between this two flights.

Upon your arrival you will need to wait for your luggage, go through immigration process and it usually takes approximately one hour (if you can get you luggage easily & not stand in long queue). Then, you need to come out from the international arrival & get into domestic arrival to do check in.

There will be very slight time for you before the Lion Air close their check in. Don't take risk & help your self from stress. There are lot of new nice hotels only bout 20 minutes from the airport costs approximately USD 60.

 

[broadreach]

nwflyboy:

Your suggested itinerary sounds fine.
Delays and cancellations can always happen, it's just a small risk you have to take when traveling to places like Sorong.

I took the Merpati flight from Sorong to Makassar a couple of years back, without incident. Even if you get to Yogya (pronounced Jogja) later than advertised you should still be fine. It's a large enough city.

Borobudur is great. I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Have fun!