Cargo boats to Batanta and Fam

Taking the supply boat to Batanta and Pam (Fam) Islands can save you quite a bit of money. It’s a great option if you have plenty of time and want to keep your budget as low as possible.

First, though, let us warn you: Do not rely on the supply boat if your schedule is not flexible! The KMP Terebuk I is an island supply vessel, not a fast passenger ferry. You will need to be flexible about departure times, and be ok with taking a long time to arrive at your destination.

There are undercover seats available, and there are a few crew cabins that can be rented too. Ask on the boat.

If you’re going to Batanta, then you’ll be disembarking in the middle of the night, and you might need to wait in Yensawai until morning for your homestay pickup.

You will need to contact your hosts in advance to arrange a pickup at Yensawai or Pam. For some homestays you will need to be able to make yourself understood in Bahasa Indonesia.

Still keen? Details are below, and were last confirmed in December 2024. We update this information as soon as we are aware of permanent changes.

For more info, check the comments below, and consider asking in our Travellers’ Forum group.

Batanta and Pam boat schedule

 

Boat name: KMP Terebuk I (pictured above, courtesy of Liputan6)

Departs Sorong: Weekly on Fridays. Scheduled departure time from this jetty at the Sorong public harbour is 2000. It’s best to be there by 6pm, because the boat often leaves as soon as it’s loaded.

Arrives in Yensawai, Batanta: 0200 Saturday if running to schedule. Departs Yensawai as soon as cargo transfer is complete, usually around 0300 if running to schedule.

Arrives in Pam Village, Pambemuk: Scheduled arrival is Saturdays at 0630.

Departs Pam Village Saturdays at 0900.

Arrives Yensawai on Saturday at 1230 if running to schedule.

Arrives Sorong on Saturday at around 1830 if running to schedule..

Cost

Sorong to Pam – IDR 145,000
Sorong to Yensawai – IDR 96,000
Yensawai to Pam – IDR 50,000

Note that the Terebuk also regularly sails to Misool, Kofiau and Wejim. See this December 2024 schedule (JPG 389KB) for details.

Comments

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  1. Robert on

    Today Friday March 7th 2025 I wanted to take the TERUBUK from Sorong to Pam island, I was on the jetty at 6:00pm just to learn that the TERUBUK is docked for maintenance :(, for a few weeks apparently, so if you had the same idea just check again whether it is running again….. Good luck!

    Reply
  2. Katrina on

    I took this ferry from Batanta to Sorong on Feb 16 2025. Thinking I needed to stay closer to the village before the ferry, I stayed one night at Dugong homestay. It seems most Batanta homestays west of the village can see the ferry pass by and take you as it does.

    The ferry came in a bit late, we saw it coming around 1:15pm so we left the homestay to race it to the village. They left us on the dock and we boarded the ferry 10 mins later.

    Tickets were 79k, they ask you write your name on a list and are ready with 20k in change. There are stairs to the second and third levels, with shared beds and metal benches available. Frozen popsicles/ice cream cones were 15k each, there are also drinks and some small fried packages but no food for purchase. There were 4 foreign guests and the rest appeared to be locals/local families.

    It was hot in the afternoon but you can get a breeze by the window. The ferry left by 1:45pm and we arrived in Sorong just before 8pm.

    Be prepared for taxi drivers to rush on the second you arrive. It seems that all taxis from Sorong ferries want 100k to go anywhere. If you’re going to take a taxi anyways, let them carry your bag off for you. Otherwise you need to walk out of the terminal to get a grab.

    Hope that helps! There were bugs (flies, cockroaches), but it was nice for Indonesian standards. Bring a sarong for the bed, toilet paper and maybe a snack.

    Reply
  3. Daniel Hampton on

    Okay hopefully this comment helps you!

    I took the cargo ferry from Sorong to Fam Island on the 22nd of November and then from Yensawai (Batanta) back to Sorong on Saturday the 7th of December.

    I got to the port early following advice from previous travellers. I got there for 6 and waited 2 hours until we left at 8pm. The ticket to Fam was 145,000 rupiah.

    There is some food sold and hot drinks but recommend you eat before (what I did). If you get there early you can get a bed (need a sarong to sleep on as poor condition). You get into Yensawai at like 2am and leave at 3am. Meant sleeping was rough as you get woken up when you arrive at Yensawai by tannoys. The boat emptied at Yensawai so the leg to Fam was much nicer.

    Arrived around 6am and was picked up by Rufas Homestay for 500,000 rupiah. Taking the cargo ferry is so worth it as saves you so much money (around 2 million rupiah each way).

    I then took the cargo ferry from Yensawai on the saturday. It was meant to arrive at noon but around 11 we saw it on the horizon (as I was staying at Dugong homestay) so we rushed to get to Yensawai. Anyway the boat circled outside Yensawai for like half an hour then arrived at 12 to port approx. Everyone loaded and I bought a ticket was from memory 100,000 rupiah.

    The boat then left at 1 which was annoying as had rushed to get there early but is worth waiting at Yensawai as ferry only goes once a week. You could buy noodles, tea and ice cream on the boat alongside krupuk and other small snacks. They were kind and I had a pot noodle with me so charged me nothing for hot water. A tea was expensive for normal prices (from memory like 20,000 rupiah).

    We got to Sorong port at 7pm, be prepared for an avalanche of bemo drivers and taxi drivers but if you walk and ignore you will be fine.

    The location of the departure is here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/fKsfhMqZQtbhRJwE8

    It can be hard to figure out which jetty to go from. You also need to pay a small fee to be dropped at the jetty (think is like 20,000 rupiah, can’t remember exactly)

    Recommend being driven to the boat or the walk would suck!

    Enjoy some intrepid travel and take the cargo ferry!!!

    Reply
  4. Christian Zaengl on

    Sorry, but the information on the ticket sales in the building turned out to be not correct. The latest news I just got directly at the ferry was that tickets are sold on the ferry..

    Reply
  5. Christian Zaengl on

    I can only confirm Pierre’s comment from february 2024. Just (8th of november 2024) checked at the Pelabuhan harbour, the same harbour the Waisai ferry departs, but from the second pier that’s southeast of the Waisai ferry pier. The price ist still 145.000 rupias, and the ticket office which is in the big building at the entrance of the second pier starts selling tickets 4 hours prior of departure, which is at 8 p.m. They recommend getting there 6 p.m. at the latest
    ..

    Reply
  6. Thérèse on

    Nous avons pris le cargo boat du village de PAM à Sorong ce samedi 28 septembre. Le prix est de 145 000 par personne.
    Notre homestay de Rufas nous y a deposé le matin pour 500 000.
    Attention, il est parti à 7h30 le cargo, on a failli le rater. Nous sommes arrivés à 17h30 à Sorong.
    Il y a des lits et des chaises dans le cargo, des prises électriques. Il n’y avait que des locaux. Il y a un comptoir qui vend des snacks dans le cargo.

    Reply
  7. Fernando on

    I went to the actual boat in Sorong 11th of april and the boat was running again with the schedule in this page. They did tell me that that weekend (12-14 of april) they had a delay of one day (leaving sorong on saturday istead of friday), maybe because of the public holidays, but that made me think they might delay without notice at other occasions…

    Reply
  8. Eric on

    For anyone trying to get the ferry, it was not running on March 15th due to repairs apparently, so we were told. They said it would be back in April, so hopefully some can provide an update in the future

    Reply
  9. pierre on

    I took the ferry from Sorong to Fam last Friday.
    The ship is a ferry and not a cargo boat named Terubuk. It is using the same harbour as the ferry to Waisai (Rakyatmina harbour) but on a different wharf (300m to the East). The ship is yellow and white with a red roof.
    Don’t try to ask information at terminal office for Waisai ferry, nobody knows !
    The price for Fam was 145000rp

    Reply
  10. Stefanie Pontasch on

    We took the ferry from Sorong to Batanta on Friday 22.12.2023. The ferry now leaves at the port next (east) to the waisai ferry port at pertamina harbour: https://maps.app.goo.gl/EdfXcKkmjewfuuaF9
    The ferry is scheduled at 8pm and left at 9pm. It was already full at 6pm, maybe because of the christmas holidays. There is a VIP section available, ask at the ticket counter for prices. There are also several bunk beds and a simple seating section on the upper deck. We found it was comfortable. The lower car deck was packed with people/families.
    We arrived around 3:30 on Batanta. Since a couple of weeks there is a new arrival port on Yensawai, where we were picked up by our homestay (Dayan).
    For us the local ferry trip was a good experience. Ticket price was 80.000 pP.

    Reply
  11. Julia on

    Hello, is the Terebuk boat from Sorong to Arefi still going on friday or is it going on saturday?

    Reply
      1. Emma on

        Hello ! Is the boat still going on friday at this time of the year or as far as you know it changed ? Thank you very much b

        Reply

        1. Hi Emma. Yep! As noted above, the information on this page was verified in September 2023.

          Reply
  12. kelly on

    any further word on Sabuk boat? Running again or….

    Reply
      1. Adam on

        Hello, is the Sabuk Nusantara boat from Sorong to Fam running again ? Thank you.

        Reply

        1. Still no update Adam. Suggest asking on the forum as above.

          Reply
  13. Mike on

    We took Terebuk from Pelabuhan Usahamina, Sorong to Arefi, Batanta on Friday, 28 October, 2022. It’s actually a small car ferry with 2 decks upstairs for basic passenger seating, a kiosk selling snacks and ice cream(!) and several bunk beds, first come, first serve. Squat toilets and a separate wash room were pretty clean and orderly. Ekonomi ticket is still 70,000 per person to Arefi and there’s even a ticket office at the harbor. The boat was scheduled to depart at 20:00 and actually left only 30 minutes late! We had a comfortable bunk bed passage and arrived at Afefi about 01:00.

    Here’s the adventurous part: There’s apparently no port or pier on Arefi that can accommodate a vessel this size! (A large cement jetty is under construction at nearby Yensawai village but maybe a year away from completion). That means, in the darkest hours of the night, passengers and cargo are off-loaded down a short metal ladder onto waiting longboats while Terabuk attempts to idle in place. We had good weather for our exit, but if it’s rough or raining, I imagine it could be quite dangerous. Anyway, if Ibus and babies can do it, why not a few mildly adventurous tourists?

    You definitely need to arrange this middle of the night floating transfer with your homestay. Mandemor in Yensawai village is a good choice because it’s the closest to Arefi and a 100,000 idr, 10 minute boat ride to the pleasant homestay.

    Reply

    1. Tremendously useful info Mike. Thanks so much for taking the time to post it 🙏

      Reply
      1. Largeu on

        Thank you for this information because I couldn’t find it on the net. Did you confirm that the boat always leaves on Fridays?

        Reply

        1. Yes, the Terebuk’s usual schedule remains Fridays.

          Reply
  14. Largeu on

    Hello, is the information on the port of embarkation still relevant (pertamina harbour)? because I have the information that the Friday evening boat for sorong to Arefi leaves from the port of pelabuhan rakyat sorong. Thank you for your answer

    Reply

    1. Hi Largeu

      There may well have been changes that we haven’t heard of yet. If you confirm that the Terebuk’s departure point has indeed been permanently changed, it would be great if you could let us know. Thank you and good luck! 🙏

      Reply
      1. Daniel on

        Just coming from the harbor, the boat schedule changed and goes on Saturday loading at 6pm, not sure if the change is forever or just this week .Location of the harbor is here
        https://maps.app.goo.gl/nATVWEmUtef9BCpV7

        Reply

        1. Cheers Daniel

          Is your info for the Terebuk, or the Sabuk Nusantara?

          Reply
          1. Daniel on

            Hello, from what I heard, the Thu boat Sabuk is not operating at all, wanted to use it from Pam, not running. Terebuk to Batanta is Sat 6pm, again, not sure if just this week or permanently and its leaving from the harbor I marked. Hopefully, will see today 🙂

            Reply

            1. Thanks again Daniel. It’s hard to keep up! Perhaps we should just say “There is a boat. Go ask at the harbour to find out more.” :P Good luck!

              Reply

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