Mini-Guide: Singapore Stopover in 24 Hours

Status: Updated 2019-08-23

I have been to Singapore now quite often and I have never spent a long time there. That enables me to provide you with a perfect program for 24 hours. I always have to organize, plan and juggle my agenda around meetings to add some cool new places every time I go. Even more important though is that I am still constantly going to Singapore which means that this mini-guide is under continous revision. All information is up-to-date.

The good thing about the program is that it not only features the places you find in all travel guides but also some small hints on places in between the "must-sees". Don't get me wrong, this list is not intended to compete with any travel guide (since it does not contain detailed background information on the sites) it's more to be considered as a guideline on how to plan your stay.

Certainly THE highlight in Singapore, Marina Bay Sands - © Christian Grzona

Singapore is a very safe, clean and convenient city for tourists. Basically the whole program can be explored walking with short metro rides (SMRT) in between. Let's assume you arrived on a late afternoon flight or evening flight and you start your program early the next morning. Of course the different milestones of the program can be combined according to your individual preferences but the goal was to create an agenda that contains also restaurants and places that are dependent on the time of the day. If you would like to have a proper print-out version of the program with less pictures, just drop me an email.

OK. Let's start. Are you excited? Good :)

Depending on your hotel location you need to arrange transport to the starting point on your own. When you are staying in Fullerton Hotel or the Marina Bay Sands hotel you are lucky because you do not have a tight budget ;) and because the tour starts in between them. 

Merlion Park / Marina Bay Sands:

#merlionpark #merlion #marinabaysands #casino #shopping

If you are not in walking distance; take the East West Line (EW14) or the North South Line (NS26) to "Raffles Place". Attention: You can top-up your SMRT ticket 5 times and do not need to buy a new one every time. Bring change (2 SGD and 5 SGD banknotes) for the vending machine. In some places there might be some nasty queues in front of the machine. 

Come early to avoid the masses :). I recommend starting your program not later than 09:00 AM. The place around the Merlion offers the first stunning view on the Marina Bay Sands hotel and the Marina Bay itself. The Merlion is the personified symbol of national personification (half lion/half fish). You can't miss the statue spit water into the Marina Bay. 

"Merlion" spitting water - © Christian Grzona

After you took a couple of selfies walk straight South along the Marina Bay and pass by the high-end restaurants and the Fullerton Bay Hotel (the little brother to the famous Fullerton Hotel) and make your way along the marina to the other side and the "Marina Bay" shopping mall and Casino complex. If you love to gamble, make sure to bring your passport for entry admission. There is no real alternative to walking from the Merlion Park to the Marina Bay Shopping Centre.

Under the giant "Water Tornado" - © Christian Grzona

If you are into shopping the Marina Bay shopping mall might be a place that you like. For me it is more about the architecture and the fact that this building (including the hotel) is still one of the most expensive buildings ever built. Make sure to walk down to the actual Marina Bay platform to contemplate the surrounding. On your right you will find the impressive "ArtScience Musuem" (shaped like a blossom) and in the background the pedestrian "Helix Bridge" but you will most likely not have the time to look at them in detail. Ready for a coffee? Take the escalators down to the lowest level and get a coffee + cup cake from High Society. Alternatively you find some other snacks around in the Food Court. Stall the thought of going to the casino since if you follow this agenda you end up here later today again.

Salted Caramel cup cake, my favorite (High Society) - © Christian Grzona

After the refreshment go back to the central hall where the gondoliers are and the Water Tornado comes down into the central pool. Take the escalator up and follow the "Gardens by the Bay" signs. Now your need to go up to the roof top level of the shopping mall since there is a pedestrian bridge going through the Marina Bay Sands hotel to the other side. If you are interested in architecture a walk on the rooftop of the shopping mall is worth spending a couple of minutes and it gives you quite a good view over the Marina Bay (for free). 

Little Detour:

As an alternative you can take the lift down from the pedestrian bridge and enter the Marina Bay Sands hotel. If you are not in the lucky position to actually stay in the hotel you cann't access the world famous infinity pool area on top of the hotel but you can enter an observation deck "Sands SkyPark Observation Deck" (~26 SGD) which I always skip (...guess I want to keep the dream alive).

Gardens by the Bay:

#gardensbythebay #cloudforest #flowerdome #supertrees

You need to consider the Gardens by the Bay as one giant artificial botanical garden supplemented with high tech constructions. Yes: It is impressive! Once you made your way over the pedestrian bridge going through the Marina Bay Sands hotel (do not come here on a different way; do not miss the first glance) take a landscape picture of the whole park. Follow the signs and make your way to the super trees. Depending on weather, budget and mood go up the "Skyway". When done proceed to the Cloud Forest Dome and the Flower Dome (there is a combo-ticket for all three attractions).

Gardens by the Bay - © Christian Grzona

Artificial "Supertrees" at Gardens by the Bay - © Christian Grzona

While the Flower Dome is a "can do" the Cloud Forest Dome is an absolute "must-see"! For people who grew up in the Northern hemisphere like me it feels like you are beamed to a beautiful German autumn day. The temperature drop (to 23°C) might not be significant but the climate is so amazing that you instantly recognize the heat and humidity you were fighting against outdoors.

Inside the Cloud Forest Dome at Gardens by the Bay - © Christian Grzona

Allow around 2hrs for the two biospheres. Check-out my photo blog for some inspiration when you are interested in photography. After you are through with Gardens by the Bay you need to walk back to Marina Bay Sands.

Now an important decision: Walk the ~1km to the next stop or take the SMRT (one stop). The reason why I almost always walk are the queues in front of the ticket machines at Marina Bay Sands. If you take the metro take Downtown Line (DT16) from "Bayfront" station to Downtown Line (DT17)  "Downtown" station. Exit to Central Blvd and walk about 400m to find the next location on the left.

If you walk you might want to stop-by a new landmark in the Marina Bay area which is a architectural landmark. The new mixed development building is called "Marina One" and has a very unconventional design. The building is just behind a complex called "Marina Bay Link Mall". If you are in need of another coffee it is absolutely worthwhile taking a little detour to a bar called LeVeL33 with one of the best views over the Marina Bar area. It's located on (what you might have guessed) on level 33 of the MBFC Tower 1.

Marina One - © Christian Grzona

Lau Pa Sat:

#laupasat #hawkercentre #food

Hawker centres are famous in Singapore and one of the most popular place for people of all classes and occupation to eat. Come here during lunch time (12:00-01:00 PM) and it might be difficult to find a place. Watch out. A package of tissues or a cell phone lying on the table means "reserved" :). Nevertheless Lau Pa Sat is awesome and you will find all sorts of Asian food. As vegetarian I prefer the Indian restaurants scattered around the place. 

Lau Pa Sat - © Christian Grzona

Go to Downtown Line (DT18) "Telok Ayer" station and take the SMRT to Downtown Line (DT19) "Chinatown Station". Remain in the station and change to North East Line (NE4). Exit at North East Line (NE6) "Dhoby Gaut" station.

Orchard Road:

#orchard #shopping

The exit of the "Dhoby Gaut" station is right under the Plaza Singapura shopping mall. This landmark mall is also the beginning of Orchard Rd For those of you who love to shop this might be the place you were dreaming of. 2.2km from Plaza Singapura to Tangling Shopping Centre on the other end of the road are packed with shopping malls of all sizes, shapes and theme. Even if you are not into shopping I recommend walking down all the way to the end. 

When you reached the end of Orchard Rd turn left and Tanglin Rd till Napier Rd; turn right and turn right again after Gleneagles Hospital. You find the entry to the Singapore Botanic Gardens on the left (it's a good 2km walk but it's worth it). During my last stay I trief Open Farm Community for the first time. The concept of the café/restaurant is to use locally produced food as ingredient and teach about food and sustainability; a concept I fully support. Despite some of the negative feedback floating around in rating apps it's still a nice location to have a coffee before you go to the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Singapore Botanic Gardens:

#singaporebotanicgardens #flowers #tranquility

I am a big fan of botanical gardens and urban gardens. Whenever I visit a large city I build in the major park as one of the primary targets. I am always very curious on how big cities manage to balance their "concrete/green ratio". Especially in South East Asia you find countless cities that seem to have forgotten this during their massive expansion over the past few decades. Singapore however seems to have made this part of their rationale. The city itself is extremely green and Singapore Botanic Gardens are as the Gardens by the Bay the prime example (both admission free).

At this point of the program I hope that you still have the energy to walk since it is again about 2km to walk through the gardens to the other end.

Go to Downtown Line (DT19) "Botanic Gardens" station and take the SMRT to Downtown Line (DT14) "Bugis". Remain in the station and change to East West Line (EW). Exit at East West Line (EW13) "City Hall" station. Walk through the park of the "St. Andrew's Cathedral" to find the National Gallery on the other side.

National Gallery:

#nationalgallery #oldsupremecourt #oldcityhall #architecture #funanmall #shopping

I must confess I discovered this building by chance. From the outside (Supreme Court Ln) you might not even register the building when passing by. Nevertheless, the architecture of the National Gallery is remarkable. Just take the time to walk in and go all the way up to the rooftop terrace. No it's time to enjoy a sunset walk back to where we started the day and enjoy the light & water show. Right around the corner you find one of the most state-of-the-art shopping malls in the world called Funan DigitaLife Mall which is definetely worth a visit.

View from "National Gallery" - © Christian Grzona

Spectra - Light & Water Show:
#lightshow #musicalfountain
8 PM every day. Check the official website for more information and for the actual timetable: SPECTRA (Light & Water Show). 

Dinner Option 1: Arab St
#arabst #streetfood #mosque #halal
From the Merlion Park take East West Line (EW14) at "Raffles Place" to East West Line (EW12) to "Bugis" station.
Hungry? Sure you are. Singapore is probably the most diverse city on the planet. What many metropoles want to achieve is a perfect harmony of different world religions and cultural ethnicities; Singapore has it. That results in the fact that you could attend a hindu ceremony in the morning and go to a proper halal food restaurant around the corner afterwards. A bit artificial looking but still nice is the quarter around Arab St. In the area around Sultan Mosque you find a couple of straight forward streetfood options.

Sultan Mosque - © Christian Grzona

Dinner Option 2: Little India
#littleindia
The name is program. Suddenly you find yourself in the heart of India and in the heart of plenty of options to eat pretty original Indian cuisine. Your camera will love the little fresh food stalls and colors in this neighborhood. My personal favorite so far is Khansama Tandoori (which claims to be "probably" the best Indian Restaurant in Singapore).

Fresh food stall in Little India - © Christian Grzona

Party & Drinks:
#barrouge #1altitude #clarkequay
If you still have energy it's time to grab a couple of drinks. Depending on what you prefer I have three recommendations. If you are looking for a cold beer in a bar street atmosphere just head down to Clarke Quay. Exit at North East Line (NE6) "Clarke Quay" station and walk over the pedestrian bridge.

If you are more the club type of person try out one of the following options:
Recently opened Bar Rouge at the top of the Swissôtel The Stamfor (enter through hotel lobby). Exit at East West Line (EW13) or the North South Line (NS25) at "City Hall". It's an upper class bar environment (Attention: There are semi-naked pole dancers on stage every hour). You get a good view but unfortunately there is no outside area.

If you want to try something completely different check out if there is a Singapore Pub Crawl on on the night you are there. I did it once and it was big fun.

As an alternative you could go to 1-Altitude. Exit at East West Line (EW14) or the North South Line (NS26) at "Raffles Place". The bar promotes itself with being the highest roof top bar in the world. The admission fee can go up to 60 SGD during Formula 1 but the view is worth the price.

Singapore Changi International Airport (SIN) + Jewel:
Recently one of Singapore's new masterpieces opened and it's just in the heart of the airport (which makes it even accesible if you are here only for a short stop-over than 24hrs). The new mall called Jewel connects Terminal 1, 2 and 3 and features a large indoor waterfall shaped like a tornado/vortex. It's directly connected to the arrival area of T1. T2 and T3 are about 10 minutes walk away. If you arrive or leave from T4 you need to take a bus.

The "Jewel" on an early morning - © Christian Grzona

Notes and FAQ:
Q: Is Singapore safe and can I walk around during night time?
A: I have been to many places on the planet; Singapore is the safest place I've been to. I haven't experienced any situation that comes close to being unsafe.

Q: Shall I plan Sentosa Island as part of my 24 hour stopover agenda?
A: No. Sentosa Island could be an interesting addition to your agenda when you are staying more than 24 hours.

Hotels:
I am quite picky with regard to hotels and I still haven't found the perfect place to stay in Singapore. The following hotels though come pretty close to it (I stayed in all hotels listed so the info is first-hand):

Middle Class:
YOTEL Singapore (100€+ - very good location for shopping / very central for all activities). I stood here the last two times I was in Singapore.

Upper Class:
Swissôtel The Stamford (150€+ - very good location / proximity to Marina Bay and start of this program)

Hotel Indigo Singapore Katong and Grand Mercure Singapore Roxy (120€+ / proximity to the airport; basically half-way between CBD and airport)

Hotel Fort Canning (200€+ very good location / proximity to Orchard Rd and Clarke Quay)

AMOY Hotel Singapore (150€+ very good location / proximity to Telok Ayer MRT)

Review: Indonesia 2014 (Part 4)

Bali

Seminyak

My home base on Bali was Seminyak, just 10km west of the capital Denpasar and 5km North of Kuta (the wicked centre of Bali’s nightlife). I hit a good price for a three star hotel at Exedia.de and arrived at about 11:30 PM. The hotel (favehotel Umalas) was the perfect stay for me. Rooms are small but clean and sufficient since I anyway planned to stay less time as possible on the room. The breakfast is quite simple and for me maybe the only point that could be improved (more fresh fruits or so). Staff is mega friendly and the pool area is better than I expected. Try to get a pool view room. The hotel is located a bit outside of Seminyak and you have a wonderful view to rice fields and the "skyline" of Bali’s volcanoes in the morning.

Seminyak has a wonderful beach front with cafés and surf gear rentals. Coursed start from 350,000 rupiah for two hours and board rental from 50,000 rupiah per hour. I am quite sure you get far better bargains in other places.

I can recommend the small restaurant Mimpi selling different Indonesian dishes at fare rates. They mix them on the plate up to your choice.

It took me about 40 minutes to get here by cab from the Airport and about 1 hour back. For the trips I paid around 100,000 rupiah while the first I booked at the Airport Taxi Counter and the tour back I took a Blue Bird taxi. Be careful, time needed for the distance may vary dramatically between low season and high season (between July and September and around Christmas is high season on Bali). The taxi driver told me that it sometimes takes two or three times as long. Furthermore do not compare the time you need when you drive the same distance by scooter. You are likely a lot faster.

Kuta

Though I not came to party I decided to go checking out Kuta, Legian Street and the Poppies (Poppies I and Poppies II are streets in Kuta). I got a tip from a friend that Bamboo Corner in Kuta has good food and fare rates so that was the place I headed to. Kuta shows the party and nightlife face of Bali. It is somehow the combination of the European Mallorca and some of the Asian party places I have been to (like Koh Phi Phi and Koh Samui). Dominated by Aussies you are likely to see all sorts and shapes of people from the young and hot looking surfers to wrecked and freaky matures using the place to behave out of the box.

There are just four simple facts for me:

If you are looking for party, nightlife, beach + sun: Go to Kuta

If you look for restaurants serving local food, fusion food and food from all around the world, nice shops and boutiques and beach + sun and more or less quiet nights: Go to Seminyak

If you are looking for romance: Try to get one of the beach front hotels

If you are here to discover the island: Get one of the other hotels without beach view, you pay far less and it is never far to any beach on Bali

Ulu Watu

All the way down to the Western tip of the Bukit peninsula you find the temple of Ulu Watu enthroned on the very edge of the cliffs. 50 meters below you can see the ocean nibble on the rocks making you realize that the water will wash away this scenery some day and that you are looking at a snap-shot. I love the scenery of giant breakers hitting the cliffs. Be careful since you are not alone. A bunch of wild monkeys observing the tourists from the trees, waiting for a chance to steal lose items attached to you or your backpack. You will see monkeys stealing sun glasses and water bottles from fellow travelers and if you are not careful enough you will be one of them chasing a monkey for your Ray Ban glasses.

Bingin Beach

Just a couple of kilometers North-East of Ulu Watu I found one of the most beautiful beaches I have been to so far. Though recommended by Lonely Planet it is a) not easy to find and b) not crowded! Small restaurants are attached to the cliffs and sell simple dishes at moderate rates. Both surfers and relaxers will find their spot here.

Danau Beratan and Danau Buyan

60km North of Denpasar, on the main road to Singaraja (one of the two main roads going through the heart of the island) you will find a small highland surrounding the town of Bedugul. On both sides the plateau is limited by the crater lakes Danau Buyan in the West and Danau Beratan in the South.  The climate is chilled and humid and it seems to be the perfect climate for vegetables of all sorts. Also strawberries are very famous here and offered in small booths on the street.

Git Git Waterfall

The receptionist of the hotel told me that I should go to Git Git Waterfall to get some refreshment.

Careful: Scammers calling them self guides wait along the parking lot and offer their assistance to guide you around the area. This is extremely annoying and unnecessary. There is no guide needed to enter the area. Admission fee is 20,000 rupiah, you should not pay more. Along the 5-10 minute walk down to the waterfall you find 3-4 shops selling souvenirs and junk. Once you made it to the waterfall you will find a beautiful escape from the heat. Several natural pools invite for a swim. I first didn’t dare to get in the water but when I observed some locals getting into the pools I also took a swim.

Jatiluwih

The third UNESCO World Heritage site I visited during my Indonesia trip is one for the bucket list. As a rice lover and Asian kitchen addict I always wanted to visit a rice plantation. Though it is quite a tough trip to the area of Jatiluwih (takes about 2 hours one way by scooter), I went there two times. On the first day I hit the wrong road from Tabanan and ended up on a heavily damaged road which didn’t get better for about 10km. I almost got lost when a local girl and her brother assisted me and showed me around the area. We went all the way to a very remote Hot Spring where I took a bath in 30+ °C naturally warmed water.

If you do detours from the official roads be prepared for extremely bad road conditions which usually demand for a Jeep or a cross motorbike.

On the last day I stood up at six to go to the area again. You need to go via Tabanan and hit the right road to Penebel. Once in Penebel just follow the road signs (and make sure not to miss one). To enter the area around Jatiluwih you usually need to an admission fee (which I didn’t pay since I arrived obviously too early) of about 20,000 rupiah. The long way gets rewarded with stunning views to the rice paddies which were built and improved over centuries. You get a good picture of the water management and the daily hard work of the farmers. If you are looking for good pictures to bring home to neighbors and friends, this is the place to be. Unfortunately the sun (rising in the East) makes it hard to capture the amazing scenery. If you get there early you might be lucky and have the fully picture with all volcanoes unveiled.

Review: Indonesia 2014 (Part 3)

Yogyakarta (Jogja)

After I recovered from the night bus ride I decided to take a cab down town and stroll along Malioboro which is the main street in Jogja. I checked the Batik shops and I wandered around the surrounding quarters. Malioboro means an endless one way street which is impressive indeed. Hundreds of stores selling Batik, Souvenirs and Junk are front lined by Street Food Stalls and thousands of Becaks (cycle rickshaws) drivers. Be sure to find a “tour guide” at every corner

I went back to the beginning of Malioboro and went down “Gang 2” opposite of the central train station. Since it was lunch time I decided to try one of the restaurants recommended by Lonely Planet (Bedhot) which is really good. Since I passed dozens of shops renting scooters near the train station I considered to hire one and become more independent. Driving a scooter means to become part of the madness

Right opposite of Bedhot in Gang 2 you find Gecko Tours, I kind guy rents out scooters for 60,000 Rupiah a day. Since I planned to stay In Jogja for 2 days I rented it for 48 hours. It seems to be usual that they do not offer any insurance which makes you pretty much liable for any damages caused by you to the vehicle and others, so consider wisely. Though I recently (on Koh Samui) decided not to take the risk I did this time. You need to have some basic trust in the guy renting the scooter and I think the owner of Gecko’s is trustworthy. I used the rest of the day to check my orientation sense guided by a poor map I received in the hotel lobby. Though central Jogja’s roads are more or less designed as a chess board it turned out to be quite hard to hit the right road and estimate distances correctly. 

On day two in Jogja I finally could escape the downtown madness of downtown Yogyakarta. Since I was so impressed by the magnificent view to Gerung Merapi on my arrival I decided to go to the same place where I saw it first and take some pictures. Locals told me that the cone is at this time anyway only visible at sunrise and covered by clouds for the rest of the day. Believe it or not, getting so close to an active and volatile volcano is a strange experience indeed. I stood up at four in the morning and took the main road to Mungkid which offers some views to the mountain at Sleman. There is an iron bridge which offers a free view to the silhouette at sun rise. After I shot some pictures I decided to take one of the side streets to get even nearer, which turned out to be impossible from that direction. Literally from all spots I passed it was either covered by trees or buildings.

Sights:

Borobodur:

I love to visit World Heritage sites; I would almost say I collect them. There is no journey without an intensive check of the UNESCO website. Beside of the history of the place which is omnipresent the surrounding area is amazing. The site is located about 40km north-west of Yogyakarta, about an hour to drive with a scooter. Watch out for the “Borobudur” sign in Mungkid and follow the (poor) signage. Don’t be afraid to ask the locals in case you get lost, as mentioned before they are very helpful. Though I arrived very early (about 07:00 AM) it was already too late to capture pictures with Gunung Merapi in the background. All that was left to see was the tip of the cone. The rest of the surrounding area is covered in a mysterious mist which gives the place a magical aura.

Entrance Fee – 230,000 Rupiah / Parking (Scooter) – 3,000 Rupiah

From Borobodur I went via Salaman to Purowejo and further to the coast line near Temon. I passed beautiful rice pads and plantations and picturesque scenes of Indonesia’s daily life away from the downtown madness. Endless meadows, wild rivers and almost remote villages made my day. The coastline itself was disappointing. Giant breakers made it impossible to swim; furthermore the beach was covered by some sort of black ashes.

Prambanan:

Prambanan, the Hindu counterpart to Borobodur covered by the jungle for ages and partly reassembled in the 20^th century also belongs to the Unesco World Heritage list. The main buildings of Candi Shiva Mahadeva are almost fully restored. Most impressive is the fact that the giant structure is built without the use of mortar in between the blocks. The surrounding area looks a bit like a giant 3D puzzle waiting to be finished. The area is less flooded by annoying merchants and the facilities are in top condition. If you do not have time to visit Borobodur, you should definitely go to Prambanan. It is conveniently located only 12km north-east of Yogyakarta and accessible by public transport. By scooter it takes about half an hour, just follow the main road to Solo.

Entrance Fee – 207,000 Rupiah / Parking (Scooter) – 3,000 Rupiah

Gunung Merapi – Kaliurang View Point:

Well, I think volcanoes do not like me that much. After Fuji San (who was shrouded in clouds when I visited Lake Ashii), Sakurajima erupted when we already left the island and Tangkuban Prahu was also covered my rain clouds a couple of days ago. Today I went to the view point just 4.5km south of the summit of Gunung Merapi and guess what, you could see nothing.

But putting the jokes aside, it is a very strange feeling being so close to a volcano which is blamed for the death of thousands and which is assumedly responsible for the abandoning of this region by a complete advanced culture about thousand years ago. With a queasy feeling I kept the Evacuation Route sign in a corner of the eye. Basically it must be a spectacular site to visit in dry season or in very early morning hours. The lava run (dried pathway of lava streams) is not that

Entrance Fee – 3,000 Rupiah / Parking (Scooter) – 2,000 Rupiah

Not an attraction by name but for me the best thing about the scooter trip is the independence from tour guides and fixed time tables. Once you enter the traffic you quite fast get used to it. You are more or less only limited by traffic lights and your own hesitations. All other rules more or less do not apply. 

Since I found out that it is not possible to book and pay a Lion Air Domestic flight online within 48h before departure (they do not accept credit cards in that time frame) I went to the ticket counter at the airport. It was very easy and convenient, I could buy a ticket for the same night (to Bali) and pay cash (487,900 Rupiah, about 30€ which means 12€ less than online).

Next stop.... Bali!

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Websites:

http://whc.unesco.org/en/list

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Review: Indonesia 2014 (Part 2)

From Bogor to Bandung:

I took the bus from the bus terminal in Bogor to Bandung (50,000 Rupiah). It took about 3 hours and went via Jakarta (not like I thought via Puncak Pass). Though the highway between Bogor/Jakarta/Bekasi was extremely packed, it arrived more or less on time.

Bandung

 

After I checked in I jumped into my bathing shorts and took a swim in the hotel pool. I realized that I made a good deal with the hotel for about 30€ a night since it was really good (Jayakarta Suites). I met Tom from the UK who lives in Bandung and told me it became his home. He teaches English and has been living in Bandung for almost 7 year now. My first impression of the city was horrible. Traffic comparable or even worse than in Jakarta and I couldn’t really discover the cities charme. Sometimes you got that. I decided to tick off the tourist spots and leave the town the next day.

Since I read about it a couple of times now I decided to rent a driver for a day (700,000 Rupiah). It was not a good choice, though the driver was very nice he barely spoke English (which means he didn’t speak English at all). I imagined I could just use the map and tell him where to go but this turned out to be unmanageable, so he took me to Tangkuban Prahu and the Sari Ater Hot Spring Resort in Ciater. Furthermore I took some pictures at a nearby stereotype tea plantation. Since it was very foggy in the beginning and turned into a real thunder storm at afternoon...

Tangkuban Prahu:

If you ask me, don’t go there. Don’t get me wrong, the view to the big crater (there are five in total) is amazing and it is a strange feeling to like down an active and steaming crater. It simply to commercialized. There are hundreds of merchants and hundreds of small booths selling all sort of junk. You are glad if you find a minute for your own to take pictures. In my opinion they should change this as soon as possible.

 

Sari Ater Hot Spring Resort:

I had the wonderful hot spring and river I once visited in Krabi (Thailand) in mind when I came here. Sari Ater is different. The river runs through what I would call an attraction park. On both sides of the river you find little shelters or huts to protect you from the rain while you put your legs into the hot water. For me it was far too commercialized to get a relaxing feeling. On top of that it turned out that I hit the wrong time frame of the day since just a couple of minutes later a heavy thunderstorm set in. I took shelter in the central food curt and talked with Dede, an English teacher from Bekasi. For his students I was an attraction and they could train their English skills.

From Bandung to Yogyakarta:

First I planned to take the night train from Bandung to Yogyakarta. It turned out to be quite tricky to book in advance. Usually you can buy the ticket in a standard 24/7 shop on the road (like Alfaria or Indomarket), but there seemed to be something wrong with the booking system, most likely network problems). Second option is to buy the ticket at the train station itself, but this is only possible one hour ahead which leaves a big risk that the train is fully booked. I checked Seat61.com for alternatives and tried to do the booking myself online but the site showed the night train as fully booked. I decided for Option B and took the night bus.

It is amazing how you can underestimate the size of a city you only know from the travel guide and Google Maps. For Bandung this was the case. The city is extremely big and the traffic appeared to be even worse than in Jakarta. The first two hours the night bus took to get out of the city. The total distance is 400 kilometers from Bandung to Yogyakarta and it takes about 12 hours. After 6 hours we stopped at Datuk Frima, somewhere between Tasikmalaya and Banjar. This is about 1/3 of the way. For the rest 2/3 the ride takes another 6 hours. To be honest, this ride was an adventure. The drivers deserve my full respect. The composure of darkness, risky overtaking maneuvers and the road conditions catered for a very bad sleep… Most likely I will never take such a ride again and stick to Option A, the night train. By the way, be prepared for all sorts of merchants entering the bus at various stops in Bandung itself (trying to sell food and all sort of junk).

Once I arrived in Yogyakarta I stopped by a 24/7 McDonalds to book a hotel in Jogja (short for Yogyakarta). When I arrived at 07:00 in the morning they already had a room available and I could get some sleep.

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Links:

http://www.seat61.com

-Found a typing error?
-Feedback?
-Need further Info?
-All pictures shot by me.

Please feel free to contact me!