The rather sleepy port town of BIMA is a useful place to break up the otherwise agonizing overland trip to Komodo, but little remains from the days when it served as the most important port in Nusa Tenggara. The town is centred on the market on Jalan Flores; most of the losmen lie to the east of the Sultan's Palace, and the bus terminal is to the south. The Merpati office is at Jl Sukarno Hatta 58, the Telkom office is further out on the same road. Change money at the BRI bank (Mon-Fri 8am-2.30pm, Sat 8am-11.30pm) by the central square. The main post office is a little out of town on Jalan Gajah Mada.

The last word in cheap accomodation is Losmen Vivi (Rp15,000) on Jalan Sukarno Hatta, but it's a bit grotty and usually full; Losmen Lila Graha at Jl Sumbawa 19 (tel 0371/42740; under $5) is a much more salubrious and friendlier option. By far the most salubrious place in town is Hotel La'ambitu, facing the market at Jl Sumbawa 4 (tel 0371/4333; under $15, and offering great value standard rooms with hot water, fan and TV. The restaurant of the Hotel La'ambittu is equally good, serving Chinese dishes, omelettes, pancakes and fried potatoes. The Lila Graha also serves regular Indonesian travellers' cuisine, or try the night stalls at the market.

Most travellers arrive in Bima at the long-distance bus terminal , a short dokar ride south of town. Scores of night-bus agents on Jalan Pasar offer air-con and standard buses to all major destinations including Mataram and Sumbawa Besar. Kumbe terminal for buses to Sape (Rp2000) is in Raba, about 5km out of town. If you want to catch the early-morning bus to Sape to connect with the ferry east, tell your hotel the night before and the bus should pick you up at 4am. Ferries including the monthly Pelni services KM Tatamilau and KM Tilongkabila arrive at the harbour, 2km west of Bima and served by dokar. The airport is 20km away; buses stop outside the airport and run all the way to the bus terminal.