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Sightseeing Overview
The Indonesian capital is a huge city that sprawls its tentacles across an area that covers well over 600 sq km (231 square miles). The main points of interest for tourists do, though, tend to be fairly central, with many sightseeing trips starting off at the historic waterfront and the Kota district, and then working inland towards the Gambir and Menteng districts.

Kota is home to the Jakarta History Museum, the Puppet Museum and the old port of Sunda Kelapa with its charming old schooners, which turn the clock back through the centuries and give a real flavor of old Batavia. This is the most attractive part of the city and a great place to spend time in on a hot day when there are cooling sea breezes.
 
Inland highlights dotted amongst the gleaming new glass and steel offices and malls include the National Museum and the National Monument, which both provide their own insights into the culture and history of this uniquely diverse country, as well as a sprinkling of temples and mosques that are testament to the various religions and creeds who call Jakarta home.

Tourist Information
Jakarta City Government Tourism Office
Jalan Kuningan Barat 2
Tel: (021) 520 5455.
Website: www.jakarta-tourism.go.id  

There are other branches at the Jakarta Theater, Jalan Wahid Hasyim 9 (tel: (021) 316 1293) and at Soekarno Hatta International Airport (tel: (021) 550 7088). 

The main tourist information center is mainly given over to administration. The other branch at Jakarta Theater is the best bet for maps, leaflets and dependable information and they can also help with booking tours. 

Key Attractions:

Kota
The center of old Batavia, the Kota district, is the tourist hub of Jakarta. The heart of the action is on historic Taman Fatahillah, a cobbled timewarp of a square that still somehow survives in modern Jakarta. Sunda Kelapa is the old port area and many of the scenes there today are unchanged since the likes of Joseph Conrad evocatively described the sailing schooners striding around the high seas and then tying up at the quayside here to trade exotic spices.

Free admission.

Maritime Museum
What was once a warehouse as far back as the 19th century for the Dutch down in Sunda Kelapa is now fittingly home to a museum that tells the story of Jakarta’s rich maritime history. Model boats and faded sepia photos depicting various adventures at sea and in and around the Batavia waterfront are the highlights. The old watchtower offers good views out over the area.

Jalan Pasar Ikan 1
Tel: (021) 669 3406.
Admission charge.

Puppet Museum
Housed in an early 20th-century colonial legacy, the building that stands on the site of an old Dutch church is in itself part of the attraction. Those interested in traditional wayang kulit and wayang golek Indonesian puppets will be in heaven in this illuminating museum. As well as thousands of puppets from all over Indonesia, there are also exhibits from elsewhere around Southeast Asia. The museum also hosts regular puppet shows.

Jalan Pintu Besar Barat 27
Tel: (021) 692 9560.
Admission charge.

National Museum
The city’s most impressive museum really delves into the history both of the capital city and the rest of Indonesia. The 19th-century building is suitably dramatic and its highlights include early Chinese ceramics, pieces culled from Java’s myriad temples and a bronze elephant that was gifted to the museum by the King of Thailand. The museum is also home to a number of eclectic temporary exhibitions.

Merdeka Square
Tel: (021) 381 1551.
Website: www.museumnasional.org
Admission charge.

National Monument
This literally unmissable column rises over 130m (426.5ft) into the heavens above Independence Square. It is a potent symbol to many people in many ways. For some it is a celebration of Indonesia’s successful drive to escape from the claws of the European colonial powers, while others see it as a fittingly vacuous legacy of the man who commissioned its construction, Soeharto, the former dictator still beloved of some Indonesians but reviled by many others. At a time when much of the country lived in poverty, its grand gold leaf topping said enough for many critics.

Merdeka Square
Free admission.

Further Distractions:

Taman Mini Indonesia Indah
The ‘Beautiful Indonesia Miniature Park’, as it rather nattily translates, is an interesting and unusual diversion. Opened in 1975 this sprawling 100-hectare park has a series of cable cars and shuttle buses to help those that don’t come with their own cars get around. There is a pavilion for each of Indonesia’s provinces with the highlight Java’s mini-Borobudur. There are also regular cultural performances on site. The park is perhaps the most enjoyable of Soeharto’s grand projects.

Jalan Raya Pondok Gede
Tel: (021) 840 9214.
Website: www.tamanmini.com
Admission charge.

Ragunan Zoo
For those who don’t have time to head east to Komodo National Park itself, this is a great place to see the famous dragons in the flesh. Another highlight are the equally fearsome Java tigers. Opened as long ago as 1864, the zoo closed temporarily a few years ago after a bird flu scare, but is now open for business again.

Ragunan, Pasar Minggu
Tel: (021) 780 5280.
Admission charge.

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