Draft and Anchorage Limits: Matching a Listing to Your Waters
Updated: August 2026
Draft — the depth of hull below the waterline — decides which anchorages a phinisi can use. Most 20–30 metre hulls draw 2.0–2.8 metres and reach nearly everything in Komodo and Raja Ampat. Past roughly 3.2 metres a meaningful number of shallow bays close, and guests spend more nights further off the beach.
Why draft matters more here than almost anywhere
The cruising grounds that make eastern Indonesia worth owning a vessel for are shallow, coral-fringed and often poorly charted. The attractive anchorages are the ones tucked behind a reef, close enough to the beach that a tender ride takes two minutes rather than fifteen. Those are precisely the anchorages that a deep-draft hull cannot enter.
This is why draft is a commercial specification, not a technical footnote. On a charter vessel it determines the itinerary you can sell. On a private vessel it determines whether the trip you imagined is the trip you get.
Reading draft correctly in a listing
Listings quote a single figure. In reality there are three, and they differ:
- Design draft — from the drawings, at a defined loading condition. This is usually the number advertised.
- Loaded draft — with full fuel, full water, guests, provisions, tender and equipment. Commonly fifteen to thirty centimetres deeper.
- Maximum projection — the deepest point of anything below the hull, which may be the propeller, the rudder shoe or a sonar transducer rather than the keel.
Ask which one the listing quotes, and ask for the loaded figure. The difference between an advertised 2.6 metres and a real 2.9 metres loaded is the difference between entering an anchorage and circling outside it.
Depth bands and what they open or close
| Loaded draft | Practical effect |
|---|---|
| Under 2.0 m | Very few limits; can work close inshore and in shallow lagoon entrances |
| 2.0–2.8 m | The comfortable band; reaches the great majority of Komodo and Raja Ampat anchorages |
| 2.8–3.2 m | Workable, but some shallow bays require anchoring further out and longer tender runs |
| Over 3.2 m | A real constraint; itineraries need designing around depth rather than around interest |
Tide, swing and scope
Draft is only half the anchoring problem. You also need swinging room and adequate scope, and in areas with significant tidal range the depth you sound on arrival is not the depth you will have at low water. A vessel with 2.6 metres of draft anchoring in four metres at high water can find itself with very little under the keel six hours later.
Ask the seller’s captain which anchorages the vessel routinely uses and which it avoids. That answer, from someone who has actually operated the hull, is worth more than any specification sheet.
Matching draft to your intended use
If the plan is Komodo-based charter with short hops and beach-adjacent anchorages, prioritise shallow draft and accept the smaller hull that usually accompanies it — see the 20-metre class and 24-metre listings. If the plan is longer passages between Bali, Komodo and Raja Ampat with fewer, longer stays, a deeper hull with better sea-keeping and more fuel range is the better trade — see the 40-metre class.
Verifying at survey
Have the surveyor confirm actual draft with the vessel in a known loading state, and record the deepest projection rather than the keel alone. If the hull is hauled out for survey, this is straightforward and takes minutes. Record the figure in writing; it becomes the number your captain plans against for the next decade.
The one measurement crews get wrong
Ask how the vessel’s draft was established. On a surprising number of Indonesian hulls the answer is that someone measured it once, years ago, before a refit added a generator, a battery bank and a heavier tender. Every kilogram added since then has pushed the hull further down, and nobody revised the number. The result is a captain planning against a figure that was accurate in 2016 and is twenty centimetres optimistic today. Have it re-measured at survey and written into the file.
Request the vessel dossier
Tell us the anchorages you intend to use and we will filter the inventory by loaded draft. WhatsApp +62 811-3941-4563 or write to [email protected]. All figures on this site are quoted in USD.
Frequently asked questions
What draft does a typical phinisi have?
Hulls in the 20 to 30 metre range typically draw between 2.0 and 2.8 metres. Larger flagship vessels commonly draw over three metres, which begins to restrict access to the shallower anchorages in Komodo and Raja Ampat.
Is the draft in a listing the loaded draft?
Usually not. Listings normally quote design draft from the drawings. Loaded draft, with full tanks, guests, provisions and equipment aboard, is commonly fifteen to thirty centimetres deeper. Always ask which figure is being quoted.
Does shallow draft mean worse sea-keeping?
It generally means a more lively motion in open water, since a deeper hull tracks better and rolls less in a swell. The trade is real: shallow draft buys anchorage access, deeper draft buys comfort on passage.
How much water do I need under the keel at anchor?
Plan for the lowest tide during your stay plus a working margin, not the depth on arrival. In areas with meaningful tidal range, a vessel anchoring in four metres at high water can be uncomfortably close to the bottom by the next low.
Phinisi Boat For Sale is a specialist maritime brand and digital platform under Juara Holding Group. Vessel-sale, construction, refit and repair contracts are issued by PT Komodo Galangan Nusantara. Brokerage, central agency and charter-marketing contracts are issued by PT Komodo Bahari Nusantara. Separate contracts, separate fees, separate ledgers.
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Written and checked by the desk. Figures are dated at the point of writing — our editorial standards explains how, and what happens when something here turns out to be wrong.
