Indonesia
Contents
Plan Your Trip
Welcome to Indonesia
Indonesia's Top 20
Need to Know
What's New
If You Like...
Month by Month
Itineraries
Outdoor Adventures
Travel with Children
Regions at a Glance
On The Road
Java
Java Highlights
Jakarta
Thousand Islands
Pulau Bidadari
Pulau Macan
West Java
Banten
Merak
Carita
Labuan
Gunung Krakatau
Ujung Kulon National Park
Bogor
Around Bogor
Cimaja
Around Cimaja
Cibodas
Gede Pangrango National Park
Cianjur
Bandung
North of Bandung
South of Bandung
Bandung to Pangandaran
Pangandaran
Around Pangandaran
Central Java
Wonosobo
Dieng Plateau
Borobudur
Yogyakarta
Imogiri
Gunung Merapi
Kaliurang & Kaliadem
Selo
Prambanan
Solo (Surakarta)
Sangiran
Gunung Lawu
Tawangmangu
North Coast
Semarang
Ambarawa
Demak
Jepara
Around Jepara
Karimunjawa Islands
East Java
Surabaya
Trowulan
Pulau Madura
Malang
Around Malang
Blitar
Panataran
Gunung Kelud
Pacitan
Around Pacitan
Probolinggo
Gunung Bromo & Bromo-Tengger-Semeru National Park
Bondowoso
Ijen Plateau
Jember
Kalibaru
Meru Betiri National Park
Alas Purwo National Park
Banyuwangi
Baluran National Park
Bali
Kuta & Legian
Seminyak & Kerobokan
Canggu & Around
Bukit Peninsula
Sanur
Denpasar
Nusa Lembongan
Nusa Ceningan
Nusa Penida
South of Ubud
North of Ubud
Gianyar
Bangli
Semarapura (Klungkung)
Sidemen Road
Pura Besakih
Rendang to Amlapura Road
Gunung Agung
Kusamba to Padangbai
Padangbai
Padangbai to Candidasa
Tenganan
Candidasa
Candidasa to Amlapura
Amlapura
Tirta Gangga
Amed & the Far East Coast
Tulamben
Gunung Batur
Around Gunung Batur
Around Danau Batur
Danau Bratan
Gunung Batukau Area
Singaraja
Lovina
West of Lovina
Pemuteran
Bali Barat National Park
Gilimanuk
Pura Tanah Lot
Tabanan
Balian Beach
Jembrana Coast
Nusa Tenggara
Nusa Tenggara Highlights
Lombok
Mataram
Around Mataram
Lembar
Southwestern Peninsula
Senggigi
Senggigi to Bangsal
Bangsal to Bayan
Senaru
Sembalun Valley
Gunung Rinjani
Tetebatu
Praya
Around Praya
Kuta
East of Kuta
West of Kuta
Labuhan Lombok
South of Labuhan Lombok
Gili Islands
Sumbawa
West Sumbawa
Sumbawa Besar
Around Sumbawa Besar
East Sumbawa
Komodo & Rinca Islands
Komodo
Rinca
Flores
Labuanbajo
Manggarai Country
Bajawa
Around Bajawa
Riung
Ende
Kelimutu
Moni
Detusoko
Paga
Sikka & Lela
Maumere
Around Maumere
Larantuka
Alor Archipelago
Kalabahi
Around Kalabahi
West Timor
Kupang
Around Kupang
Soe
Around Soe
Kefamenanu
Around Kefamenanu
Rote
Ba'a
Nemberala
Around Nemberala
Sumba
Waingapu
Around Waingapu
East Sumba
South-Central Sumba
Waikabubak
West Sumba
Maluku
Maluku Highlights
North Maluku
Pulau Ternate
Pulau Tidore
Pulau Halmahera
Pulau Ambon
Kota Ambon
Southern Leitimur
Eastern Leihitu
Northern & Western Leihitu
Lease Islands
Pulau Saparua
Pulau Molana
Pulau Seram
Masohi, Namano & Amahai
Northern Seram
Banda Islands
Bandaneira
Pulau Gunung Api
Pulau Banda Besar
Pulau Hatta
Pulau Ai
Pulau Run (Rhun)
Kei Islands
Tual & Langgur
Pulau Kei Kecil
Pulau Tanimbar Kei
Pulau Kei Besar
Papua
Papua Highlights
West Papua
Sorong
Raja Ampat Islands
Manokwari
Around Manokwari
Northern Papua
Jayapura
Sentani
Around Sentani
Pulau Biak
Nabire
Baliem Valley
Wamena
Northeastern Baliem Valley
Northwestern Baliem Valley
Danau Habbema
Yali Country
The South
Merauke
Wasur National Park
Asmat Region
Korowai Region
Sumatra
Sumatra Highlights
North Sumatra
Medan
Bukit Lawang
Tangkahan
Berastagi
Parapat
Danau Toba
Sibolga
Pulau Nias
Gunung Sitoli
Teluk Dalam
Pantai Sorake & Teluk Lagundri
Traditional Villages
Aceh
Banda Aceh
Pulau Weh
Aceh's West Coast
Banyak Islands
Gunung Leuser National Park
West Sumatra
Padang
Around Padang
Mentawai Isla
nds
Bukittinggi
Around Bukittinggi
Danau Maninjau
Kerinci Valley
Kerinci Seblat National Park
Bengkulu
Bengkulu
Around Bengkulu
Riau
Pekanbaru
Pulau Batam
Pulau Bintan
Jambi
Jambi
South Sumatra
Palembang
Krui
Lampung
Bandarlampung
Way Kambas National Park
Gunung Krakatau
Bakauheni
Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park
Kalimantan
Kalimantan Highlights
West Kalimantan
Pontianak
Sungai Kapuas
Sukadana
Central Kalimantan
Tanjung Puting National Park
Kumai
Pangkalan Bun
Palangka Raya
South Kalimantan
Banjarmasin
Kandangan
Negara
Loksado
East Kalimantan
Balikpapan
Samarinda
Sungai Mahakam
The Muller Mountains
Kutai National Park
Berau
Merabu
Derawan Archipelago
North Kalimantan
Sulawesi
Sulawesi Highlights
South Sulawesi
Makassar
Pantai Bira
Pulau Lihukan
Pulau Selayar
Taka Bone Rate Islands
Watampone
Sengkang
Pare Pare
Tana Toraja
Around Tana Toraja
West Sulawesi
Mamasa Valley
Central Sulawesi
Pendolo
Tentena
Poso
Around Poso
Lore Lindu National Park
Palu
Donggala & Tanjung Karang
Luwuk
Ampana
Togean Islands
North Sulawesi
Gorontalo
Manado
Pulau Bunaken
Tomohon
Around Tomohon
Bitung
Pulau Lembeh & the Lembeh Strait
Tangkoko-Batuangas Dua Saudara Nature Reserve
Southeast Sulawesi
Kolaka
Kendari
Bau Bau
Tukangbesi Islands
Understand
Understand Indonesia
Indonesia Today
History
Culture
Food & Drink
Environment
Survive
Responsible Travel
Responsible Diving
Responsible Hiking & Trekking
Volunteering
Directory AZ
Accommodation
Customs Regulations
Electricity
Embassies & Consulates
Food
Insurance
Internet Access
Legal Matters
LGBT Travellers
Maps
Money
Opening Hours
Photography
Post
Public Holidays
Safe Travel
Telephone
Time
Toilets
Tourist Information
Travellers with Disabilities
Visas
Volunteering
Women Travellers
Transport
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Health
Before You Go
In Indonesia
Language
Behind the Scenes
Our Writers
Welcome to Indonesia
Indonesia's numbers astound: more than 17,000 islands, of which 8000 are inhabited, and over 300 languages are spoken across them. It's a beguiling country offering myriad adventures.
Rich Diversity
The world’s fourth most populous country – 255 million and counting – is a sultry kaleidoscope that runs along the equator for 5000km. From the western tip of Sumatra to the eastern edge of Papua, this nation defies homogenisation. It is a land of so many cultures, peoples, animals, customs, plants, sights, artworks and foods that it is like 100 countries melded into one.
The people are as radically different from each other as if they came from different continents, with every island a unique blend of the men, women and children who live upon it. Over time deep and rich cultures have evolved, from the mysteries of the spiritual Balinese to the utterly non-Western belief system of the Asmat people of Papua.
Beaches & Volcanoes
Venturing across Indonesia you’ll see a dramatic landscape, as diverse as those living upon it. Sulawesi's wildly multi-limbed coastline embraces white-sand beaches and diving haunts, while Sumatra is contoured by a legion of nearly 100 volcanoes marching off into the distance, several capable of erupting at any time.
Amazing Spectacle
Dramatic sights are the norm. There’s the sublime: an orangutan lounging in a tree. The artful: a Balinese dancer executing precise moves that would make a robot seem loose-limbed. The idyllic: a deserted stretch of blinding white sand on Sumbawa set off by azure surf breaks. The astonishing: the mobs in a cool, glitzy Jakarta mall on a Sunday. The intriguing: the too-amazing-for-fiction tales of the twisted history of the beautiful Banda Islands. The heart-stopping: the ominous menace of a Komodo dragon. The humbling: a woman bent double with a load of firewood on Sumatra. The delicious: a south Bali restaurant. The shocking: the funeral ceremonies of Tana Toraja. The solemn: the serene magnificence of Borobudur.
Great Adventure
This ever-intriguing, ever-intoxicating land offers some of the last great adventures on earth. Sitting in the open door of a train whizzing across Java, idling away time on a ferry bound for Kalimantan, hanging on to the back of a scooter on Flores, rounding the mystifying corner of an ancient West Timor village or simply trekking through wilderness you’re sure no one has seen before – you’ll enjoy endless exploration of the infinite diversity of Indonesia’s 17,000-odd islands.
Gunung Bromo, JavaANUCHIT KAMSONGMUEANG/GETTY IMAGES ©
Why I Love Indonesia
By Ryan Ver Berkmoes, Writer
I was driving across beautiful Flores and rounding a corner somewhere east of the steamy port town of Ende, when the most brilliant view of a volcano filled my windscreen. Conical, with obvious recent lava flows down the side and a little ominous wisp of steam rising from the top. And I thought: 'That's the third one today!' And so it goes in Indonesia – where the natural beauty is as diverse as the people who live among it. You can have world-class fun on Bali and the next day be way off the grid in the incredible Bandas.
Indonesia's Top 20
Komodo National Park
Indonesia’s best-known national park comprises several islands and some of the country's richest waters within its 1817 sq km. Expect hulking mountainous islands blanketed in savannah, laced with trails and patrolled by the world’s largest lizard: the Komodo dragon. That’s the big draw here, and it’s easy to spot them, but there’s also big nature beneath the water's surface where kaleidoscopic bait draws big pelagics like sharks and manta rays in great numbers. Nearby Labuanbajo, on the island of Flores, is the perfect traveller base.
Komodo dragonBARRY KUSUMA/GETTY IMAGES ©
Top Experiences
Balinese Dance
Enjoying a Balinese dance performance is a highlight of a visit to Indonesia's most famous holiday island. The haunting sounds, elaborate costumes, careful choreography and even light-hearted comic routines add up to great entertainment. Swept up in the spectacle, you'll soon understand why B
alinese culture is among the world's most developed. The music that often accompanies traditional dance is based around an ensemble known as a gamelan. The melodic, sometimes upbeat and sometimes haunting percussion is a night-time staple of life in Ubud, Bali's cultural centre.