How to get to Selayar Island from Makassar by air, road and ferry

By Selayar Island Editorial Desk

Sourced figures: prices in the table carry their source and check month. Fares and rates change, and nothing here is medical or legal advice.

How to get to Selayar Island comes down to two routes: road from Makassar to Bira, a ferry of about two hours to Pamatata and a drive to Benteng, or a short flight from Makassar to the airport near Benteng. Flights have stopped more than once and ferries stay in port when the sea is rough, so keep a spare day.

How to get to Selayar Island: what are the ways in?

Two routes are documented well enough to plan around: the overland chain through Bira and Pamatata, and the flight from Makassar to H. Aroeppala Airport. A third, an overnight ship from Makassar to Benteng, appears in tourism office records and a 2025 travel blog, but its days need checking. The regency's tourism master plan names three gateway ports: Pamatata for boats from Bira, Benteng for PELNI ships from Makassar and Bulukumba, and Pattumbukang for East Nusa Tenggara. Its port data runs to 2018, so read that list as a map of where ships can land, not as a timetable.

Selayar Island lies across a strait that Wikipedia describes as deep with a strong current, so every route has a sea or air leg, and weather matters more than distance. The table keeps each published figure next to its source. Adding them into one door-to-door total would suggest a precision nobody has published, and the only door-to-door figure below comes from a single traveller.

How does the road and ferry route work?

The chain has three legs. The first is the road from Makassar to Bira, which Wikipedia puts at four to five hours. Selayar Dive Resort quotes the same range.

The second leg is the crossing, and here the sources disagree. ASDP Bira told Tribun-Timur in July 2026 that the trip takes about two hours and that two ferries normally serve the line. The Ministry of Tourism also says about two hours. Sulawesi.com, a tour operator's guide, says two and a half. Base any connection on the longer figure.

Departure times conflict too. Rubrik reports that ASDP's undated route database lists 08:00 and 14:00 WITA from Bira. Sulawesi.com reports sailings near 09:00 and 13:00 in the dry season and says the afternoon boat is regularly cancelled in rough weather. Rubrik advises checking with ASDP Selayar or call centre 021191, and that is the only safe reading of two unconfirmed timetables. Aim for the morning boat, which means sleeping near Bira or leaving Makassar well before dawn. Tickets are a separate question: our Pamatata ferry port page sets out the online and counter reports, which conflict.

The overnight sleeper bus solves the early start. TurtlePhD, a traveller's blog, reports one leaving Makassar's Malengkeri terminal around 11pm and reaching Benteng around 11am, boarding the ferry on the way, and Selayar Eco Resort reports the same timing. Both reports are undated, so confirm the departure at the terminal. Journey Beyond the Horizon, a travel blog dated October 2025, lists day buses from the same terminal around 08:00 to 09:00 and sometimes around 02:00, allows 9 to 12 hours in all, and advises reconfirming the day before. The regency's plan counted 15 passenger buses from 8 companies serving the regency in 2018, which suggests a real service without proving this year's.

You can also bring a vehicle. Tribun-Timur's report gives fares for motorcycles and for cars or minibuses, and the price table on this page carries the car and passenger figures with their sources. Fares, payment and arrival details are in the port guide linked above.

Can you fly to Selayar Island?

Yes, when the route is running. Wikipedia says that, as of 2026, only FlyJaya operates scheduled flights at H. Aroeppala Airport, and only to Makassar, after earlier airlines left. Sulawesi.com's destination page says FlyJaya flies ATR 72 aircraft there in about 45 minutes (October 2026) and that flights have stopped twice since 2023. Its advice is to keep a spare day, and we agree.

The flight removes the road and the ferry, but it leaves you dependent on one route and, on Wikipedia's account, one airline. Anyone coming from elsewhere in Indonesia connects in Makassar first. Booking sites name other carriers and frequencies, and our page on the Makassar to Selayar flight sets those conflicts out source by source. The airport is about 7 km from Benteng, so the last stretch is short.

Is there a direct boat from Makassar?

Yes on the more recent evidence, though check before you rely on it. The regency tourism office reported in May 2021 that the company DLU had begun running KM Dharma Kartika III, a 72 m roll-on, roll-off ship, between Makassar's Soekarno Hatta port and Benteng's Rauf Rahman port from 23 April 2021. It gave a Friday 20:00 departure from Makassar, a Sunday 22:00 return and about 9 hours each way, all subject to change, with a DLU office in Benteng and tickets through the DLU Ferry app. Journey Beyond the Horizon lists the same ship in October 2025 as sailing once or twice a week on varying days, overnight, in 9 to 10 hours.

Against that, Rome2Rio, a route aggregator, says there is no direct ferry from Makassar to Selayar, and shows a route through Labuan Bajo and Jampea to Pattumbukang that takes about two days. An aggregator can miss a private line, so ask DLU for the current days. The regency's plan, on data to 2018, also names Benteng as the port for PELNI ships from Makassar and Bulukumba, which is a separate check with PELNI.

A landing at Pattumbukang would not put you close to everything. Sulawesi.com gives three hours by road between Pamatata and Pattumbukan, so ask how far you still have to go before you choose that door.

One more boat appears in the record. Selayar Dive Resort describes a speedboat trip from Bira of about 2.5 hours, and its rates sheet ties that transfer to a minimum stay, as our page on Selayar Island resort options explains. That is a resort's own transfer, not a public service.

How do you get from Pamatata to Benteng?

By hired car or shared bemo, according to Sulawesi.com, which says the drive takes 90 minutes. TurtlePhD reports about one hour. The regency plan gives the distance as 40 km. Allow the full 90 minutes when you have something to catch.

The price table on this page shows both fares, taken from that same undated guide. If you cross later in the day, ask your lodging to help arrange a ride before you board. Sulawesi.com says most visitors stay in town, and our guide to Benteng Selayar covers that base.

The route also shapes the rest of the trip. Selayar Dive Resort sets its own transfer days, as our Selayar Island diving page notes, and the distances on our Selayar Island beaches page start from Benteng. Our pages on where to stay on Selayar Island and things to do in Selayar Island assume you arrive in town first, and the Selayar Island travel cost page puts these fares beside room and boat rates.

How much spare time should you allow?

One full day at the end of the trip, at minimum, before anything that cannot move, such as an international flight out of Makassar. The reasons are on record. Wikipedia says waves around Selayar can reach 4 to 5 m and that services may be suspended at short notice, and the Ministry of Tourism says ferries do not sail when the sea is rough.

Two live pages help in the final days. BMKG, the national weather agency, publishes a forecast for Selayar waters and a port forecast for Pamatata. A forecast cannot tell you that a sailing will run, but it can tell you when to leave a day early. Our Selayar Island itinerary shows where that spare day sits in a real plan.

What else should you know about reaching Selayar?

Is Selayar Island difficult to reach?

The overland route fills most of a day: 4 to 5 hours of road, about two hours of ferry and up to 90 minutes more to Benteng. The flight has stopped more than once, and ferries stay in port when the sea is rough, so a spare day keeps a delay from becoming a missed connection.

Can I buy Selayar ferry tickets at Bira?

Possibly, but do not count on it. Journey Beyond the Horizon, in October 2025, says tickets are online only through Ferizy, ASDP's booking site, with check-in at least 120 minutes before departure, yet its authors bought their return on the boat. Book online if you can, and call ASDP on 021191 for the day's rule.

How long is the flight to Selayar Island?

Sulawesi.com gives about 45 minutes, while Rome2Rio and Trip.com list about 50. Use the time printed on your ticket.

Can I take a car ferry to Selayar Island?

Yes, on the evidence of Tribun-Timur's July 2026 report, which lists fares for cars, minibuses and motorcycles on the Bira to Pamatata crossing. Deck space on a given day is a question for ASDP.

How far is Pamatata from Benteng?

The regency's tourism plan gives 40 km. Sulawesi.com puts the drive at 90 minutes and the TurtlePhD travel blog at about one hour.

Can I fly from Makassar to Selayar Island?

Yes, when the service is operating. Wikipedia lists FlyJaya as the only scheduled airline as of 2026. Ask the airline about your exact date before you plan around it.

Which sources support this page?

• Kepulauan Selayar tourism master plan, RIPPARKAB 2023-2025 (PDF)
• Wikipedia: Selayar Islands
• Wikipedia: H. Aroeppala Airport
• Tribun-Timur: school-holiday report on the Bira to Selayar crossing, July 2026
• Indonesia Ministry of Tourism: Selayar
• Sulawesi.com, tour operator: Selayar Island travel guide
• Rubrik.co.id: Bira to Pamatata crossing, September 2026
• TurtlePhD, traveller's blog: Selayar guide
• Selayar Eco Resort, operator page
• Sulawesi.com, tour operator: Selayar Island destination page
• Rome2Rio: Makassar to Selayar Island
• Selayar Dive Resort, operator: arrival
• Selayar Dive Resort, operator: rates sheet
• BMKG: marine forecast for Selayar waters
• BMKG: port forecast for Pamatata
• Journey Beyond the Horizon (travel blog, October 2025): Selayar Island guide
• Selayar tourism office, May 2021: KM Dharma Kartika III
• traveloka.com
• trip.com

How do I reach the desk?

The desk can help you line up the legs for your dates. Write on WhatsApp +62 811-3941-4563 or email bd@juaraholding.com with your starting point, your dates and the last flight you must catch. We do not run ferries, flights or buses and cannot hold a seat. Requests through the desk can lead to a paid booking, so we have a commercial interest, explained on our disclaimer page, and only a written offer binds anyone.