On most Komodo trips you are told the price, and then you find out about the rest. Cash for the park entrance. Cash for the ranger. Cash for the conservation fee. An envelope passed around the boat on the morning of day two, and a stop at the counter where the amount is never quite what you were quoted.

Not here. Every fee on this trip is already paid before you board: Komodo National Park entrance, conservation and ranger fees, all land entrance tickets, every transfer. Nobody will ask you for money at any point over three days. Bring cash if you want a drink in town, and nothing else.

The second difference is that the trip does not end at the harbour. We dock back in Labuan Bajo at midday on day three and carry straight on by land — Rangko Cave and its saltwater pool under a collapsed limestone roof, a swim at Waecicu Beach, then up to Sylvia Hill for sunset over the bay before we drop you at your hotel. Twelve stops in total instead of the usual nine, and a last day that would otherwise be spent waiting for a flight.

The sailing covers the park properly. Day one: Kelor Island, snorkelling at Manjarite, and Kalong Island at dusk when thousands of flying foxes lift off the mangroves. Day two: sunrise on Padar over the three bays, Pink Beach, a ranger-guided walk on Komodo Island, manta rays at Manta Point, and the Taka Makassar sandbar. Day three: green turtles at Siaba Island before we sail back.

Two things we do differently in the water. Our guides snorkel alongside you instead of watching from the deck, and if you have never worn a mask, we run you through it in shallow water on day one — well before anyone goes near the current at Manta Point.

Families are planned for, not just tolerated. Child-sized life jackets, shallow snorkelling spots chosen for younger swimmers, and a lower viewpoint on Padar for anyone not up for the full climb.

Two boats to choose from, same itinerary and same prepaid fees on both: a standard cabin on our shared boat, or the superior boat with larger cabins and fewer people on board. Both are air-conditioned with a bathroom, and both include three meals a day plus snacks, lunch on land on day three, and individual pickup from your hotel, homestay or Komodo Airport.