Honeymoon in Indonesia
Apr 19th, 2010, 06:42 AM
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marmot, I absolutely agree that Kuching is more charming than Kota Kinabalu. But you have to go through KK to get to BRL or to get to the renowned diving and snorkeling off the coast there. The beaches near Kuching (Damai) were pleasant, but I don't know that there is either snorkeling or diving in the area.
Apr 19th, 2010, 03:18 PM
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Katie&marmot; Though I have not been near Kuching I keep my antenna up on the better dive and snorkel places and I have not heard that Kuching was a highly rated place at least in the league with the redang, prehentian or sabah area.
Toby; I contacted Wiedy at the tour service in Central Java and asked that he make sure he give you the same awesome experience as his guide gave us. He probably is an expert on the Mt. bromo area if you have your heart set on it and can get you a great guide for Bali. Lastly because he is local since you really want to go to the Aman as a local firm he may be able to get you a better rate than a US Agent can I know he did at the Hyatt by 12%.
Toby; I contacted Wiedy at the tour service in Central Java and asked that he make sure he give you the same awesome experience as his guide gave us. He probably is an expert on the Mt. bromo area if you have your heart set on it and can get you a great guide for Bali. Lastly because he is local since you really want to go to the Aman as a local firm he may be able to get you a better rate than a US Agent can I know he did at the Hyatt by 12%.
May 23rd, 2010, 02:32 AM
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Sorry for the delay in getting back - we've been busy booking up all our accommodation, and I think we're now sorted on that front!
We've decided to go for the following:
- 3 nights in the Pan Pacific, Singapore
- 3 nights in Amanjiwo
- 1 night in Phoenix hotel, Yogyakarta
- 2 nights in Tugu Malang
- 1 night in Java Banana
- 7 nights in Tugu Lombok
- 4 nights in Komaneka, Ubud
- 3 nights in Jimbaran Puri
We're very excited!
I did, however, have one final question on which I'd like to pick your brains. We'd like to book a guide and driver for the middle section of our trip, around Mt Bromo, and would very much appreciate any advice. We'd like to arrange the following:
Day 1: Collection from our hotel in Malang; driven to Java Banana Lodge near Mt Bromo, visiting any sights en route
Day 2: Sunrise jeep trip to Mt Pananjakan for Mt Bromo view; walk/horse ride in the volcano area; return to Java Banana for breakfast, and then driven to Surabaya airport
We contacted a couple of places for quotes - including Wiedy, as suggested by StanKase - and were quoted $550 in total by one guide, and $402 by the other. This seemed to us more expensive than we had expected. Does that sound reasonable to others with experience? I'd be grateful for any thoughts, suggestions or advice. Many thanks again.
We've decided to go for the following:
- 3 nights in the Pan Pacific, Singapore
- 3 nights in Amanjiwo
- 1 night in Phoenix hotel, Yogyakarta
- 2 nights in Tugu Malang
- 1 night in Java Banana
- 7 nights in Tugu Lombok
- 4 nights in Komaneka, Ubud
- 3 nights in Jimbaran Puri
We're very excited!
I did, however, have one final question on which I'd like to pick your brains. We'd like to book a guide and driver for the middle section of our trip, around Mt Bromo, and would very much appreciate any advice. We'd like to arrange the following:
Day 1: Collection from our hotel in Malang; driven to Java Banana Lodge near Mt Bromo, visiting any sights en route
Day 2: Sunrise jeep trip to Mt Pananjakan for Mt Bromo view; walk/horse ride in the volcano area; return to Java Banana for breakfast, and then driven to Surabaya airport
We contacted a couple of places for quotes - including Wiedy, as suggested by StanKase - and were quoted $550 in total by one guide, and $402 by the other. This seemed to us more expensive than we had expected. Does that sound reasonable to others with experience? I'd be grateful for any thoughts, suggestions or advice. Many thanks again.
May 23rd, 2010, 04:33 PM
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Toby; Wiedy I told you is maybe 15% on the high side but I hve traveled with guides throughout most of the world and they can make or break a trip. To save $100-$150 is not worth it, trust me. Wiedy can also do Mt. Bromo and that may give you some leverage to bargain. Even if you don't use him for Bromo come back to Wiedy with 10% less than he qouted and have him assure you can have Rachmad. He will accept your proposal.
Enjoy!!
Enjoy!!
May 24th, 2010, 04:52 AM
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Toby; I emailed Wiedy and asked him to be flexible.His van cost him a fair amount an that is why his rate may be a bit higher. His firm is really quite good and he responded and said he would work with you. He probably would accept $480-$500 and pick you up at the airport and return you and review the itinerary on your day of arrival as he did with me. It made it seamless. Also, He may be able to get you a better rate at the Phoenix, I do not know about the Aman and even the other hotels unless you prepaid. My rate at the Hyatt was $11 a night less than the rate I was able to get on my own. You have more than a month to make changes unless you prepaid. He might be able to save you some money.
May 24th, 2010, 05:32 AM
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Toby; I do not think I ever mention it to you but Rachmad is 1 of 2 official guides that the Aman uses and I understand they charge $95 or $100USD for a max of 8 hours and to go to Dieng Plateau you need 9 or 10 hours to do a leisurely day stopping for lunch as we did with Rachmad at a very interesting restaurant. By the way the custom we follow is to pay for the guides lunch because it usually is not more than $5-$6 USD anyway..
Nov 8th, 2010, 04:34 AM
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Toby,
My fiance and I are in the middle of planning our July 2011 honeymoon in Indonesia, for about 3 weeks.
The information above has been incredibly useful - I wonder would you let me know how the trip went, and what you would/wouldn't recommend?
Many thanks!
My fiance and I are in the middle of planning our July 2011 honeymoon in Indonesia, for about 3 weeks.
The information above has been incredibly useful - I wonder would you let me know how the trip went, and what you would/wouldn't recommend?
Many thanks!
Mar 12th, 2011, 06:56 AM
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Hi Elizabeth,
thanks for your message. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We had a wonderful trip and would really recommend every part of it. Indonesia is such a wonderful country, with so much diversity (even in the very limited number of islands we managed to fit in) and we were really bowled over by the friendliness of the people, the delicious food and the beautiful landscapes.
As you will see from the chain above, there was quite a debate amongst Fodorites about the virtues of Lombok vs. Bali. I have to say although we liked both islands, Lombok really stood out for us. This was mainly becaues the Tugu hotel was such an amazingly beautiful hotel, with such warm and friendly service, and a really beautiful beach. We just found that a very relaxing bit of our trip (we were there for a week whereas the rest of the time we moved around a bit). Lombok is also absolutely beautiful and unspoilt and far from finding the people unfriendly we found them extremely friendly and welcoming, though much less likely to speak english. We learned a few basic words of Bahasa Indonesia and that helped a great deal - we were met with delight and real appreciation because we had made a bit of effort (much helped by the very friendly staff in our hotel). We really liked Bali as well for other reasons but we found it much more commercial and therefre we mainly focused on cultural touring, seeing temples and so on. The weather there was also less good which again in my limited experience I have heard other people say too - hot but sometimes a bit overcast. We would particularly recommend Marco Dewo tours in Bali who provided an excellent private tour guide/driver which we ended up using for many more days than we thought we would because it was so reasonably priced (much better value than a guide through your hotel) and excellent service.
The other reflection on the overall trip we have is how easy it was to get around. There was a rather complex section of the trip where we visited the Tugu hotel in Malang on the way to Bromo and so needed to hire private drivers to take us to and from various airports. we were worried in advance how this would work out but in the event it was incredibly straight forward - the guide was arranged through the hotel (also a very friendly and recommended hotel), picked us up at the alloted time and took us to Java Banana for our dawn viewing of Mount Bromo. This was amazing and we have some stunning photos but again much busier than expected so expect to be jostling amongst the crowds for a view, and do try and get there early to get a good spot. The crowds do thin out after the dawn breaks though.
The other highlight was possibly Amanjiwo and the stunning temple of Borobodur. Again, picking up themes that others have highlighted, the quality of the guide really made this for us - we were lucky enough to have an amazing guide and a very moving experience visiting the temple. The hotel itself was out of this world although it was so luxurious and expensive that we felt quite happy not staying there for too long!
We liked Yogya for a bit of a contrast although we weren't there for too long which suited us fine. And although we were worried that there wouldn't be too much to do in Singapore, we found it was actually perfect for a staging post en route to Indonesia. We managed to catch up on a lot of sleep and relax after the exhaustion of planning our big day, and we really enjoyed sampling the city's amazing restaurants. We found the city a lot more likeable than we expected and could easily have found more to keep us occupied for longer.
Overall, every single part of honeymoon was wonderful and we were lucky to have such great advice from the Fodors forum, so we are very grateful. Do write back if you have any more specific questions and we'd be very happy to help.
thanks for your message. Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We had a wonderful trip and would really recommend every part of it. Indonesia is such a wonderful country, with so much diversity (even in the very limited number of islands we managed to fit in) and we were really bowled over by the friendliness of the people, the delicious food and the beautiful landscapes.
As you will see from the chain above, there was quite a debate amongst Fodorites about the virtues of Lombok vs. Bali. I have to say although we liked both islands, Lombok really stood out for us. This was mainly becaues the Tugu hotel was such an amazingly beautiful hotel, with such warm and friendly service, and a really beautiful beach. We just found that a very relaxing bit of our trip (we were there for a week whereas the rest of the time we moved around a bit). Lombok is also absolutely beautiful and unspoilt and far from finding the people unfriendly we found them extremely friendly and welcoming, though much less likely to speak english. We learned a few basic words of Bahasa Indonesia and that helped a great deal - we were met with delight and real appreciation because we had made a bit of effort (much helped by the very friendly staff in our hotel). We really liked Bali as well for other reasons but we found it much more commercial and therefre we mainly focused on cultural touring, seeing temples and so on. The weather there was also less good which again in my limited experience I have heard other people say too - hot but sometimes a bit overcast. We would particularly recommend Marco Dewo tours in Bali who provided an excellent private tour guide/driver which we ended up using for many more days than we thought we would because it was so reasonably priced (much better value than a guide through your hotel) and excellent service.
The other reflection on the overall trip we have is how easy it was to get around. There was a rather complex section of the trip where we visited the Tugu hotel in Malang on the way to Bromo and so needed to hire private drivers to take us to and from various airports. we were worried in advance how this would work out but in the event it was incredibly straight forward - the guide was arranged through the hotel (also a very friendly and recommended hotel), picked us up at the alloted time and took us to Java Banana for our dawn viewing of Mount Bromo. This was amazing and we have some stunning photos but again much busier than expected so expect to be jostling amongst the crowds for a view, and do try and get there early to get a good spot. The crowds do thin out after the dawn breaks though.
The other highlight was possibly Amanjiwo and the stunning temple of Borobodur. Again, picking up themes that others have highlighted, the quality of the guide really made this for us - we were lucky enough to have an amazing guide and a very moving experience visiting the temple. The hotel itself was out of this world although it was so luxurious and expensive that we felt quite happy not staying there for too long!
We liked Yogya for a bit of a contrast although we weren't there for too long which suited us fine. And although we were worried that there wouldn't be too much to do in Singapore, we found it was actually perfect for a staging post en route to Indonesia. We managed to catch up on a lot of sleep and relax after the exhaustion of planning our big day, and we really enjoyed sampling the city's amazing restaurants. We found the city a lot more likeable than we expected and could easily have found more to keep us occupied for longer.
Overall, every single part of honeymoon was wonderful and we were lucky to have such great advice from the Fodors forum, so we are very grateful. Do write back if you have any more specific questions and we'd be very happy to help.
Mar 13th, 2011, 10:39 AM
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Toby44; I am glad you had a terrific trip.
Did you have Rachmad as your guide at the Aman? He works for the fellow Wiedy I suggested on his days off. We used both of them when we were there in March 2010. Did you feel that the Aman was worth the $800/night with tax/service out of curiousity? We visited it and were impressed but thought since we were touring for 9-10 hours we would not task advantage of the lovely place and stayed at the HYatt Regency for $200. We did stay at the Aman in Thailand and enjoyed it but spend more time on-site. Just curious
Did you have Rachmad as your guide at the Aman? He works for the fellow Wiedy I suggested on his days off. We used both of them when we were there in March 2010. Did you feel that the Aman was worth the $800/night with tax/service out of curiousity? We visited it and were impressed but thought since we were touring for 9-10 hours we would not task advantage of the lovely place and stayed at the HYatt Regency for $200. We did stay at the Aman in Thailand and enjoyed it but spend more time on-site. Just curious
Mar 14th, 2011, 05:58 AM
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Hi StanKase, in the end we didn't end up using Rachmad - I forget why not, perhaps he was not available. We only stayed at the Aman at Amanjiwo. We thought it was worth it for the uniqueness of the hotel, and the location next to Borodobur - we did get a lot of value from the hotel as we spend a lot of time tehre (it was close to the beginning of our trip so we were still quite tired). We wouldn't have wanted to stay at Aman hotels throughout preferring more variety - I think I would have found them too sterile, and almost too luxurious even if we could have afforded it (which we couldn't). We liked to mix up the hotels at big and we enjoyed staying in the Indonesian owned Tugu chained as opposed to the big American owned chained hotels that you can stay in all over the world.
Nov 28th, 2011, 11:46 PM
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Hi Toby,
My fiancee and I are planning a 3 week honeymoon in Indonesia in June 2012 and wondered if you would be able to give us some tips on what to see and do as you seem to have had an amazing time.
You sound like you would be into the same kind of thing as us, a little bit of luxury but also wanting to see the real Indonesia. Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt
My fiancee and I are planning a 3 week honeymoon in Indonesia in June 2012 and wondered if you would be able to give us some tips on what to see and do as you seem to have had an amazing time.
You sound like you would be into the same kind of thing as us, a little bit of luxury but also wanting to see the real Indonesia. Any help would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Matt
Nov 29th, 2011, 12:57 PM
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Having been to Lombok though Toby really wanted to go I would stronly suggest considering going to Central Java to vidsit Borobudur-a magnificant 8th century Hindu Temple as well as Prehamian Temple and the Sultans Palace (one of the only remaining Sultans in Indonesia)and the magnificant scenery of Dieng Playeau. You can fly from Bali in about 1 hour and the cost is $150 RT.Two days in Yogja is more rewarding than 2 days in Lombok in my opinion.
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