North Sumatera, Indonesia

Home to a diverse array of cultures and a fascinating kaleidescope of Indonesian life, the region of North Sumatra has many wonders to explore. North Sumatra’s specacular natural beauty spreads from the magnificent Lake Toba, the biggest lake in Southeast Asia, to the jungle of Bukit Lawang which organgutans make their home. The natural and cultural wonders here make this is a region to come and have a true adventure.

The landscape here has been shaped by thousands of years of volcanic activity. From the incredible Lake Toba which was formed around 75,000 years ago in one of the most fierce volcanic eruptions ever known to the still smouldering Mt Sibayak, volcanoes dominate the landscape everywhere. 

North Sumatra is home to rare and exotic wildlife. Discover exceptional and unique species like the orangutans, the white-handed gibbon, and 17 types of bird. For nature lovers, the extraordinary ecosystems which exist here are well worth a visit.

The largest city in this region, Medan, is a thriving metropolis, and one of the biggest cities in Indonesia. The population of the city is diverse, representing virtually every ethnicity in Indonesia. As one of the most important economic hubs in the country, Medan is also a place to do business with a number of oil and plantation export companies operating here and in the surrounding region.

Whether you’re after a jungle adventure, a relaxing holiday in pristine natural surrounds or an authentic experience of native Batak culture, this is a region which has it all.

LOCAL INTEREST

          1. Tangkahan

Tangkahan is sometimes mentioned as the HIDDEN PARADISE IN SUMATRA. It is definitely hidden and for many a paradise. It is the perfect place to get off the beaten track, but still have access to nice food and comfortable bungalows. Tangkahan is an interesting place in many ways. Interesting for what it has to offer and an interesting background. The elephants, the jungle, and the clean rivers are obvious attractions. What makes Tangkahan different is that it is a good example on how community based eco-tourism can stop illegal logging, improve livelihood, and develop a sense of pride amongst the locals. This development on the border of Leuser National Park where the bigger river Batang Serangan meets the smaller river Sungai Musam is the hidden paradise of Tangkahan.

TO DO :

Elephant Trekking : There are various options for experience trekking in the jungle on the back of an elephant. There is a minimum of a 1 hour trek up to a 4 day trek through the Gunung Leuser National Park to Bukit Lawang.

Hot Spring : Just across from the Jungle Lodge is a small cave with a hot spring pouring hot water into the river. There is a large log tied up at the river bank which allows you to lay back and enjoy the mixture of the hot spring waters and cold water flowing down the river.

Waterfall : Just before the Buluh River meets the Batang River there is a small waterfall. You have to walk up a small creek about 100 meters to reach the waterfall. Great for sitting under to get a jungle massage!

There is also another larger waterfall about an hours trek up the Buluh River. Most of the way you need to walk in the river as there are no jungle trails and some sections you need to swim up river.

There is also the waterfall picture below. This waterfall is located in the direction of Pantai Salak. You first have to cross the river then walk around 4 kilometers. The waterfall is located behind the river Salak. At the bottom of the waterfall is a beautiful pool of clear water, excellent for swimming. Be careful on the rocks of the waterfall as there is alot of moss so very easy to slip.

GET THERE :

Fly to Medan the capital of North Sumatra Province and proceed with cars or public transport from Pinang Baris Bus Terminal in Medan to Tangkalan, located three hours from the capital of province.

          2 . Berastagi

Usually pronounced Brastagi, with an elevation of 1220m, close to Lake Toba is a small, normal busy Indonesian town. Berastagi is located 70km from Medan. It does not rely on tourism so you'll get to see the locals getting on with their lives rather than hassling tourists to make a living.

There are some great day trips to be done from Berastagi. The area around is the main fruit, vegetable and flower growing area for North Sumatra.

There is 2 active volcanoes close to Berastagi. Sibayak, closest to town, 2100 meters high and fairly easy to climb and a great place to view the sunrise. And Sinabung, 2400 meters high, quite steep and difficult to climb, often getting on your hands and knees to climb at times.

TO DO :

12kms south of Berastagi is Kabanjahe, from where you can walk 4km to the ancient, traditional village of Lingga where the design of the houses with their horn-shaped roofs has remained unchanged for centuries. Five or six families (or from the Karonese perspective, one extended family) live in each house, but each has its own family stove.

Right next to the centre of Berastagi is Bukit Gundaling which is a hill overlooking Berastagi, Gunung Sibayak and Gunung Sinabung. At the top of the hill are some food and coffee stalls with excellent views over the town. There are also horse riding available up and down the hill.

Tahura National Park is a beautiful spot for exploring the jungle. There is a good waterfall and many clear and easy paths. You will almost certainly see wildlife a short walk into the jungle, gibbons or other primates, and have a good chance of seeing a hornbill or some other exotic birds. The Park also offers rides on Elephants and horses.

40 minutes from Berastagi is the Sipiso - Piso Waterfall ('like a knife') on the northern edge of Lake Toba. The waterfall is 120m high and is formed by an underground river which flows out into the Toba caldera.

Sikulikap Waterfall around 30m high is 20 minutes from Berastagi. To get there catch any bus from Berastagi going to Medan and ask to be dropped off at Sikulikap. It should cost about 3000Rp for this trip. On the main road there are a series of basic food stalls with great views out over the gorge where the waterfall is located but you are unable to see the falls from there. At the bottom of the hill near the road bridge, on the right there is a path that leads through the rainforest to the falls. Should take about 15 - 20 minutes to walk to the falls. There is a good chance you will see monkeys within the rainforest.

The Sibolangit Botanical Gardens are on the road between Medan and Berastagi, about 20km north of Berstagi. The botanical gardens contain giant ferns and moss covered trees.

GET THERE :

Berastagi is 2 hours by bus from Medan. Go to the Padang Bulan Bus terminal in Medan are there will be plenty of different buses to catch to Berastagi.

          3 . Bukit Lawang

Bukit Lawang is one of the top destinations in Sumatra, Bukit Lawang is a small village on the edge of Gunung Leuser National Park located in North Sumatra. Bukit Lawang means Gateway to the Hills. Bukit Lawang is famous for the Bohorok Rehabilitation Centre now known as the Orangutan Centre.

The Gunung Leuser National Park is home to Orangutan, Thomas Leaf monkeys, Black Gibbons, White Handed Gibbons, the Sumatran Tiger, Sumatran elephants, clouded leopards, marbled cat, crocodile, sun bear and the Sumatran Rhinoceros.

Bukit Lawang is 68 km from Medan. A bus trip will take around 3 - 4 hours. The road from Binjai to Bukit Lawang is the worst it has been in 10 years. The good news is that in Dec 2008 they started extensive repairs to the road, resurfacing it in many places.

At the top of the village of Bukit Lawang is the Bohorok Rehabilitation Centre which has not operated since the flood. They still have a few orangutan in their care but no new animals are brought in for rehabilitation. There are 2 feeding sessions each day (8am and 3pm) open to the public where you have a good chance of the seeing some the orangutan that have been released to the wild. They often come back for an easy feed. You will need to get a permit to enter the National Park. Ask in your hotel as they can arrange the permit, you can arrange it yourself at the PHPA office at the beginning of Bukit Lawang.

TO DO :

The best way to experience the jungle is to go trekking. You can arrange 3 hours trekking, 6 hours or 1, 2, 3 days or more with the chance of spotting various wildlife as well as some beautiful spots like waterfalls and swimming holes. 

The guides in Bukit Lawang need to be certified with the local PHPA office and need to renew their license each year. The guides will generally find you as they are always hunting tourists. Many of the current trekking guides have come from other areas of Sumatra and learned to be guides.

A short walk from Bukit Lawang is a bat cave. Cross the suspension bridge to Eco-Lodge Hotel and then turn left. Follow the trail for a pleasant 15 minute walk past corn fields and there is a small sign pointing you to the bat cave. Admission fee to enter the cave is 5000Rp.

Tubing can be easily arranged along the Bohorok river as many of the hotels hire out inflated truck inner tube tires. Be warned that many people have encountered problems. The river runs quite fast along the village and the river can rise very quickly when it has been raining.

Day trips can be arranged from Bukit Lawang to the Wampu River for a day of whitewater rafting. The Wampu River has grade 1 - 2 rapids so is perfect for beginners. You will need a minimum of 3 people to take on one of these trips though you may find other travelers in Bukit Lawang to join you.

GET THERE :

There are tourist buses leaving from most towns in North Sumatra to Bukit Lawang. In Medan you have the option of catching a local bus, very large, slow and crowded but very cheap. It will take 3.5 to 4 hours in the local bus as it also stops many times along the way to drop and pick up locals. You will need to get a becak or taxi to the bus depot in Medan - Pinang Baris.

You can also take a mini-bus from Pinang Baris. The mini-buses take around 3 hours to get to Bukit Lawang as they do not stop as many times along the way. The mini-buses do not leave from the main bus terminal. Travel down the road that runs past the bus terminal a few hundred meters and your will find the mini-buses outside the large pastry store.

          4 . Lake Toba

The largest lake in South East Asia, and the deepest in the world, was formed 75,000 years ago after an earth splitting volcano eruption. It is the largest and deepest volcanic crater lake in the world. It's 906 meters above sea level with an average depth of 450m. The lake has an island in the middle called Samosir. You can get to Lake Toba from Medan in around 3 - 4 hours.

Lake Toba is in the centre of the homeland to the Batak people but 'Tano Batak' covers an area the size of Belgium within North Sumatra. With their own language, the Batak are mainly Christian, encountering Christian missionaries in the 1850's and 1860's from Holland and Germany.

The current estimated population of Samosir is 120,000. Including Lake Toba there are six major Batak regions - Toba Batak, Karo Batak, Kakpak/Dairi Batak, Simeulungun Batak, Angkola Batak and Sipirko Batak. Around 1.5 Million Batak live amongst these regions. The Karo Batak and centered around Berastagi.

TO DO :

There is a regular ferry service, every half hour, between Tuk-Tuk on Samosir Island to Parapat. The ferry runs between 7.30am and 7.30pm during peak tourist seasons. During off peak times the last ferry back from Parapat is 6pm. Buy your ticket on the boat. At the ferry wharf and on the ferry you will be approached by many of the local young men trying to persuade you to go to the hotel they are affiliated with. These guys are mostly harmless and just trying to make a living guiding tourists. They can be a good resource for information. There is no harm in going and checking their hotel out and if you're not happy with that hotel move on to the ones close by. Tuk-tuk is not that large so the hotels are close.

On the island there are waterfalls and hot volcanic springs (Air Panas). In the dry season most of the waterfalls stop flowing.

Three megalithic sites on Samosir bear witness to the glory - and horror - of Batak history. The three consist of 300-year-old stone seats and benches arrayed in a circle. The first set of ruins was used as a conference area for Batak kings. At the second site, the rajas would sit in judgment of a criminal or enemy prisoner. If the accused were found guilty, the assembly would move to the third set, which features the ghastly addition of a central stone execution block.

The Air Panas - hot springs is on the other side of the island to Tuk-Tuk. The hot springs are not on Samosir Island but you do not need to take a ferry off the island to see them. On the opposite side of the island from where Tuk-Tuk is there is a town called Pangururan. There you will find a small isthmus that connects the island to the mainland. So is Samosir actually a true island? On the other side of this isthmus you will find the hot springs. It takes about 1 hour to ride the local bus to Pangururan from Tuk Tuk.

Overlooking the hot springs is Mount Pusuk Buhit (1981m). Mount Pusuk Buhit is sacred to the Batak people as the first ruler, Si Raja Batak, is believed to have descended from heavan onto the mountain.

At Simanindo, 19km from Tuk-Tuk, is the Batak Museum built in the house where Raja Sidauruk lived. Here you can see traditional dancing (Tordon) and puppet performances (Sigalegale). Sigalegale was originally performed at Batak funerals, the puppets being the receptacle for the soul of the deceased.

All over Samosir Island you will see lots of traditional Batak houses as well as the Batak grave sites which are suspended above the ground.

GET THERE :

You can catch a bus to Lake Toba from most to the main towns in Sumatra. You can catch a train from Medan to Pematang Siantar which is only 40 minutes from Lake Toba by bus. The train leaves Medan at 10.05am and arrives in P. Siantar at around 12.45pm.

A public bus to and from Medan to Parapat takes around 3 - 4 hours.

There are also daily flights on Susi Air that fly from Medan to Silangit (12.40pm) and flights from Silangit to Medan (1.20pm). Silangit is just south of Lake Toba with buses available to transport you to Parapat after your flight. The flight times are 40 minutes.

          5. Medan

Medan is the capital of North Sumatra and the largest city in Sumatra (3rd largest in Indonesia) with a population of around 3 million people.

Medan's history stretches back to 1590 when founded by Rajah Guru Patimpus. During the 15th and 16th centuries there was a war between this region and Aceh. In 1823 a British government official reported it to be a small village of around 200 inhabitants. The arrival of the Dutch saw the plantation of tobacco and the village flourished growing into a city of 80,000 and made capital of Nth Sumatra in 1886.

TO DO :

The Maimoon Palace, which was built in 1886 by the Sultan of Deli, and is open to the public. The current Sultan still lives in the back wing of the palace so only a few rooms are available to the public. There is a small entrance fee.

Not far from the Palace grounds, located on Jl Sisingamangaraja, you will find the Mesjid Raya or Grand Mosque which was completed in 1906. This Mosque has an impressive black domed Moorish style roof.

Located 10 minutes by becak from the Mesjid Raya is the Hindu Temple Sri Mariammam Temple which is devoted to the Goddess Kali. The temple was built in 1884. This is located just across from Sun Plaza a large modern shopping centre. Around this area called Kampung Keling is the Indian quarter of Medan where you will find some excellent Indian restaurants.

Museum of North Sumatera. 51 Jl. H. M. Joni - Open Tue to Sat, 8.30 to 12.00 and 1.30pm and 5.00pm. The museum has displays of natural history as well as all the different cultures and societies within Sumatra.

Medan Zoo is a fairly run down zoo located 10kms from the centre of Medan on Jl Bunga Rampe IV in the Simalingkar B District. The zoo has on display 86 different species of animals including the Sumatra Tiger, Sumatran Elephant and Orangutan. It is best to visit the zoo on weekdays as on weekends it does get crowded with the locals visiting.

The Crocodile farm at Asam Kumband village has over 2000 crocodiles. Located 10km from the centre of Medan. Covers 3 hectares.

GET THERE :

The cheapest way to get around Medan is by the various small public buses.

The other cheap option are the thousands of becaks (pronounced 'bechak'). You will see these motorbikes with the side cars everywhere in Medan and throughout Sumatra. Be prepared to bargain hard. The becak driver will always try to charge you 3 times what the trip is worth and more than what they would charge a local person. If you don't like the price just move along the road to the next becak driver.

          6 . Mount Sibayak

With over 120 active volcanoes fuming around Indonesia, Gunung Sibayak in Northern Sumatra is perhaps one of of most popular to climb. The summit of Gunung Sibayak rises to 6,870 feet, providing excellent views of Berastagi and the surrounding countryside. Gunung Sibayak has been attracting adventurous travelers since Dutch traders first settled the area in the early 1900s.

Although Gunung Sibayak has been quiet for the last century, new steam vents and seismic activity indicate that the volcano is merely taking a break between eruptions.

TO DO :

Trekking Gunung Sibayak : Guides are available around Berastagi for between $15 - $20, however climbing Gunung Sibayak can be done independently. Always team up with other trekkers, never hike alone. Unexpected weather changes and loose shale have caused falls - and fatalities - in the past.

The easiest and most popular trail for trekking up Gunung Sibayak starts about 10 minutes northwest of Berastagi just past the Sibayak Multinational Guesthouse; anyone in the vicinity can give directions. Reaching Gunung Sibayak's summit via the easiest trailtakes around three hours; the one-way hike is around four and a half miles.

Another option for summiting Gunung Sibayak is to take a bemo minibus to the hot springs at Semangat Gunung. The trail from the hot springs starts a little closer to the volcano. Although only a two-hour walk, the trail is extremely steep and has its share of leg-burning stairs. Many people choose to make a circuit of the trip, beginning in Berastagi and finishing with a dip in the hot springs before catching a ride back to town.

Trekking from Air Terjun Panorama : Travelers wanting to intensify the relatively easy trek to Gunung Sibayak can begin at Air Terjun Panorama - a waterfall around three miles outside of Berastagi. Starting the trek here requires at least five hours to the summit, including a sweltering hike through the dense jungle. The trail is not easy to follow; a local guide is required.

GET THERE :

Gunung Sibayak is located just north of Berastagi, around two and a half hours outside of Medan in Sumatra. Begin by taking a bus from the Pinang Baris bus terminal - located six miles west of Medan - to Berastagi. Buses leave approximately every 30 minutes between 5:30 a.m. and 6 p.m. The journey takes two and a half hours.

Despite the frequency, public buses between Medan and Berastagi can be hot, crowded affairs - sometimes with people even riding on the roof! Alternatively, tourists minibuses which are slightly more comfortable - and expensive - can be booked through travel agencies or your accommodation.