Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
4,408km²
Area
505km
Coastline
measured on a simplified outline
1,100m
Highest point
500,000
People
30°C
Warmest sea
December
960km
To the mainland
When to go to Buton Island
Best for the beach from August to October.
The sea is warmest in December (30 °C) and coolest in August (27 °C). You can swim comfortably all year (21 °C or more).
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in Southeast Sulawesi Province, Indonesia
Buton Island is an island in Indonesia. It covers 4,408 km², with 505 km of coastline. Its highest point rises to 1,100 m. About 500,000 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 960 km away.
Getting there
- Matahora Airport (WNI)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 88 km in a straight lineCar hire at DPS airport (Kuta, Badung)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesKM Cantika Anugrah, WangiWangi -Kamaru, Kamaru - Kaledupa
- 960 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
- From August to Octoberbest months to go (from 30 years of averages)
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Buton Island.
- 2viewpointsBukit Kolema, Bukit Wantiro
- 4ferry terminalsKamaru ferry port, Pelabuhan Ulunambo, Pelabuhan and 1 more
- 2marinasDermaga, Pelabuhan Desa Mataindaha
- 23named peaksKabawo Lambohogo, Gunu Moganebalango, Gunung Laea and 20 more
- 4waterfallsKabura Burna, Tirta Rimba Lower Falls, Tirta Rimba Upper Falls and 1 more
- 7castles and fortsDs. Bajo Benteng, Benteng Keraton Kesultanan Buton, Benteng Sorawolio Buton and 4 more
- 1ruins and archaeological sitesRumah Adat Lambale
- 6hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 4restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Buton Island in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Buton Island, each with its own numbers.
30mountainsPeakyas
30 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Gunu Kabumbu Kopea
- Gunu Kamosope
- Gunu Embusan
- Gunu Lambelu
- Gunu Katipi
- Gunu Siantopina
- Gunu Warombia
- Pegunungan Wakalambe
22 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 209 m above the sea. 56 % of it is below 200 m.
- 23 %0–50 m
- 34 %50–200 m
- 37 %200–500 m
- 7 %500–1,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
100 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Pasar Wajono census figure
- Burangano census figure
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 29 |
| Night low (°C) | 26 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 27 |
| Sea (°C) | 29 | 29 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 30 |
| Rain (mm) | 214 | 226 | 247 | 225 | 214 | 215 | 121 | 49 | 45 | 58 | 138 | 254 |
| Wet days | 24 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 21 | 18 | 13 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 24 |
| Sun h/day | 5.9 | 5.8 | 6.3 | 6.2 | 5.7 | 5.4 | 6.4 | 7.6 | 8.5 | 8.8 | 8.2 | 6.1 |
| Wind (km/h) | 8 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 8 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.6 | +0.6 | +0.3 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.2 | −0.1 |
| 2021 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.1 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.2 | −0.1 |
| 2022 | −0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.1 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.1 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +0.2 | ±0.0 |
| 2023 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.9 | +0.5 | −0.1 | −0.2 | +0.2 | +0.2 |
| 2024 | +0.7 | +0.4 | +0.5 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.5 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.7 | +0.1 |
| 2025 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.5 | +0.2 | +0.4 | +0.6 | +0.5 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +0.1 | −0.2 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
Muna Island
Wawonii Island
Kabaena Island
Selayar Island
Sulawesi
Lembata Island
Banggai Island
Adonara IslandAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q1018014) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | Natural Earth · public domain |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.



