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Overview

Customized travel in Indonesia

On this magnificent customized trip to exotic Indonesia, you’ll discover this immense and inviting nation’s most beautiful destinations. Indonesia is an exceptional country, where crystal clear waters and lush green forests are combined with cultural treasures and natural wonders. Ancient customs from unchanged tribes, shadow theatre, crafts straight from Tirtagangga workshops, vast luxuriant tropical jungles, unique and varied wildlife (including the fierce dragons of Komodo island), rich and colorful coral reefs off the islands of Bali and Pulau Besar…sometimes it looks like all the wonders of the world are right here, just waiting to dazzle and amaze you on this unique customized trip.

No traveler looking for authenticity and serenity is left unmoved by the magic of Indonesia’s southern islands. Discover the hidden rice fields around Ubud, a picturesque village bursting with colored markets and Hindu temples hidden in the jungle. In Bali, water is everywhere, as evidenced beautifully in the sublime terraced rice paddies of Munduk. The sun shines bright and lights up stunning panoramas filled with lakes and craters like those of Kelimutu National Park, while the air is filled with traditional Indonesian music anywhere there’s a god to worship. And there’s more than enough fine white sand on the Gili islands’ superb beaches for you to get all the R&R you need. Or perhaps you would rather relax in the natural spas of Soa? One thing’s for sure, there’s plenty of incredible places to discover on this unique customized trip, waiting to charm and delight you every step of the way.

Make sure you contact Uniktour’s Southeast Asia specialist for more information on this customized trip to Indonesia!

Itinerary

Day 1| Departure from Montreal - Flight

Day 2| International flight

Day 3| Arrival in Denpasar (Bali island) - Sanur
Arrival at the airport at 2 in the morning. Your guide will welcome you with crowns of flowers before taking you to your hotel. Free day to recuperate in a beautiful hotel in Sanur.

Day 4| Sanur - Ubud
Transfer to Ubud. On your way to Ubud, stop for a Baron dance show and visit a village where silver filigree and kriss (Indonesian dagger) workshops still thrive. When you arrive in Ubud, you have the whole afternoon to visit the Monkey Forest, the Neka and Lukisan art galleries, the central market, and, later on, to go for a nice bike ride to the village of Petulu, where hundreds of herons spend go every night to spend the night in the treetops. Return to your hotel.

Day 5| Ubud - Bedugul - Munduk
On your morning drive to Bedugul, stop by a spice and flower market and then visit the floating temple of Ulun Danau before heading to the lake region on one of Bali’s highest roads, from which you can gaze at superb panoramas, with hills covered in flowers and orange trees. When you arrive in Munduk, settle into your room in a magnificent resort nestled between rice paddies and clove trees. In the afternoon, walk around and explore Bali’s agricultural world, discover the secret techniques used to irrigate rice paddies, find a sacred banyan tree (one of the oldest and largest in Bali), and meet some villagers. Overnight on a straw mat in an ancient rice granary.

Day 6| Munduk – Batur volcano - Sidemen
Head towards the north coast, then take small roads until you arrive at Batur volcano and its nearby lake. Enjoy breakfast on the edge of the caldera and then take a little stroll down, along the old lava flows until the edge of the lake where live fishermen and market gardeners. This lake is Bali’s largest freshwater reservoir and the driving force behind the complex system used to irrigate the area’s rice paddies. Your itinerary continues with Besakih Temple, the island’s largest temple complex, with 23 hillside temples on the flanks of Agung Volcano. During its last eruption in 1963, Agung killed more than one thousand people. Visit the area to get a better grasp of the complex world of Balinese gods. End your day in Sidemen, where you spend the night in a hotel.

Day 7| Sidemen - Amed - Tirtagangga
Sidemen valley is one of Bali’s richest. It is beautifully located among rice paddies, salak plantations, rivers, and villages, where it is still possible to observe villagers weave ikats using golden thread. Take a nice morning stroll and discover the area. Enjoy some R&R at your perfectly located hotel before getting back on the road and head for the fine sands of Amed’s beaches. On your way, stop by Tirtagangga and visit the water palace, take a look at the traditional salt making and the colorful pirahu (small boats). Enjoy some downtime next to the peaceful Bali Sea (snorkeling, boat ride). Overnight in a seaside hotel.

Day 8| Tirtagangga - Candidasa
Transfer towards Tirtagangga, a well-preserved Bali Aga stone village, with its superb fortification wall and numerous original houses and workshops. The Bali Aga are thought to be Bali’s first inhabitants. Breakfast in Candidasa. Afternoon discovery of this small fishing town. Tonight, you dine on the beach in one of the many famous seafood restaurants (delicious rock lobsters). Overnight in a seaside hotel.

Day 9| Candidasa - Denpasar – Maumere flight (Flores Island)
Morning flight from Denpasar to Maumere, followed by a visit to a Bugis fishing village. You have the option of going scuba diving at Babi or Besar islands, known for the beauty of their underwater world. Evening of leisure during which you are free to enjoy the superb sunset on the neighboring volcanoes. Overnight in a seaside hotel.

Day 10| Maumere – Paga Beach – Kelimutu Volcano
Head towards Kelimutu, stopping on your way to visit the museum of Bikon Blewut, where many treasures are stored, followed by Paga Beach and some traditional villages. Once you arrive in Kelimutu you can observe the villagers weave ikats using superb handlooms. 28 types of ikat are hand-woven, some of which still use natural coloring made from plants or minerals that are worth a fortune. Overnight in a simple hotel at the foot of Kelimutu Volcano.

Day 11| Kelimutu Volcano - Bajawa
Very early morning ascent of Kelimutu Volcano and discovery of its three crater lakes, world-renown for their changing colors, a phenomenon caused by to the mineral content of their waters (currently, they are black, brown, and emerald green). Enjoy the sunrise and walk around the ridges. Return to the village before taking the road across canyons to Bajawa, heart of Ngada region. Overnight in a village.

Day 12| Bajawa – Bena
Take the road towards the Naga villages settled at the foot of an active volcano and take a dip in the impressive hot springs. These villages have all managed to keep all their authentic charm, and will teach you all about the spirit world where male and female spirits collide. Stroll around, meet some villagers, and spend the night in a longhouse in the village of Bena.

Day 13| Bena - Soa - Riung
Take the road from Bena to Riung, which traverses the island from south to north, stopping at the hot springs of Soa on your way. Once you reach the seashore, you’ll find some Bugi and Bajau villages. Take the opportunity to visit some of the region’s 18 islands (snorkeling or scuba diving are a possibility). You can also get up close and personal with immense bat colonies. Relax and spend the night at a simple hotel.

Day 14| Riung - Ruteng
The road from Riung to Ruteng goes through a rich area in the heart of Mengarrai country. Visit some traditional villages and watch a traditional “Caci” warrior dance. Discover Flores’ other main ethnic group. Ranaka Volcano, which towers over the region, is equipped with seismographs due to its frequent eruptions. Overnight in a hotel in Ruteng.

Day 15| Ruteng - Labuanbajo - Komodo - Rinca – Overnight on the boat
Travel from Ruteng to Labuanbajo and hop on a boat in the afternoon, heading for the islands of Komodo and Rinca, where you will first encounter the famed Komodo dragons. Accompanied by a ranger, take a walk on the island, looking for animals like buffalo, deer, monkeys, cockatoos, and of course, these huge creatures from another time, the Komodo dragons. Between 3000 and 4500 of these ancient predators still roam these islands. Overnight on the boat. At night, you can spot the impressive flight patterns of bats flying over your head on their nocturnal hunt.

Day 16| Komodo - Kanawan – Overnight on the boat or the island
Second encounter with the dragons on the island of Komodo. The second part of the day will be spent snorkeling to the island of Kanawan. Overnight on board or on the island.

Day 17| Cruise - Labuanbajo
A second day of snorkeling and island hopping before returning to Labuanbajo. Overnight in a comfortable hotel in Labuanbajo overlooking one of Indonesia’s most beautiful bays.

Day 18| Labuanbajo - Mataram (Lombok island) - Trawangan (Gili islands)
Labuanbajo – Mataram flight (via Denpasar) and transfer to the island of Gili Trawangan where you settle into a superb seaside hotel. R&R and free time to enjoy the island’s many activities.

Days 19 and 20| Gili Trawangan
Leisure time in Gili Trawangan. Overnight in the same hotel.

Day 21| Gili Trawangan Island - Kuta (Bali) - Denpasar – International flight
Free time in the morning before an afternoon transfer to the airport for your international flight. Depending on your flight time, it may be possible to get a room close to Denpasar airport in Kuta before your return flight to Canada.

Budget

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Other fees

Lodging

Overview

Indonesia is a country in Southeast Asia and the largest archipelago in the world. With a population estimated at 240 million people, it is the fourth most populous country in the world and the first predominantly Muslim country for the number of believers. Indonesia is a secular democratic republic, of which the capital is Jakarta, a megalopolis of 12 million inhabitants located on the island of Java.

The archipelago has long been synonymous with wealth and abundance; that inexhaustible reserves of natural resources, a fascinating melting pot of mysterious cultures that soon became a favourite destination for Europeans who developed transcontinental trade. Today, gems such as Bali, Java or the countless archaeological sites continue to attract travelers from around the world. With an abundant and varied nature, majestic landscapes, excessive wildlife, ancient culture, refined arts and crafts, Indonesia, whatever one comes to find, keeps its promises of heaven on earth.

Tourism

SEISMIC ACTIVITY

Indonesia is located at the focal point of the Pacific plate, the Eurasian plate and the Australian plate. The result is a very strong volcanic activity and frequent earthquakes. Poorly fixated, the outer arc is the scene of many earthquakes. The city of Ambon, formal capital of spice trade, was destroyed by an earthquake in 1764. The last major earthquake occurred off the coasts of Sumba (1977) and Flores (1992). The inner arc of the country is the largest volcanic zone of the world: 128 active volcanoes, of which 80have emerged over the past twenty-five years. Since 1918, a violent eruption occurs on average every three years. Among the major disasters, the eruption of Krakatoa (1883), located in the Sunda Strait between Sumatra and Java, made 36,000 fatalities after the tsunami it caused, while in Bali, the Gunung Agung (1963) plunged the city of Surabaya (Java) in complete darkness for twenty-four hours. The current eruptions are usually explosive, with pyroclastic and incandescent lava flows. Lahars, devastating mudslides, are cold when rain accompanies the eruption, and hot when the crater lake drains off rapidly. Sumatra has a hundred volcanoes, which makes the largest system in the world; the Toba is a gigantic collapsed dome (100 km long, 300 km broad), cut in half by a ditch partially occupied the lake of the same name. Java has 125 volcanoes, of which 25 are active. The most impressive volcanic forms are the calderas; natural amphitheaters that can exceed 10 km in diameter. Those volcanoes often lay on a clay and marl base, rocks on which they were able to slip, like the Merapi in the 10th century. Its sliding may have caused the ruin of the first Hindu and Buddhist kingdom of Mataram located in Java.

Geography

The archipelago comprises 17,000 islands themselves gathered into sub archipelagos. To the north and from west to east, the Greater Sunda Islands are the largest in the country: Sumatra, Borneo (including the northern part of Malaysia) and the Sulawesi archipelago. In the trail of the long and narrow island of Java located below Borneo, following an arc-shaped line oriented to the south-west, stretch the Lesser Sunda Islands of Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Sumba, Flores and Timor. Further to the east lie other islands such as the Moluccas, West Irian, and finally the western part of New Guinea, with its straight border separating the island in half from Papua.

Due to its location on a tectonic midpoint, the archipelago is very mountainous: on Sumatra, Mt. Kerinci rises to 3,800 m in Java and Mt. Semeru to 3,676 m. The peak of Indonesia is located in Irian Jaya (Puncak Jaya 5,030 m). The great eastern plain of Sumatra, the southern plain of Borneo and the northern plains of Java are exceptions. Two arcs almost completely encircle the "floor of the Sound": the internal arcing, from Sumatra to Flores and Banda, and the external arc from Nias and Mentawai to Sumba, Timor, Ceram and finally Buru.

If vast tropical forests cover two thirds of the country, the east coast of Sumatra and parts of the north coast of Java are covered with mangroves and swamps. Indonesia now comprises over 320 national parks. Walking through the rice fields and the forests, climbing volcanoes (trekking), all-terrain vehicle road trips, boating on a traditional prao, snorkelling and diving, water sports and activities such as surfing, bodyboarding, windsurfing, rafting, bungee jumping .. The landscapes of Indonesia offer unlimited possibilities!

Culture

Indonesia is a country with a culture virtually as impressive as the number of its population of over 240 million inhabitants. This diversity is partly explained by the fact that the country is not uniform but comprises several islands, that each have their own history and communities. Today, the dominant religion in the archipelago is Islam, whose presence has been attested in the 13th century by Marco Polo, but Christianity and Buddhism and Hinduism are also vivid, though much less numerous. Even with their minority religions status, they both have been very influential regarding the architecture of temples and palaces, as well as for the sculpture field.

The language is another form of diversity. Although the Indonesian Bahasa (close to the Malay) is considered the only official language, Javanese and Sundanese are also common in their respective regions, as well as hundreds of other dialects, mostly of Austronesian origin. There are nearly 300 Indonesian ethnic groups. The majority of residents are from a crossbreeding between old local tribes and the Chinese, Indians and Arabs.

The Indonesian culture is mostly reflected in the arts. The most popular of the Indonesian arts is wayang theatre, playing with puppets shadows, and of which the only puppeteer is called the Dalang. The performances of wayang are always accompanied by music. In most cases, a widely popular orchestra composed of percussion instruments and called gamelan is used. Dances are also part of theater performances. In Bali and Java, traditional dances can have a religious function, as well as ceremonial. Also, the Balinese pendet or Javanese bedhaya have a spiritual function, while the Balinese legong or Javanese serimpi have a ceremonial role. In Java, four schools of court dances stand out: the Kraton of Surakarta, the Kraton of Yogyakarta, the Puro Mangkunegaran (princely court of Surakarta) and Puro Pakualaman (court of Yogyakarta).

Traditional Indonesian textiles include the ikat (woven fabrics with designs originating from Nusa Tenggara, but common throughout the archipelago), the songket (silk interwoven with gold and silver threads), the Lampung carpet or the famous Javanese batik, made of wax and dye patterns printed on fabric. The Indonesian pottery is raw and naive in Lombok, influenced by Chinese ceramics in the Singkawang region, marked by the West and glazed in Bali. The Toraja people are specialist of pearl jewelry, while the Dayaks and Lombok put together cowries, small shells of great value, in delicate artifacts.

Wood carving is also widespread in Indonesia. The original purpose of these sculptures was to protect homes against evil spirits. In Java, a traditional couple of wooden figures, the loro blonyo, is during weddings set aside from the bride and the groom to draw upon them the evil spirits, or at the door of a house to welcome visitors. In Nias, Sumba, in the Toraja country and in the Ngaju and Dusun villages of Borneo, wooden statues representing ancestors still take a huge part in religious life. In Bali and Java in particular, the ornate furniture is highly developed, especially teak (jati). Finallly, carved wooden masks are frequently used in community rituals or in theater.

Climate

The warm waters that surround Indonesia provide a hot and tropical climate year round. Average temperatures rise at 28 °C along the coastal plains, 26 °C in the inland and 23 °C in the mountains. Because of its position on the equator, temperatures in Indonesia slightly vary throughout the year, as well as the length of days: the difference between the shortest day and the longest does not exceed 48 min, allowing arable land to be cultivated all year.

The major factor in the Indonesian climate is neither the temperature nor the pressure of the air, but the amount of precipitation. The extreme variations in precipitation are related to the monsoon. Generally, there is a dry season (June to September), influenced by the Australian continental air masses, and a rainy season (December-March). In January and February, a high pressure system spreading over the Asian continent reverses the trend. The result is multiplied by the monsoon, breezes of the Indian Ocean, eventually producing significant amounts of rain in many parts of the archipelago.

The west of Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo's inland, Sulawesi and Irian Jaya are the most humid regions of Indonesia, with a rainfall amount of over 2,000 millimetres per year. In part, this humidity comes from the high mountains that trap damp air. The city of Bogor, near Jakarta, claims to put up with the highest number of storms and rain a year in the world, 322 days. On the other hand, the closest islands to Australia – including the province of Nusa Tenggara and the eastern end of Java - tend to be dry, with some areas experiencing less than 1,000 millimetres per year. The humidity rate varies from 70-90% from a "season" to another. Cyclones and storms pose fewer problems for mariners and fishermen than violent ocean currents, particularly in the Straits of Lombok and Sape.