Indonesia isn’t like a typical destination, where you land on a fine day, make your travel deals and explore the region in few weeks. A vast archipelago of more than 18000 islands, only 6000 of them inhabited; Indonesia is a diversified wonderful country spread between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. It needs some planning from the visitors’ part to enjoy the mind-blowing destinations in Indonesia.
For most of the travellers, Indonesia is all about visiting Bali. Bali is a perfect destination because of its gorgeous beaches, world famous diving spots, magnificent volcanic mountains, beautiful Hindu temples and spectacular rice-terraces. But, there is much more in Indonesia than the exotic island of Bali. While everyone else is landing on the island of Bali and turns it in a chaotic destination, it is better to move on to the other parts of Wonderful Indonesia, some of them are, in fact, more fascinating than Bali. The other islands of Indonesia like Sumatra, Java, Lombok, Komodo, Borneo etc also offer a lifetime adventure for the free spirits. This post is all about the tourist places in Java Island, the most populous island of Indonesia.
Java Island: Java is the most populous island of Indonesia, in fact, it is the most populous island in the world. More than 60% of Indonesian population live on this island. Indonesia’s most important cities like Jakarta, Surbaya, Bandung, Yogyakarta etc are there at Java Island. Despite of its dense population, Java is an amazing destination for adventure seekers. The trip to Java island usually starts from the capital city of Jakarta and goes on further east to Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Mount Bromo and many more exciting destinations in between.
Few prominent destinations on Java Island are:
1. Jakarta: The largest city of Indonesia with high rise buildings and notorious traffic jams is a chaotic and congested destination. But, underneath all the chaos of Jakarta lies an exciting nightlife, glittering shopping malls and the hidden stories of the old Batavia in Kota Tua area. The national monument MONAS is also a must visit.
How many days are good enough? One day for various museums in Kota Tua area. Another day for the national monument MONAS and the shipping malls of Jakarta. Two full days are good enough for a quick trip.
2. Bogor: Just 60 kms South of Jakarta, Bogor is famous for its Botanical Garden. Spread out over 87 hectares, the garden is carefully maintained, parts even seeming like wild forests at the first glance with lakes, two rivers and hilly trail. There are over 15,000 species of trees and plants, 400 varieties of palms alone. The Presidential Palace and The Orchid House are the other worth-visiting attractions. The orchid houses contain over 3000 orchid varieties. The main city of Bogor is however congested and replicate the chaos of Jakarta in every possible manner.
3. Puncak: Another popular weekend destination among the residents of Jakarta, Puncak is a beautiful hill station slightly beyond Bogor, about 75 kms from Jakarta. There are many tea plantations on either side of the main Puncak road. Many of these tea gardens are accessible to general public by paying an entrance fee, that is actually very cheap. Puncak is a beautiful place to walk for miles inside the tea plantations and just relaxing and admiring the breathtaking views. For adventure lovers, paragliding is a must try.
4. Bandung: Bandung is known as The Paris Of Java. Surrounded by the Parahyangan mountains, the temperature is relatively cooler in the third most populous city in Indonesia. It was actually the charm of Tea plantations that attracted the Dutch colonials towards the mountains of Bandung. However, in the morden era, Bandung is labelled as Indonesia’s shopping Mecca, thanks to its textile industry. The city has an endless maze of the factory outlets, where clothes are sold at super affordable rates. Seasonal Travellers not only from Jakarta, but also from Malaysia and Singapore reach there to enjoy shopping at these outlets in Bandung. Colonial architecture and nearby volcanic mountains are the other attractions. Beware of the traffic jams.
5. Yogyakarta: If you need only one reason to visit Yogyakarta, even the Java Island, then it is the iconic temple of Borobudur. However, Yogyakarta, also known as Jogjakarta or Jogja in short, has many jewels in its kitty. Considered as the cultural capital of Indonesia, Jogja is a gateway to the destinations like Borobudur Temple, Mount Merapi, Prambanan Temple, Solo city etc. The city is a hub of art and education. Although the main city has many heritage buildings, monuments and a Sultan’s Palace, very few tourists are interested to explore the main city. Most of the visitors use Jogjakarta as a transit point for onward travels to Borobudur, Mount Merapi or Prambanan Temples. Many tourists stay overnight and make day-trips to these destinations, but hardly few of them explore the city itself.
Borobudur Temple is approx 40 kms away from Yogyakarta City. One of the world’s truly great ancient monuments, the temple of Borobudur is the single largest Buddhist structure anywhere on earth. The temple complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Nearby Hill known as Punthuk Setumbu is a nice place to watch the famed sunrise over Borobudur Temple.
Mount Merapi, the fire mountain, is an active volcano in the heart of Java island. If you ever thought of hiking up an active volcano, then Mount Merapi can be a perfect choice. The trek to Mount Merapi starts from a small, yet beautiful village New Selo, that is approx 55 kms away from Yogyakarta city. A hired vehicle can take upto 2 hours to reach the base camp of New Selo Village. From New Selo village, it is approximately 3 hours hike upto the summit of Mount Merapi.
Prambanan Temple is another UNESCO World Heritage Site, just 20 kms away from Yogyakarta City. It is a vast complex dominated by many Hindu shrines, and the principal temples are dedicated to Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma. Approx 3 kms away from the temple complex, the ruins of Ratu Boko is a nice place to experience the beautiful sunset.
How many days are good enough? Minimum Seven days to include Yogyakarta City, Boobudur Temple, Mount Merapi Hike and Prambanan Temple. However, a quick trip is possible in 3 days, while spending first day at Borobudur, second day at Mount Merapi and Third Day at Prambanan. But, I would suggest to split at least 5 days between Borobudur, Mount Merapi and Prambanan.
How To Reach Yogyakarta? Yogyakarta city is served by an international airport and regular flights are available from Jakarta, Bali, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. It’s good to fly from Bali, KL or Singapore to reduce the travel time, but if you are travelling from Jakarta, I would suggest you to consider a day-time train journey from Jakarta to Yogyakarta. A daytime journey by a train from Jakarta to Yogyakarta is just fantastic with the view of scenic paddy fields, gorgeous mountains and interesting rural life.
6. Mount Bromo and Ijen Crater: Located on the Eastern end of Java Island, Mount Bromo is probably the most famous volcano of Indonesia. In the recent years, it has became a backpackers’ hotspot. Thousands of tourists rush to enjoy this Lunar landscape of rugged, barren volcanic peaks, gravel plains and sand. Trekking in the Bromo-Tengger-Semeru National Park and visit to the Ijen Crater to see the Blue Fire, a phenomenon due to the self ignition of the sulfur produced by the volcano, are the must do activities in the region.
How many days are good enough? Minimum 4 days to explore Mount Bromo and Ijen Crater properly from Surbaya city. However, 3 days 2 nights trip is also possible. Hike to Bromo Carter takes approximately 2 hours from the nearest motor-able spot. Then, approx 6 hours (210 kms) long journey is required from Cemoro Lawang, the base camp of Mount Bromo to Banyuwangi , the base camp for Ijen Crater. Hike to Ijen Crater is an effort of approx 2 hours.
How To Reach? The nearest city Surbaya is connected to Jakarta and other major cities in Java by the bus and the rail network. Surbaya is also served by an international airport and direct flights are available to all major destinations in Indonesia as well Kuala Lumpur, Singpore, Hong Kong and Taipei. If you are travelling from Bali Island by the road, then a boat ride is compulsory to reach Java Island from Bali Island. From Bali side, Ijen Crater is the first place to visit, while from Surbaya or Yogyakarta side, Mount Bromo falls early on the route.
There are few gorgeous beaches off the coast Java Island near Yogyakarta and Semarang city, but Java is basically all about its bustling cities (Jakarta, Bandung, Surbaya, Yogyakarta) , unbeatable shopping (Jakarta, Bandung), vibrant cultural life (Jakarta, Yogyakarta) , volcanic mountains (Mount Merapi, Mount Merbabu, Mount Bromo, Mount Salak etc) , tea gardens (Bandung, Puncak, Bogor) , ancient monuments (Old Batavia, Bogor, Yogyakarta) and the iconic temples (Borobudur, Prambanan and Dieng Platue). For a trip of 10 days or so, Java island is a great alternative for the beautiful island of Bali.
This post is just an overview of few beautiful places on the island of Java. In future, I will write about these places in details with my own experiences, so that you can plan your trip in an informed manner. Off the East coast of Bali, there are few other amazing destinations like Gili Islands, Lombok Island, Komodo etc. We will talk about them slowly in the subsequent posts.
