Four hills, six reefs, one boat, five days

Padar is the hardest: 25 to 45 minutes to the main viewpoint on loose, steep ground, started in the dark about 65 minutes before sunrise. Kelor is shorter, 15 to 30 minutes, and steep. Both suit fit legs in good shoes.

Komodo Island and Rinca are walked only with a park ranger. Short, medium and long trails exist, and the trail you take on Komodo Island runs from 45 to 120 minutes. There is little shade, so closed shoes, long sleeves or sunscreen, and a hat matter.

A dragon is hoped for on both walks and promised on neither. Padar has none.

The walking is spread out, which is the point of five days. Only Padar demands a pre-dawn start. The other hills come after breakfast, with the sun already up, and a night at anchor between each of them. Two people on the whole boat set their own pace on the steps; the ranger sets it on Komodo and Rinca.

Manjarite opens the reef week. Pink Beach is a snorkelling beach, with reef close to the shore, and a stop of 45 to 90 minutes. The sand is pale pink from crushed red coral, not bright pink, and its colour depends on the light and the tide.

Taka Makassar is a crescent of sand that shows at low tide only. Manta Point is a drift along the reef with the current. A life jacket is advised there, and mantas are common but never promised. Tide can swap the two stops.

Sebayur is quieter, not guaranteed empty. Kanawa closes the week with shallow coral and white sand, an easy snorkel after four days of salt.

Bring trekking shoes with grip, a backpack, a hat, reef-safe sunscreen and a headtorch for Padar. The brochure also asks you to bring emergency cash, personal medicine and a flash drive or hard drive.

You carry your own bag on every walk. The boat carries nothing up a hill for you. A light daypack with water is enough for each climb, and the cabin is where the rest of the luggage waits. Free-flow mineral water is on board, so the bottle is filled before every walk.

Travel insurance is recommended for every guest. Divers must hold dive insurance, which the brochure makes mandatory for scuba. Send passport or ID details seven days before sailing.

Snorkel gear and life jackets are in the fare. The brochure does not print dive equipment, a compressor or a dive guide, so Gammara does not list dive equipment, and diving is arranged separately.

Certified divers who want to dive should write to us first. Dive insurance is mandatory for divers, and any arrangement beyond snorkelling is quoted in writing or declined. Do not assume it.

The reefs are good enough from the surface. Visibility changes with the season, and the current at Manta Point can be strong. A paddle board is aboard for the calmer bays, and the tender takes you to each beach.

Between hill and reef, the boat itself is the rest. Three meals a day, snacks and fruit, and a cabin with a hot and cold shower wait at the end of each walk. That is what makes five days possible for people who are not athletes.