These past few days have been really tiring, but I still want to quickly share with everyone the pitfalls we encountered during our trip to Indonesia! Today, I’ll talk about Yogyakarta, which was featured in “Flowers and Youth.”
First of all, Yogyakarta is a highly recommended destination for travel in Indonesia. It is the cultural, historical, and educational center of Java Island and also an important site for Indonesia’s independence. The day we went happened to be their Independence Day, and the streets were very lively, with many celebratory activities.
👉 There are two must-visit attractions around Yogyakarta:
📍 Borobudur Temple
One of the four great wonders of the East, the Indonesian pyramid, and a Buddhist temple.
📍 Prambanan Temple
A UNESCO World Heritage site and the largest Hindu temple in Southeast Asia.
(These two attractions are perfect for a one-day tour or a private car rental.)
👉 Other attractions in the city center include:
📍 Keraton Ngayogyakarta Hadiningrat (Yogyakarta Palace)
📍 Malioboro Street
📍 Alun-Alun Kidul Yogyakarta (Two large banyan trees)
📍 Taman Sari (Water Castle)
You can choose to visit these based on your available time.
⚠️ Important tips:
👉 You must buy a ticket that allows you to climb to the top of Borobudur! Just walking around the bottom is not very interesting.
👉 Tickets to climb to the top are in high demand. The official website releases tickets three months in advance, and you should buy them at least a week ahead.
If you wait any longer, they will be sold out (like us, we only thought about it three or four days in advance, and there were no tickets left 😞).
👉 The 6:00-9:00 AM time slot is reserved for pilgrims, and tourists cannot reach the very top (the earliest 8:30 AM slot actually allows you to climb to the top at 9:00 AM), so you won’t see the sunrise; the latest time slot is 3:30 PM, and by then, you probably won’t catch the sunset either.
👉 The 8:30 AM and 9:30 AM slots are almost impossible to get (they are mostly reserved for travel agencies).
👉 If you haven’t bought a ticket to climb to the top in advance, or if you don’t know how to buy them online or want to save the hassle, I recommend booking a private tour!
👉 We joined a last-minute tour and replaced our previous car rental. This allowed us to climb to the top, and the small group of two wasn’t disturbed.
The price included the entrance fees for Borobudur and Prambanan, as well as transportation and parking fees. It wasn’t much more expensive than renting a car and buying tickets separately, but it was much more convenient and worry-free!
👉 Although getting a good driver is a matter of luck, our driver that day was really great.
When climbing Borobudur, you need to wear the shoes they provide (to protect the ancient site). Most people carry their own shoes, but our driver carried ours for us! This lightened our load a bit, and we were very happy 🥳
That sounds like quite an adventure! I didn’t know Yogyakarta had such significance historically. I’d love to visit someday despite the risks involved.