Pasi Gusung Island: copra warehouses, coves and turtle habitat off Benteng

By Selayar Island Editorial Desk

Pasi Gusung Island is the islet off Benteng, about 30 minutes by lepa boat in a 2016 Jakarta Post report. Sources describe old Dutch copra warehouses, white-sand beaches, a lagoon, mangrove, coves and important sea turtle habitat. The name varies between Pasi and Gusung. Boat times are not published, so arrange the crossing in town.

Where is Pasi Gusung Island?

It sits off Benteng, the main town of Selayar. The name is the first thing to sort out, because no two sources quite agree on it:

This page reads these as one place because they share the name and because the sources that give a location tie it to Benteng; Britannica lists Pasi only as a member of the group. No source states outright that all of them mean the same stretch of shore. If you are after a specific cove or beach, use the local name your boat crew recognises. The regency plan places Gusung in Bontolebang village, which is the most useful word to have with you. For the town itself, see our guide to Benteng, Selayar.

How do you get there from Benteng?

By small local boat. The Jakarta Post reported about 30 minutes by lepa boat in 2016, the regency's attraction list gives joloro access, and TurtlePhD reached it by private boat. Lepa and joloro are local boat types, and joloro also appears as jolloro in the regency's documents.

None of these sources publishes a timetable, a landing point or a fare, so plan on arranging a boat rather than catching one. Settle a few things with the boat owner before you leave the shore:

• The price for the round trip, including waiting time, rather than a one-way figure.
• The time you want to be collected, and what happens if the weather turns before then.
• Which parts of the islet you want to see, since the warehouses and the beaches are not described as being in the same spot.
• Whether life jackets are on board.

The crossing is on the side Wikipedia describes as taking big waves from October to March, so a short hop in April can be a different matter from one in January. Our page on the best time to visit Selayar Island explains the seasonal switch.

What does a boat day around Pasi and Gusung involve?

Journey Beyond the Horizon, a travel blog dated October 2025, describes one arranged in advance from Benteng port: about eight hours, circling both islands along Pasi's west coast. The first stop was Balojaha Beach, followed by a walk of about 15 minutes through coconut trees and bush to Gua Balojaha, a near-vertical cave with a pool at the bottom that the authors swam in. Next came Liang Tarrusu, a small beach among cliffs and rock arches, then snorkelling about 200 m off Liang Kareta. The authors report no food anywhere on the route and a closed resort at Liang Kareta, and warn that hotel markers on Google Maps there are wrong. The regency's 2024 list gives Liang Kareta gazebos and toilets, so ask what is open now. That is one trip, not a timetable, so agree stops and food with the boat owner first.

What are the old copra warehouses?

The Jakarta Post says Gusung has old copra warehouses from the Dutch administration. That single sentence, from 2016, is the published record of the buildings, and it says nothing of their condition, ownership or whether you may enter. Treat them as something to look at from outside unless someone local says otherwise, because old buildings can be unsafe.

The wider story is better documented. Kompas dates the first copra shipments from Selayar to Europe to around 1880. An academic article in the Journal of Southeast Asian Studies traces the island's coconut trade from 1820 to 1950. So an islet of warehouses makes sense as part of a port town's export trade, though the warehouses' own history is unpublished. Our Selayar Island history article gives the longer account.

What are the beaches and coves like?

The regency plan lists a lagoon, mangrove forest, white-sand beach and underwater scenery at Gusung, and The Jakarta Post mentions beaches to the south of the warehouses. Tempo, citing the regency agency in January 2022, named Pasi Gusung among ten marine destinations in the regency.

The most vivid description is one traveller's. TurtlePhD writes of coves, rock arches and a jungle walk to a swimming cave. Read it as a useful lead and ask your boat crew if they know the place. As our own caution rather than a published rule, ask a local who knows the cave before you swim in it.

The regency list also includes Pasi Gusung among its snorkelling sites, without describing the reef. Our page on Selayar snorkeling compares it with other sites. The same list shows that the islet is one of several places that need a boat:

Is the water around Pasi Gusung protected?

It is recognised as important, but its specific legal status is not spelled out in print. WWF-Indonesia calls the waters west of Selayar and around Gusung one of the most important habitats for sea turtles. Its 2017 survey also reports a bycatch risk from nets and lines, which our page on Kampung Penyu sets out. That tension is worth knowing about before you step on a boat here.

A local group is on record too. Tempo reported in 2021 that a compressor was provided to Tanadoang Marine, a conservation and tourism community at Pasi Gusung, while a fisheries official discussed sunken-vessel heritage as a tourism asset. That report is five years old, so check whether the group is still active before you count on it for a guide or for advice.

One resort's rate sheet lists a Selayar Marine Park fee, with nothing linking it to a day trip from Benteng, so ask before you go. Either way, the basics hold: keep clear of turtles, do not stand on coral, and take nothing from the sea floor. A 2022 Atlantis Press paper records ceramics, coins and shipwrecks in Selayar waters, and those finds are heritage.

What should you bring?

No source lists facilities for visitors on the islet, so pack as though there are none. This is our advice, based on that gap, rather than a published requirement:

• Drinking water and food for the whole trip.
• Sun protection and a hat, since the time on the boat and beach is exposed.
• Your own mask and snorkel, as no rental is documented.
• Closed shoes if you plan on the jungle walk TurtlePhD describes.
• Cash for the boat, and a dry bag for your phone.
• A plastic bag to carry your rubbish back to town.

What do travellers ask about Pasi Gusung?

Can you snorkel around Pasi Gusung?

The regency tourism office lists snorkelling at Pasi Gusung, and its plan mentions underwater scenery at Gusung. The reef itself goes undescribed, so ask your boat crew where to enter the water.

Where are Selayar's Dutch copra warehouses?

The Jakarta Post places old copra warehouses of the Dutch administration on Gusung islet, about 30 minutes by lepa boat from Benteng. That is a 2016 report, and it does not describe their present condition or access.

How far is Pasi Gusung from Benteng?

The Jakarta Post gave about 30 minutes by lepa boat in 2016. Time on the water will vary with the boat you hire and the sea that day.

What should I bring to Pasi Gusung?

Bring water, food, sun protection, a mask and snorkel, closed shoes and cash. Visitor facilities on the islet are undocumented, so plan to carry everything for the day.

Can you do Pasi Gusung as a day trip from Benteng?

Yes, a half-hour crossing makes a day trip realistic, provided you can agree a boat and a return time. Check the sea first, since small local boats depend on conditions on the day.

Which sources support this page?

• Britannica: Selayar
• Selayar regency tourism master plan (RIPPARKAB 2023-2025)
• The Jakarta Post, April 2016
• Selayar regency tourism office: attraction list, 2024
• Wikipedia: Selayar Island
• Kompas, November 2023: spice route traces in Selayar
• Journal of Southeast Asian Studies: Selayar and the green gold
• Tempo, January 2022: ten marine destinations
• TurtlePhD (traveller blog): Selayar
• WWF-Indonesia: Selayar at a glance
• Tempo, 2021: shipwreck tourism in Selayar
• Selayar Dive Resort: rates
• Atlantis Press, 2022: underwater archaeology in Selayar
• Journey Beyond the Horizon (travel blog, October 2025): Selayar Island guide

How do I reach the desk?

Thinking of a day on the islet? Write to bd@juaraholding.com or WhatsApp +62 811-3941-4563 with your date and group size. We own no boats and hold no schedule, so a message reserves nothing. Desk requests may end in a paid booking, and that is our commercial interest. Nothing binds you until a written offer names the cost and the company you would contract with.