Both our drivers were excellent. The hotels w...
Indonesia | Oct 5 - Oct 11, 2022

Chris
Chris S.
United Kingdom | Reviewed on Oct 12, 2022

Both our drivers were excellent. The hotels were lovely except the ibis in Surabaya which was fine. The Plataran hotel at bromo was fabulous. The M-gallery at solo was lovely although many of the things we tried to order (drinks and food) were not available as it was getting back on its feet post Covid. The M-gallery in Yogyakarta was also lovely and seemed to have everything we ordered. Its location is great as it’s near the Main Street. It was expensive though as tax and service were not included in its prices. The sunrise at bromo was great. The temples near Solo were lovely albeit not as spectacular is the ones near Yogyakarta. You need cash for tipping and some guidance on this might be helpful. You also need cash for visa on arrival. The traffic in the cities is very bad. Not as bad as Hanoi but progress is slow. Motorways work well. We bought some excellent batik at very good prices in solo and an artwork batik in Yogyakarta. We really enjoyed all the arranged tours.

Hotel Reviews
Plataran Bromo
Wonokitri

Lovely hotel. Very beautiful and classy. Great service.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Ibis Surabaya city center

It’s did what it said on the tin. But nothing outstanding.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Grand Dafam Signature International Airport Yogyakarta

Great brand new hotel. Lovely view from out north facing room. Really nice staff. Still awaiting an alcohol licence so we could not order the cocktails we wanted.

Authenticity & Character
Location
Perfect for the airport. Free transfer. At 5 am.
Staff
They provided us with a hot pack up breakfast with coffee at 5 am. Lovely check in staff too. Really helpful. New hotel so some staff appeared to be still being trained. But everybody was great.
Cleanliness & Comfort
The Phoenix Hotel Yogyakarta - MGallery Collection
Yogyakarta

Lovely hotel near the best shopping and eating street.

Authenticity & Character
Looked fabulously traditional despite being fairly new. Felt authentic.
Location
Short walk to great street food and restaurants, bars and shops. Near railway station.
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
The Royal Surakarta Heritage - MGallery Collection
Authenticity & Character
Looked much older than it was but done so well it added to the experience.
Location
Beautiful hotel.
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Explore Mount Bromo
Explore Mount Bromo
Mount Bromo, East Java
Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Bumpy. Early start but great trip.
Sukuh & Cetoh Temple
Sukuh & Cetoh Temple
Solo

Long but interesting drive. Very nice fairly small temples.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Taman Sari and the underground mosque
Taman Sari and the underground mosque
Yogyakarta

Really nice palace. Sadly underground mosque closed due to Covid hangover.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Sultan Palace
Sultan Palace
Yogyakarta

Lovely palace. But mostly exhibitions showing the life of Sultans.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Visit Prambanan Temple Complex
Visit Prambanan Temple Complex
Yogyakarta

Like a smaller older Angkor Wat.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Puppet & Batik making
Puppet & Batik making
Yogyakarta

Lovey quality of craftsmanship. We bought a beautiful batik created by our guide. No pressure to buy which is nice.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Visit Borobudur Temple
Visit Borobudur Temple
Yogyakarta

Quite a long way from Yogyakarta in terms of travel time. But it’s an amazing Buddhist temple. Sadly you can’t go into the temple post Covid but still fabulous to walk around.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local specialist: Marc Urban