Why go to Indonesia and what activities can you do there?

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Treks

The islands of Sumatra and Java offer the most popular treks. You can hike through real jungle and see wild animals such as orangutans in the wild. You can choose from short treks of a few hours to multi-day trips into the rainforest. Entry to the national park is only allowed with a guide.

You can try beautiful treks to the top of the volcano, for example on the island of Kintamani or on Lombok - when climbing the famous Rinjani volcano.

Even if you book a guide at a travel agency or hotel, you will not be sure that he will really know the terrain and provide a good interpretation.

Poor quality guides can be a big problem, especially when trekking through the jungle. There have been cases where an irresponsible guide has run off and left the group in a dangerous situation. In some places, anyone will offer to be your guide although their services are not professional in the slightest.

Therefore, communicate with other tourists, ask questions and share experiences with them. It is also worth visiting travel sites before your trip, where you can get many specific tips.

Surfing

You will find several world-class surfing locations in Indonesia.

Bali

• Kuta and Legian - a long beach suitable for beginners, you can find surfboard rentals and surf schools. Waves average 2-3 ft., picking up in the afternoon. A popular destination for Australian surfers with a rich nightlife.
• Uluwatu - another popular surfing beach. Waves here range from small to large.
• Padang - especially suitable for advanced surfers, there are various surfing competitions throughout the year. Waves 4-12 ft.
• Canggu, Batu Bolong, Echo Beach - 3 beaches about half an hour from Kuta, waves for beginners and advanced and every Sunday a beach party at Sand Bar until dawn.
• Serangan - wide beach, popular and therefore sometimes quite full. Ideal conditions in the rainy season.

Lombok

Lombok's southern beaches are particularly ideal for surfing:

• Kuta - a sandy beach that will please advanced surfers, waves 2-6 ft.
• Mawi - southern beach about 20 min. It is located west of Kuta. Suitable for beginners and advanced, ideal conditions from May to September. Waves 8-10 ft.
• Grupuk - a sandy beach east of Kuta, suitable for surfers of different levels. Waves 3-15 ft.
• Air Guling - suitable for all abilities, waves 4-10 ft.

Sumba

Like Lombok, Sumba is best surfed on the southern beaches:

• Nihiwatu - one of the most popular surfing beaches in Indonesia. The most popular beaches in the world. Waves from 2-15 ft. The bottom is a reef. The ideal conditions from April to September.
• Miller's Right - for surfers of all abilities, waves average 2-6 ft., can be up to 18 ft. Dead coral on the bottom, boots are highly recommended.
• Wainjapu - sandy beach turning into a reef. Waves 2-10 ft.

Sumbawa

• Scar reef - one of the best advanced surf spots on this island. Access is only possible by boat. Dangers are very sharp reefs and possible shark attacks.
• Supersuck - ideal conditions in winter, waves reach 6-15 ft. Designed for advanced surfers. Boat access, high risk of shark attack on a 7 out of 10 scale.

Sumatra

Sumatra is surfable in the Indian Ocean in the north in the Aceh area and in the south in the Bengkulu and Lampung areas. The rest of the coastline here is covered by islands, where there are also many beautiful spots with suitable waves.

• Aceh area - Aceh has always been a little more radical in Islam than other parts of the country, so check the current situation locally before you plan your trip here. Surfing here will be enjoyed mainly by the experienced, there are many undiscovered spots with great waves. Some of the ones already discovered include Lhok Nga, Pantai Camara, Meulaboh, Lamno, Ujong Karang, etc.
• Bangkulu - Pantai Panjang Bangkulu on the coast and Enggano Island accessible by boat.

It is possible to travel to the Sumatran islands by boat:

• Nias - ferries from Singkil and Sibolga go to Gunung Sitoli. If you want to get as close to Soraka Beach as possible, take the ferry from Sibolga to Teluk Dalam. Experienced surfers will find their place here.
• Mentawai Islands - There are ferries from Padang to the larger islands, and from there you can take a boat to the smaller islands. Surf spots can be found at Siebrut Island and Masokut (Burgerworld, Beng Bengs, Botik, Kandui, A-frames, ...), Sinanabg Island (Simeulue), Pagai Utara Island (Macaronis), Sipura Island (Telescopes, Arik, Seven Palm Point, ...).

Diving

Most of the seaside resorts with interesting diving sites have equipment rentals and diving schools.

Interesting places to dive include:

• Pulau Weh off Sumatra Island - a site rich in larger fish - here you will find moray eels of all species and sizes, sharks, manta rays, barracudas, ...
• Nusa Penida in Bali - an underwater reserve, beautiful coral reefs, year-round occurrence of Pacific mantas and seasonal occurrence of marigolds.
• Lombok - Blongas bay: challenging diving with large animals: bronze hammerheads, several species of sea snakes, sharks, barracudas, and seasonally large schools of manta rays.
• Sulawesi, Togian Islands - wonderful diving around the Una Una volcano, off Togian Island lies the wreck of a WW2 B24 Liberator aircraft.
• The Alor Islands - in the Sava Sea migrate herds of thousands of dolphins and bottlenose dolphins, round-headed whales, sperm whales and giant petrels in June and from October to November.

Snorkelling

You can snorkel wherever you can swim, there is wonderful snorkelling for example in the Togian Islands off Sulawesi (here you can also experience an adrenaline-pumping swim in the lagoon with hundreds of jellyfish), on the islets between Flores and Rinca, on the Gili Islands (sea turtles), off Pulau Weh (north Sumatra).

Beaches

The busiest beaches are probably Balinese Kuta and Legian. Sanur beach is more of a family beach.

On all islands you will find small forgotten beaches or beaches. On Java, the southern beaches are not very suitable for swimming, the undercurrents are very strong here, swimming on the northern beaches is more suitable. Locals and tourists are slowly starting to discover Karimunjawa Island, where the beaches are similar to those of idyllic Balinese beaches, but tourism is still in full swing here.

Nightlife

For a truly vibrant nightlife experience, Balinese Kuta is home to a number of bars, clubs, discos and nightlife venues.

It's also alive at night in Yogyakarta, Java, with a number of bars, clubs and concerts (especially reggae-style, which is very popular here) in the city centre. You don't have to go to bed early on the islet of Gili Trawangan either.

In most (even tourist) destinations, then, there are few places to go wild late at night. Indonesians go to bed early and wake up early in the morning too, and the opening hours follow suit.

Adrenaline fun

• Rafting - Sumatra, on the Binge, Wampu and Asahan rivers.
• Tubing - Sumatra, Bukit Lawang (river tubing), on the Bohorok River.
• Kiteboarding - Bali, Sanur.

Parks and reserves

There are several UNESCO heritage parks in Indonesia:

• Sumatra - 3 national parks Gunung Leuser National Park, Kerinci Seblat National Park and Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park.
• Java - Ujung Kulon National Park.
• Komodo - Komodo National Park (inhabited by Komodo warthogs).
• Papua - Lorentz National Park (Located where two continental plates meet and where mountains are still forming).

For the romantics

A huge number of romantic places can be found everywhere, just leave the big cities.

The most romantic places are probably on the beaches, where you can arrange to rent a boat with the locals.

Bali probably leads the pack in terms of romance, and is popular with couples planning a wedding along these lines. Sunsets and sunrises are very romantic, so trips to various sights are also timed so that visitors see them just as the sun rises or sets.

Culture

• Yogyakarta (Java) - here you can visit the Ramayana Ballet - a performance of Ramayana and Javanese dance - beautiful set and setting.
• Wayang - shadow theatre with painted leather puppets can be seen during celebrations and other festive occasions.
• Ubud (Bali) - local travel agents can enquire about traditional evening performances and buy tickets for events here.
• Uluwatu Temple offers evening performances of the Kecak dance.