There are loads of reasons to go to Indonesia, but for nature lovers, animal specialists or your plain old interested tourist then a trip to Komodo is a very worthwhile adventure, why…because here there be dragons.

The Komodo dragon is the world’s largest lizard and they live on only a few islands in the western part of Indonesia. The main islands they inhabit are Komodo, Rinca and Flores.

To visit the lizards you generally will go by boat to Komodo in the Komodo national park, designed specifically to protect these amazing creatures. Komodo is unlike many of Indonesia’s islands such as Bali or Java in that it is dusty and with lots of grass cover not covered in thick jungle.

The best time to visit is early, really early, before 6 am when the first tour starts. The island is hot so always bring plenty of water – not a lot of shops around! At the park headquarters is a museum where you can see a display of the many poisonous snakes in the region, but don’t let it put you off, and there are deer roaming around the headquarters where they are safe from the big dragons. Also you will see lots of younger dragons in the trees, where they hide from their larger relatives who will happily eat them given the chance.

Once you start the tour you have to be quiet not because you may scare the dragons but because you may attract them, what is amazing is that these carnivorous lizards can, and will, actually eat a human being. There is a story of this happening to a German tourist amongst other victims, apparently all that was left was a pair of sunglasses and a camera.

In the early morning you will see some of the biggest dragons, they somewhat swagger around, looking more than a little clumsy but in truth they can run as fast as a dog. They have massive claws which they use to pull apart their victims, climb trees and hold on to their prey preferring to use their mouths to kill. The mouth of a Komodo dragon is a breeding ground for bacteria, reminds me of an old girlfriend…but I digress, and their bites if untreated can lead to an infection that will kill.

The destination of this tour is a fenced in area by a river bed where the dragons gather, here it is difficult to say whether you are watching the dragons or if they are watching you. The massive lizards sun themselves and taste the air with their tongues, you will get the impression that they are selecting which of the tourists will make the best breakfast, and you are probably correct.

To visit the Komodo dragons there are a many tour groups that organize tours lasting from one to several days and that leave from many of the most popular Indonesian destinations, I traveled from Bali but there are other options. I would highly recommend taking the time out to do this as it is like stepping back in time and seeing what the dinosaurs were like, the Komodo dragons really are amazing creatures to watch and a little scary…oh and of course where else can you show pictures to your friends and say ‘here there be dragons’.