Melo Village
Melo Village
3.5
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
3.5
13 reviews
Excellent
5
Very good
2
Average
2
Poor
0
Terrible
4
Helen Janneson Bense
Perth, Australia188 contributions
Sep 2019
I was so grateful to experience the mesmerising Tetek Alu and Caci dance with the local tribe in Melo Village. These dances are an important part of their cultural identity and ceremonial life. The ocean vista from high in the mountains is absolutely breathtaking. Supporting locals is an important part of sustainable tourism and why I highly recommend a visit. It's also the most enriching experience and one of the highlights of my Komodo island tour. Make sure to buy your art and treasures directly from the locals too and always show respect for their customs and cultural protocols.
Written August 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
abquilter
55 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
Reading everyone’s reviews I am wondering if we were in the right place. We stopped at melo village on the way to Ruteng. The view was outstanding however after that we couldn’t really understand the purpose of the visit. 4 wooden built structures that looked like holiday chalets. Some people in traditional dress but it all seemed a bit staged and we left pretty quickly. The actual drive to the village was far more interesting driving though the villages snd seeing the locals working the fields and the scenery was fantastic. Wouldn’t make a special trip to the village but if you are passing helps to stretch your legs.
Written July 1, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
sevenzeroseven
59 contributions
Jul 2023 • Family
Beware this is a major scam. Village consist of a newly built wooden hut, where you are invited to sit with the village head who put a scarf around you which you can keep for some money. Afterwards you are asked for a donation. You can put a traditional dress for some photo shots. That’s it. Not authentic. Save your time. There are better things to do.
Written July 15, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Istanbul
Istanbul, Türkiye216 contributions
Dec 2023 • Family
Appearences are deceptive
Indonesian culture and traditions are really interesting and unique. I read books by Clifford Geertz on Indonesia when I was a student at SOAS. Much later, I reads books by B. Anderson and Robert Hefner on different aspects of this beautiful country. Before I came to Labuan Bajo, I looked at some websites about where to visit. Mella Village was mentioned by many travel sites. So, we decided to visit this traditional village (assuming there was realla village). When we arrived the sire after 40 min drive, we could only see one sample house similar to that of used by traditional village dwellers where you reach in two days as the guide claimed. There was an old man who greeted us and put a box for donation in front of us. One sample wooden house comprised of one room. Amazing:-) You feel really cheated because id does not reflect anything similar to traditional village life. And also you can only imagine how people in those village look like and live. There was no sign of them. Then, I decided to re-read books of Clifford Geertz, B. Anderson and Robert Hefner to understand complexities of Indonesian society and culture.
Indonesian culture and traditions are really interesting and unique. I read books by Clifford Geertz on Indonesia when I was a student at SOAS. Much later, I reads books by B. Anderson and Robert Hefner on different aspects of this beautiful country. Before I came to Labuan Bajo, I looked at some websites about where to visit. Mella Village was mentioned by many travel sites. So, we decided to visit this traditional village (assuming there was realla village). When we arrived the sire after 40 min drive, we could only see one sample house similar to that of used by traditional village dwellers where you reach in two days as the guide claimed. There was an old man who greeted us and put a box for donation in front of us. One sample wooden house comprised of one room. Amazing:-) You feel really cheated because id does not reflect anything similar to traditional village life. And also you can only imagine how people in those village look like and live. There was no sign of them. Then, I decided to re-read books of Clifford Geertz, B. Anderson and Robert Hefner to understand complexities of Indonesian society and culture.
Written December 17, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lingko Travel
Labuan Bajo, Indonesia21 contributions
Jan 2019 • Friends
Explore the nature and culture from the local people of manggarai in Melo villiage. Learning to make coffee , candellnut making. trekking in to rifefield and palm juice process to drink as famous local drink in manggarai.
Written January 29, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stefan N
Boulder, CO35 contributions
Dec 2019
We booked a Caci Dance (traditional whip dance - Google it to learn more) and enjoyed lunch and other cultural ceremonies with the Manggarai People in Melo Village. They generously and enthusiastically greeted us from the beginning and the Caci Dancing was incredible. Moved to tears during the ceremony. Later on, they made it participatory and invited us to learn/join parts of the dance. The lunch was also beyond belief - we were told to expect Chicken and Rice. There was that, and courses and courses of delicious vegetables, tofu, and more. Would recommend.
Written December 28, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tia S
Tuban, Indonesia16 contributions
Dec 2019 • Solo
traditional culture near Labuan Bajo. this is a sanggar or a place where people usually learn to dance or to perform. if you wish to watch the performance, you have to book it first (you can book through travel agent).
it took about 30 min from labuan bajo by motorcycle, but it worth with nice lanscape and weather much better than in the city.
the oldman (sorry didnt remember his name) is very nice and warm welcome. he also over us the traditional handmade songke and coffee ❤
it took about 30 min from labuan bajo by motorcycle, but it worth with nice lanscape and weather much better than in the city.
the oldman (sorry didnt remember his name) is very nice and warm welcome. he also over us the traditional handmade songke and coffee ❤
Written December 12, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Hello, do you need to book a tour for this for can I just rent a motorbike and ride there an afternoon?
Thank you
Written February 3, 2020
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