Indonesia

Traveling

Entry requirements

Passport and visa service: Visa Information of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Diplomatic representations: List of Indonesian embassies and diplomatic representation abroad

Organizing your trip

Means of transport recommended in town

Recommendation: To travel around Jakarta, taxis give the most comfortable service. The Blue Bird and Silver Bird companies are the most recommended ones.
Maps of urban networks: Maporama
UT Library on line
Mapblast

Means of transport recommended in the rest of the country

Recommendation: Indonesia is well served by airlines. Buses, and in Java the train, are also practical.
Rail companies: Website of PT Kereta Api

Airlines

Name	Type	Domestic flights	International flights
Garuda Indonesia	Traditional	Yes	Yes
Merpati	Traditional	Yes
Adam Air	Low cost	Yes
Batavia air	Low cost	Yes
Citilink	Low cost	Yes
Indonesia Air Asia	Low cost	Yes
Lion Air	Low cost	Yes
Mandala	Low cost	Yes
Sriwijaya Air	Low cost	Yes
Wings Air	Low cost	Yes

Traveling by yourself

Recommendation: The roads and highways are jammed but they are generally in good condition. In the event of an accident with corporal damage, the police must be called. A car insurance is not compulsory, but it is better to subscribe to an insurance policy covering your liability as much as someone else's. It is strongly recommended that you hire a car with driver.
Road maps: Maps of the main cities
Find an itinerary: Link to detailed maps of the Indonesian provinces

Visiting

Different forms of tourism

Historical: Old Batavia (Kota), Taman Fatahillah, and the chicken market bridge, the old port of Sunda Kelapa; Glodok, the district given to the Chinese in 1741; Lapangan Banteng Square and its superb colonial architecture; the Wayang Museum.
The Daerah Istimewa of Jogjakarta and the sultan's palace.
Cultural: The temples, the National Museum, the cultural and artistic communities of Yogyakarta and Ubud, the shadow theater wayang, the traditional gamelan orchestra, the Balinese dances.
Nature: Terraced rice fields (Bali), volcanoes (Java, Lombok), beaches (Bali, Nusa Tenggara), forest (Kalimantan), the flora and fauna of Sumatra.
Religious: Hindu temples (Prambanan, and many temples in Bali), Buddhist temples (Borobudur)
Thermal: Hot springs at Ciater (Java)
Beach: As Indonesia is an archipelago, there are very many beaches. In Bali we can mention Lovina Beach, Jimbaran, Kuta.
Winter sports: no
Outdoor activities: Jet ski, diving, windsurfing, surfing, hiking
Shopping: Among others, the factory outlets of Bandung, and the crafts of Bali

Top 10 highlights of the capital city
Port of Sunda Kelapa
Jakarta Museum
Taman Mini Indonesia Indah
Monumen Nasional
Old Batavia
Glodok
Wayang Museum
Istiqlal mosque
Chicken market bridge
Antiques market

Top 10 highlights of the country
Borobudur
Prambanan
Merapi volcano
Lake Toba
Bogor Garden
Balinese dance show
Wayang show
Besakih temple
Terraced rice fields in Bali
Yogyakarta keraton

Tourism organizations: http://www.indonesia-tourism.com/">Indonesian Tourism Board

Living conditions

Health and safety

Health precautions

A certificate of vaccination against yellow fever is required for passengers coming from affected areas. There is a risk of malaria everywhere, except in Jakarta, large cities and the main tourist resorts of Java and Bali.
Indonesia is experiencing a fresh outbreak of dengue fever, which can be hemorrhagic. You must take measures against traveler's diarrhoea. Drinking water must be boiled or filtered.
Bathing in fresh water can expose you to the risk of bilharziosis (or schistosomiasis) found on the western bank of Lake Lindu (Sulawesi).

Avoid all contact with poultry and birds because of the epidemic of avian flu.

International hospitals

The medical structures are lacking in quality. Some establishments in Jakarta are recognized as being of good quality and are used by expats:

SOS International, Medikaloka, Rumah Sakit Pondok Indah,Global Assistance & Healthcare.

For further information on sanitary conditions

Website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs

For further information on safety conditions

Advice to travellers on the website of the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs

Emergency numbers

Police	110
Ambulance for road accidents	118
Medical ambulance	119
Firemen	113

Time difference and climate

Time and time difference: It is %T:%M %A in Jakarta (GMT+7)
It is %T:%M %A in Denpasar (GTM+8)
It is %T:%M %A in Jayapura (GTM+9)
Summer time period: None

Map of the time zone

Fuseau(x) horaire

Type of climate: The climate is equatorial, hot and very humid all year. The temperature varies between 24° and 34° C and the rate of humidity reaches 80%. There is a dry season (from April to October) and a rainy season (from November to April).

For further information: Meteorological and geophysical center

Average annual temperatures and rainfall

Climate

Eating

Culinary specialties: Pork and buffalo grilled in bamboo pipes and basted with tuak (palm alcohol) in Sulawesi. Kalimantan shrimp, ayam goreng (fried rice and chicken), bakmi (rice noodles), babur ayam (a usually sweet porridge, made of chicken, sticky black rice or mung beans), gado-gado (steamed bean sprouts with vegetables and a spicy peanut sauce), krupuk (a preparation based on shrimp and manioc flour, sliced and fried), nasi goreng (fried rice with vegetables or meat), satay (meat on skewers with peanut sauce).
Drinks: Beers brewed locally (Angker and Bintang), rice wine brem, lassi, a drink of Indian origin based on yoghurt, coffee prepared "Turkish style", tea (with jasmine, ginger...), fresh fruit juice, and green sands, a very refreshing fizzy drink made with apple and lemon.
Dietary taboos: Culinary taboos vary with the religion practised.

Paying

Domestic currency: Rupiah
ISO Code: IDR
To obtain domestic currency: The local currency is the Indonesian rupee (IDR).
Possible means of payment: You can pay in cash (the most usual method of payment), and by debit card (the existing interbank networks are: ALTO, BERSAMA, CAKRA, PRIMA, LINK, CIRRUS, PLUS, VISA, and MASTERCARD).
Cheques and bills of exchange are little used.
Transfers between accounts at the same bank or at different banks are used a lot. For a transfer or international transfer, payment by SWIFT is usually used.

Speaking

Official language: Indonesian (bahasa Indonesia)
Other languages spoken: There are more than 660 languages. The most important ones are Javanese (70 million), Sundanese (20 million), Madurese (9 million) and Malay (15 million). English is also spoken.
Business language: English
Getting some knowledge: Different websites which give an introduction to Indonesian are listed on the website Living in Indonesia.
Free translation tools: Freedict.com - Free English-Indonesian dictionary
Indonesian Language Resources - Useful links for Indonesian-English translations