Jakarta - A Backpacker’s Guide to the Big Durian
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The Indonesian capital of Jakarta is a massive sprawling metropolis and has earned the nickname, the “Big Durian”. A slightly cruel reading of this nickname is that it’s big, ugly and smelly. A more accurate one however, is that for every one person who dislikes Jakarta, another absolutely adores it. Surprise, surprise we were in the latter camp, we loved it! The food we ate was incredible, the people funny, warm and welcoming and there was so much to do that our week in the city just flew by.
Jakarta is frequently just a stopping off point for those travelling to or from the paradise island of Bali. Often seen as a chore that has to be gotten out of the way, we had been warned not to expect much from the Indonesian capital, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Read on to find out how to get the most out of this amazing city!
Jakarta’s buildings are a mixture of ultra modern high rise to wooden beamed shophouses.
Getting To And From Jakarta: Where Is The Indonesian capital?
Jakarta is the current capital of Indonesia, and lies on the northern coast of the island of Java. We say current, as there are plans to relocate the capital of Indonesia to Nusantara in 2024. Java is so large it is divided into three regions, West, Central and Wast. Jakarta is on the far end of Western Java.
As the capital, it's a major air and transport hub for travel throughout Indonesia, South East Asia and Australasia.
Jakarta by Air
The most likely way you’ll be arriving in Jakarta is by air, via the international airport of Soekarno-Hatta. This major airport has flights departing worldwide, as well local carriers taking you across the archipelago. The airport is to the north west of central Jakarta and is a 45 minute (traffic dependant) inexpensive taxi ride away, or an hour and half by connecting trains.
Jakarta by Train
The island of Java is well connected with trains running from West to East and joining all the major cities, including to the port town of Ketapang where ferries leave for Bali. We can highly recommend train travel in Indonesia. Trains are very clean, comfy and cheap and the routes they travel across are stunning.
Jakarta by Bus
Jakarta has bus links to everywhere on Java. There are large official bus terminals as well as many other smaller operators. Check around and use Google, there will almost certainly be a bus from Jakarta going to wherever you need to go.
To book your travel in advance, we can recommend using 12Go. You can use this to book trains, buses, ferries and even internal flights.
Where To Stay In Jakarta?
Jakarta is a huge city, and as such location is key when choosing your accommodation. Despite its size, there aren’t that many hostels on offer, so if you’re looking for common rooms and fellow backpackers, the choices are limited. There are, however, plenty of guesthouses and hotels for all budgets.
We wanted a hostel so we chose to stay at the Packers Lodge on the fringes of Chinatown.
The hostel was perfect. Cheap and comfy, with rooftop and street level common areas, kitchen facilities and even a small gym! What stood out for us most was the location. Just off of the main road, the Packers Lodge was in a small enclave of pretty alleyways, narrow passages and streets. We had been told Jakarta was not a pretty city, but the flower filled avenues around Chinatown were gorgeous. We opted for a private room with en-suite, but dorms are also available.
Book your stay here .
For all accommodation choices in Jakarta, from high end to basic backpacker, check out the map below:
Getting Around Jakarta
Jakarta is a huge city, and although there are plenty of pavements, it's not always the most pleasant place to walk around. Jakarta is also a truly massive city, sprawling out from the coast in every direction. You’re going to need some transport.
Local Buses
There is a good network of local buses connecting the major hubs through Jakarta. As an added bonus the buses frequently have their own lane so don’t suffer as badly form the Jakartan traffic issues. You need to buy a card before you board, and this will come preloaded with enough credit to make at least one journey. These cards can be purchased at the larger bus stops.
Ride Hailing / Taxi Apps
Grab, Gojek and Bluebird Taxis all operate within the capital. Grab and Gojek are cheap and easily available. Bluebird is an Indonesian taxi firm with its own app, but from our experience a higher quality of driver (less likely to get lost and more likely to spot you waving desperately from the side of the road). Bluebird gives you an estimated cost for the journey, whereas Grab and Gojek confirm the price before you set off. You can choose to pay in cash or linked debit card.
One thing to note when driving around Jakarta is the Odd/Even Licence Plate Restrictions. Traffic in Jakarta is notorious. Long traffic jams are extremely common and to combat this, the government has imposed the Odd/Even License Plate restrictions. During the morning and evening rush hours a car's licence plate dictates which roads it can use. Alternating days will bar either plates beginning in odd numbers or plates beginning in even numbers from using many of the main roads in Jakarta. This restriction will mean that your Grab/Gojek/BlueBird driver will have to take lengthy detours if they have the wrong licence plate for the day. This can be shocking as a passenger, as you will stray a long way off of the route your app is telling you that the driver should take and it can add a lot of journey time to a cross-town ride. You can set GoogleMaps to see the routes available for odd/even licence plates and that should reassure you that you’re going the right way. The Odd/Even restriction is also why you may have a few drivers cancel your booking as soon as they are assigned it!
What To Do In Jakarta?
Jakarta, despite what anyone may say, has loads to offer travellers. We spent a week in the city and definitely didn’t get to see all it has to offer. Below are some of the highlights from our time.
National Museum of Indonesia
Entry cost: 25,000 IDR per ticket (£1.31 or $1.63)
The National Museum is a great place to learn about the fascinating, varied histories of Indonesia. With exhibitions on the ethnic diversity, the landscape of Indonesia and its ancient and modern histories.
The artefacts on display were incredible, from huge wooden boats, to intricate and ornately decorated tribal masks. The museum was interesting, and well worth a visit. There is a cafe and toilet facilities on site.
National Monument and Merdeka Square
Crowned with a golden flame, this white column spears up into the skyline of central Jakarta. The National Monument sits right in the middle of Merdeka Square a large square park, full of trees, dancing fountains, green lawns and gardens.
There is a viewpoint at the top of the National Monument, however there are limited tickets per day, and as we were visiting around Indonesian Independence Day we were far too late to pick up tickets!
Merdeka Square, the park surrounding the monument is a great place to escape the chaos of downtown Jakarta. There is a large food court near the monument and loads of places to chill out.
It is very popular on the weekends, and when we visited there was even a toddler balance bike competition!
If you are travelling with little ones, there is a seemingly permanent fun fair in the park, along with many toy stalls.
If you have subjected your small human to the museum and art gallery, Merdeka Square may have an appropriate reward for their patience!
National Gallery of Indonesia
Entry cost: Free but reserve online to skip the queues.
As the name suggests, this is the national gallery of Indonesia. Housing incredible artwork from Indonesian artists as well as exhibits from overseas. You can easily combine a visit here with a visit to the National Museum and National Monument.
Chinatown - Glodok
Entry cost: Free
Glodok, Jakarta's Chinatown area is full of colour and life. In the early morning the streets are packed with vendors selling everything from vegetables to live frogs. Market stalls spill over the streets and clog up the narrow lanes with stallholders, pedestrians and scooters all jostling for space. The winding alleyways hide ornate temples and old shop houses. Chinatown is a great place just to get lost and enjoy the atmosphere.
It is also an amazing place for food whatever time of day, but we will come to that later.
Kota Tua and Taman Fatahillah
A large pedestrianised boulevard leads from Kota Tua train station to the Dutch Old Town surrounding the Taman Fatahillah Square. This is Jakata’s “Trafalgar Square” lined on all sides with museums - The Puppet Museum, Jakarta History Museum and the Museum of Fine Arts and Ceramics.
The square itself is full of street performers, selfie spots and children's entertainers. The famous colonial era institution of Cafe Batavia sits on the square’s north west corner, so if you want to treat yourself to a posh coffee or cocktail you're covered.
At night the area turns into a sprawling night market serving everything from satay and other Indonesian fare to international foods. Just be aware that as the main tourist night market it can get extremely busy!
Museum Bahari Jakarta - National Maritime Museum
Entry costs - 5000 IDR (£0.26 or $0.33)
To the north of Kota Tua on the edges of the port of Jakarta is the National Maritime Museum. Housed in the old spice warehouses of the Dutch East India Company this museum is definitely worth the walk.
The museum has the original watch tower next to the ticket desk which gives a great view of the old buildings sitting next to the new container port of Jakarta.
The museum has exhibits on the seafaring history of the native tribes of Indonesia, the influence of Dutch colonialism as well as the importance of the country to world trade and history. The Maritime museum is full of boats, models, paintings and interesting artefacts.
There is also an exhibition on the fire that gutted the museum in 2018 and the amazing restoration work that restored it.
Shopping in Jakarta
As the Indonesian capital Jakarta is well stocked in malls, shops and department stores making it an ideal place for a restock or refresh of your backpacking wardrobe.
All the main international brands are present from high end couture to sportswear. We had a successful supply run at the Grand Indonesia Mall including a surprisingly cheap and tasty lunch in the food court!
The malls seem to be social hubs for Jakartan’s. Full of busy cafes, food courts, cinemas, performance spaces and gyms. We even encountered a Chinese Dragon dancing competition whilst browsing for shoes!
Guided Experiences
If you’re looking for guided experiences in or around Jakarta, including tours to the nearby volcanoes, check out Get Your Guide. For those short on time, they are a great way of cramming as much Jakarta into your itinerary as possible!
What To Eat in Jakarta
Eating in Jakarta is an absolute pleasure. Indonesian food is fantastic, a mixing bowl of all the greatest hits of southeast Asia whilst being totally unique. Jakarta emblemises this fantastic array of foods perfectly, from street carts to fine dining and everything in between, Jakarta has something for everyone.
Chinatown
We were based in the Packers Lodge hostel just off of Chinatown so had the opportunity to sample its delights at every time of day. Check out the below for our top eats in Chinatown.
For breakfast we treated ourselves to steamed sticky rice with chicken at Bakmi Sasak (Location) a small shop in the midst of the morning market. Sweet, rich and hearty, the steamed sticky rice clung to every morsel of sauce and made for a very satisfying breakfast.
Nearby (and later on!) on the same street as Bakmi Sasak, we ate at another restaurant (Location) serving one of our favourite Asian dishes, Kuey Teow.
The tell-tale blazing hot wok and fistfuls of frying noodles drew us in and we were not disappointed. Generous portions of smokey noodles, piled high with shrimp, chicken and Chinese sausage. It was delicious!
You cannot beat chicken for breakfast
Except maybe Kuey Teow for lunch!
If you’re in Chinatown, do not miss the famous street of Jalan Pintu Besar Selatan III (Location). This tiny alleyway is lined on both sides with street food vendors and stalls. Jalan Pintu also houses the famous Kopi Es Tak Kie, an old school Chinese coffee shop where you can buy food from the street vendors outside and bring it in to eat with your coffee. We ate an amazing plate of mixed pork and rice. The pork came in every imaginable variety from crispy belly, to sweet sausage, drizzled with a sweet soy sauce and accompanied by a hard boiled egg.
Other Jakarta Eats
Warteg Gang Mangga (Location)
It was obvious from the queues of delivery scooters and the constant crowds inside this small restaurant that it was going to be good. Open all hours, this popular hole in the wall joint serves rice and curry, with a massive variety of the latter. The choice of curries was amazing, we opted for a creamy coconut and jackfruit alongside our fried chicken, spicy sambal and fried egg. Their fried chicken was coated in coconut flakes, and was to die for and the curries were knockouts! Rice and curry is always a win for us. Ever since Sri Lanka we have loved the variety of the curries, it is one of our favourite things to eat. We were overjoyed that, in Indonesia, rice and curry is common and may even be the best selection yet!
Bakmi Aheng (Location)
Don’t try looking for this restaurant during the day as all you’ll find is an empty parking space.
Come nightfall, however, a tent springs up and boiling pots of noodles begin bubbling away. This was our first meal in Indonesia and it really set the tone for the deliciousness we could expect. Thin egg noodles, tossed in a minced pork, garlic and spring onion oil served with a delicate soup.
It was addictive, yummy and incredibly cheap! All the things a backpacker could want.
The Gade Coffee & Gold (Location)
This is cheating as this is a chain, but on a hot sticky day in Jakarta, their iced lattes really hit the spot! Not the cheapest coffee we found, but if you’re after a ‘treat yourself’ pick me up in an air conditioned environment, you can’t go wrong.
Gaja Madah Food Street (Location)
This upscale food court was a favourite for us and our fellow hostel travellers.
To get the bad out the way first, it was definitely not the cheapest place to eat. The street food here is 50% more expensive than the street food available outside. That out the way, this was one of our favourite places to spend an evening in Jakarta. Live music, big screens, a bar and a plethora of food to choose from. You could happily snack your way through several hours of an evening. We especially liked the fried belly pork and spicy barbecued chicken wings. Also the sushi wasn’t bad either!
Night Market on the Streets Outside Grand Indonesia Mall
Come nightfall, the shoppers disperse and the streets are taken over with food stalls, carts and makeshift seating. You can eat pretty much whatever you want here from freshly grilled satay, fried fish and lumpia (Indonesian spring rolls) through to Korean corn dogs and American style cheeseburgers!
Q Food and Music (Location)
This food court is located way out the main “tourist areas” and feels like it. With prices half that of Gaja Madah, this food court gave us a fantastic evening out with the locals.
Spicy satay taichan (plain barbecued chicken dipped in an amazing spicy sauce) alongside regular satay was a highlight as was the mie goreng (fried noodles). There was a bar, a live DJ and a screen showing football.
Q Food is a great recommendation if you want a more Jakartan food court experience. We loved Gaja Madah, but you could have been in any city. Q Food was 100% Jakartan, even with the chanting for Manchester United….
Conclusion
For some reason, Jakarta seems to have a bad reputation amongst travellers. Frequently we’ve been advised to literally land and leave, but we are so glad we gave it a chance. This city is full of great food, things to do and places to explore. It's a huge city, and not without its problems, but it's well worth giving Jakarta your time!
Thanks for reading,
John & Ellie x
#adventuresofjellie
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