Article cover image

What's on in West Java

Indonesia
Umien Moritz

Tour Guide, Bandung, Indonesia

| 8 mins read

West Java is the most humid region in Java island, the cities are located on the beautiful highlands such us Bandung and Bogor, the followed informations describe about the most tourist destinations in West Java with the most legendary volcano Krakatau, use it to help you visit easier Krakatau, Jakarta, Bogor, Bandung, Pangandaran.

Jakarta

Perhaps the best place to start is around the National Monument “Monas” which dominates the city skyline. There is viewing platform at the top from which much of the city can be seen. Around Monas are several of Jakarta’s most important buildings including the Presidential Palace, and the National Museum. To the north of the city center is what what remains of Old Batavia, centered on Taman Fatahillah square. Around here you can find the Jakarta history Museum and variety of the old style buildings which still give some impression of what colonoal Batavia was like. Further to the north is harbour area, from which the picturesque Buginese “Pinisi” sailing ships still set out to trade across the Indonesian archipelago.


Krakatau

The name comes from an old Sanskrit word, karkata, meaning “crab”. It’s lies in the middle of the Sunda strait, right on the unstable “elbow” where the range volcanic mountain forming Sumatra turns abruptly eastward to form Java.In the afternoon on August 26th,1883, Krakatau exploded with a series of roars heard from Rangoon, Burma to Pert, Australia. A pillar of ash and pumice towered 26 km into the sky. Rock and dust rained over the surrounding region, forming a blanked cloud which turned day into night for 150 km in every direction.


Ujung Kulon Park

The name means ‘ western tip” is barely part of Java is a subtle paradise of endless jungle trails and bright coral coves that tease the imagination with the promise adventure and wildlife . Ujung Kulon is the best known for its most exclusive inhabitant, the Javanese Rhinoceros


Bogor Botanic Gardens

Giant Flower, one of the world’s great botanical treasure troves. The Kebon Raya was officially established by the Dutch in 1817 under the directorship of C.G.C Reinwardt, and he and subsequent generation of botanists performed the Herculean feat of assembling over 15,000 species of tropical plants from around the world. Within the carefully laid-out 87 hectares are over 400 palm species, 5000 trees and orchid house with 3000 varieties. Near the entrance of gardens is a zoological museum with an immense collections (300,000 specimens) of land and sea creatures from throughout Indonesia. The museum also boats a fine library, the skeleton of a blue whale, and the last Rhino (stuffed) found on the Bandung Plateau.


Bandung

Lying 187 km southeast of Jakarta in the midst of the lovely Priangan highlands, Bandung enjoys a surprisingly mild climate, with temperatures averaging a pleasant 225 C. Party as a result, most residents reckon that this must be the most live able spot on the island, event if rain falls on an average of 144 days in the year (mostly between November and April). The city situated on a high plateau at an altitude of 768 meters, surrounded on all sides by brooding volcanoes and lofty mountain ridges. Tangkuban Perahu Saung Ujo, music school Bandung “The Paris of Java” is a cool and rather rainy city up in the Parahyangan hills, as well as being the provincial capital. It was here, too, that the non aligned movement was born, at the first Asia-Africa Conference in 1955. Bandung enjoyed something of a heyday in the 1930s, where it was the preffered spot for plantation owners to spend their wealth. From this period date many of the charming “art-deco” building and pavement caf’s which give Bandung so much of its atmosphere.

Within a short drive of Bandung are some wonderful but little known attraction such as Lembang hill resort up in the mountains, and the volcano at Tangkuban Prau, which-uniquely in Java- can be ascendded by car, thus making it accessible to all regardless of fitness. 


White Crater

Water color White crater is always changing when exposed to sunlight. First revealed in 1837 by a Dutch scientist named Dr.. Franz Wilhelm Junghun, the lake at an altitude of 2194 m above sea level with temperatures around 15-22 degrees Celsius is very charming. Because of its uniqueness, the White crater into a tourist attraction for tourists and foreign tourists, as well as a favorite backdrop for photographers and filmmakers films.

Geologically, White crater formed from the eruption of Mount Patuha activity that occurred in the XII century. Patuha name itself comes from the initial name of this mountain, Mount Sepuh (Sundanese for ‘old’).


Mt. Papandayan

Mount Papandayan is a complex strato-volcano, located in Garut Regency, to the southeast of the city of Bandung in West Java, Indonesia. At the summit, there are four large craters, and it contains active fumarole fields. The 1772 eruption caused the northeast flank to collapse, producing a catastrophic debris avalanche that destroyed 40 villages and killed nearly 3000 people. It truncated the volcano into a broad shape with two peaks and a flat 1.1 km wide of Alun-Alun crater in the middle, making it look like a twin volcano. One of the peaks is called Papandayan and the other is Mount Puntang.


Kampung Naga

Is one of the most and most traditional villages in West Java. The 400-odd residents of Kampung Naga maintain one of the few villages built according to old Sundanese custom. Each of the 102 houses, as well as the mosque, are built on stilts along east-west axis, using wood, bamboo and thatch. Terrace walls and walk-ways are fashioned from river rock, and the houses are laid out in the neat rows, as in the traditional village found in some remote outer island areas of Indonesia.


Pangandaran

Java’s foremost beautiful beach resort- is a plug of jungle-cover volcanic rock just off the South coast of West Java, and is liked to mainland by narrow isthmus featuring back to back beaches. The main part of Peninsula is a nature reserve with plentiful trails for trekking, while between bungalows, restaurant, and souvenirs shop. Visit during the week and aviod public holiday to be sure of peace and quiet. The boat ride between Kalipucang (just the coast) to Cilacap in Central Java is one of the most exciting journey to be experienced in the whole of Java.

Pangandaran is a small town and a sub-district in southern Ciamis regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is located on the southern coast of Java. Pangandaran is a popular tourist destination, having a beach which is considered to be one of the finest in Java and which offers excellent surfing.

A kite-flying festival is held on the beach in July each year. Locals regularly use kites in the evenings to catch bats, which are either eaten or used in Chinese remedies. There is a local belief that wearing any green garment in this area will anger Loro Kidul, the Javanese guardian spirit or goddess of the southern sea, and will bring misfortune. The Penanjung Pangandaran nature reserve is nearby on a peninsula connected to the mainland by a narrow neck of land. The isthmus wide is around 200 meters and we can see sunrise at East Beach and also sunset at West Beach when the sun is above southern hemisphere. About eighty percent of the nature reserve is secondary rainforest. The flora of the nature reserve includes the Rafflesia.

An undersea earthquake measured at 7.7 on the Richter scale triggered a black wall of tsunami water enfulging people, causing destruction as far inland up to a half kilometre on 17 July 2006. Extensive damage was caused and hundreds were killed including a small number of foreign tourists.

Pangandaran is a large fishing village situated on a narrow isthmus of land with Pangandaran National Park occupying the entire headland.


Green Canyon

Journey through some truly wondrous jungle by bout – rich in massive teak trees, palms, various hanging vinery and the shrill sounds of extensive bird-life. The canyon is apparently a couple of hundred metres long, but it is only safe for visitors to venture the first hundred. At the end of the passable section, the opportunity arises to jump from a 5 metre high stalagmite formation rising from the canyon floor into a deep pool below. The rocks aren’t sharp or slippery and there’s a myriad of harmless critters around like frogs, dragonflies and miniature crabs to marvel at too.


Citumang

It is 15km outside of Pangandaran. The English name is Green Valley. It’s very nice to walk there to the waterfalls. It’s possible to swim in the clear water of the second “Green Canyon” that exists above the dam of the main tourist “Green Canyon”. There are barely any tourists and it really feels like you’re own personal tropical pool! the cool water provides a stark contrast to the hot midda.