Do not use this company
I would strongly advise against booking with Green Rinjani.
Our trip was not simply disappointing – I genuinely believe our lives were put at risk.
The boat we travelled on, Sultan, was in an extremely poor state of repair. One of the two engines failed completely, while the other was only operating at limited capacity. We were later informed that the boat had reportedly required urgent repairs for the past seven years. Despite this, it was still being used to transport tourists.
As a result of the engine failure, we spent the night in large swells far from land. It was one of the most frightening experiences I have ever had and I genuinely did not feel safe. To make matters worse, the safety equipment appeared to be inadequate. The lifeboats were incorrectly connected, had no quick-release mechanism, and were not properly attached to the boat.
Throughout the trip, every level of the company—from the boat owner to the tour operator—repeatedly lied about what had happened. We were continually told that strong currents were the reason we were running behind schedule. However, every other tour boat reached each stop on time. We have evidence showing that, before departure, they discussed transferring passengers to a fast boat because of the engine problems but decided against it, presumably because it would have cost them money.
The way complaints were handled was equally shocking. When one member of our group raised concerns with the boat owner, he responded by sending a video of a recently capsized boat in which five people lost their lives, telling us to stop complaining because we were “lucky this wasn’t us.” That response was completely unacceptable and demonstrated a disturbing disregard for passenger safety.
Although we missed every scheduled stop except the final one, that was ultimately the least important issue. The real problem is that I genuinely believe we were placed in a situation where there was a real risk of serious injury or death.
The problems did not end there. We found cockroaches in the food, but staff attempted to blame the passengers, claiming we had left our plates unattended, which was simply untrue. Even more concerning, one passenger was bitten by what appeared to be a spider in their cabin and required emergency surgery upon arriving back on land.
Please do not book with Green Rinjani. I appreciate that standards can vary between operators in Indonesia, but this company stood out for all the wrong reasons. In my opinion, they knowingly operated an unsafe vessel, repeatedly misled passengers about its condition, refused to accept any responsibility, and prioritised profit over people’s safety.
This is an accident waiting to happen, and I sincerely hope no one else has to experience what we went through.