Wae Rebo Traditional Village | Labuan Bajo to Wae Rebo | Trekking to Wae Rebo | West Manggarai

Wae Rebo Village

Waerebo is nestled in the highlands of the Manggarai region, approximately 1,200 meters above sea level. It is surrounded by dense forests and steep hills, creating a secluded and peaceful atmosphere. The village is difficult to access by modern transportation, making it one of the more challenging destinations for travelers.

The most striking feature of Waerebo is its traditional architecture, which consists of unique, cone-shaped houses called Mbaru Niang. These houses are made from local materials such as bamboo, wood, and thatched grass, and they are designed to withstand the region's heavy rains and high winds. The conical structure is both an aesthetic and practical design, with the houses being built with a steep roof to allow rainwater to easily flow off and to provide ample space inside.

Life and culture

The people of Waerebo, the Manggarai, live in a largely self-sufficient and communal lifestyle. The village’s economy is based on agriculture, with residents cultivating rice, corn, cassava, and vegetables. They also keep livestock such as goats and chickens. The women of Waerebo are especially skilled at weaving intricate textiles, often using natural dyes to create vibrant patterns that hold cultural significance.

Waerebo village is known for its isolation and lack of modern amenities, such as electricity and internet. This absence of modern infrastructure is part of the village's charm and helps preserve its traditional way of life. Electricity only available in the morning until 18.00, after that time electricity is turn off. Similarly, the village has no internet access. Communication with the outside world is limited to occasional visits by travelers or people from nearby towns. This helps maintain the village's sense of isolation and autonomy from modern technological influences. However, this lack of connectivity also means that the villagers lead a quieter, more connected life with their community and nature

How to get to Wae Rebo from Labuan Bajo

If you are in the Labuan Bajo area, getting to wae rebo takes approximately 5 hours by motorbike. There are two routes to get to wae rebo, the first route is the route most often used by most visitors is via Lembor and the second route is via Ruteng. These two routes have advantages and disadvantages. Route via Lembor with a closer distance but with many roads under construction and roads that are quite damaged but so far still safe. The route is via Ruteng with less damaged roads but with a fairly long distance. A few tips ; if you plan to go to wae rebo, leave Labuan Bajo early to avoid dark streets because the road to wae rebo has no lighting in case you will stop somewhere to get petrol, have a rest or something else.

Homestay recommendation in case you need

In case you are heading to wae rebo too late, we recommend you to stay one night and start trekking the next day. We got information that 4pm is the last time for trekking and the gate will be closed. We headed to wae rebo from bajo about 11 am and we stopped several times on the way to buy petrol, rest, find food and take some photos because there were a lot of beautiful views on the way to wae rebo. Until we realized we were late and decided to stay overnight somewhere. Luckily we found Jose Homestay & Cafe, a basic room but with a fantastic view. In front of this homestay there is a beach with a view of Mules island and this beach is very beautiful with white sand and feels like a private beach. The price per night of this room is 300,000 IDR/room includes breakfast and dinner. The location from this homestay to wae rebo is also not far less than 1 hour. In case you need it, we recommend this homestay because Jose as the owner is very helpful and his family are so lovely and kind.

Things you must bring trekking to Wae Rebo

Based on experienced, this thing you need to prepare:

• Cash, cash is needed to pay for your stay in wae rebo village. You need to pay 325,000 IDR/pax for a night stay and 50,000 IDR/group for the welcome ceremony. Bring more cash in case you need to get something like coffee or tea, there is a small warung over there.
• Comfortable shoes, hiking is not that difficult and only takes 2.5 hours or 3 hours to get to the village. While hiking you will pass 3 rest areas. The roads are good, there are some cement roads, some slippery rocks and dirt roads so it is better to wear comfortable shoes. The hiking route to the village is easy because there is only one route, you are fine even if you go without a guide.
• Shocks, highly recommend this especially hiking in the rain. During the rainy season there are a lot of leeches here, they will suck blood when they stick to the skin. Wear long pants, and put your pants inside of socks. During hiking do not touch plants or leaves because leeches are in plants and soil. Highly recommend wearing socks especially if you only wear flip flops. We have never been bitten by leeches, some people say it doesn't hurt to be bitten by leeches but we are ticklish when we think about it haha, so for us better avoid them.
• Warm clothes, this is a must to bring like a hoodie or long sleeves. If you can, bring another shock because it is so cold there. We only brought one hoodie thinking it won't be that cold but we were wrong haha. It was so cold that they even gave us a blanket.
• Rain coat, the weather on the mountain is unpredictable sometimes it's sunny but on the way hiking it can be rainy. So better to bring a raincoat and rain coat for the bag in case the rain comes.

Labuan Bajo motorbike rent recommendation

Heading to wae rebo it could be a long journey and a lot of damaged roads so it's good to prepare a motorbike that is suitable for your needs. We prefer to use the nmax type motorbike because it has a high power of 155cc. We use it very comfortably on long trips even though it passes through some damaged roads. We searched a lot of motorbike rentals in Labuan bajo and found Joelo motorbike rent as the best choice. They will gladly deliver the motorbike to the hotel for you to try before you rent it and it's free and they will also deliver and pick up the motorbike to the hotel if you have finished renting. Motorbike rental per day is IDR 150,000