Jakarta City Guide: Everything you need to know about visiting Jakarta
I’m still surprised how long it took us to get to Jakarta. Or how many times we nearly booked.. or booked and chickened out (lol it’s true).
J akarta is less than a 4 hr flight from Perth and has TONS to offer. Some of the best rooftop bars I’ve seen, incredible shopping, a huge amount of local culture, such a cool hipster generation, and a crazy amount of accommodation options to choose from. Yeah the traffic is insane, the streets can be dirty, there’s been some decent security concerns over the past two decades.. oh and it’s sinking at a rate of 17 centimetres a year...
But now is as better time as ever to head to Jakarta. In the next 14 years, the Indonesian capital is literally picking up and lifting its capital from the island of Java to East Kalimantan (Borneo Island) and so much of this interesting thriving port town capital will change. So, if you’ve ever wanted to head to Jakarta and haven’t because it’s seemed to hard, to overwhelming, or just haven’t got there.
I hope that this Jakarta city guide will help you to take the leap. And when you get there, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. I’ve pinned everywhere we went on the map at the bottom of this post. Enjoy!
Getting in / around Jakarta.
Jakarta international airport is Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (CGK). It’s 40kms from the city by car, which can take anywhere from 40 mins to 2 hours. Try and time your flights wisely, as Jakarta traffic can be INSANE.
You can get a train from the airport to BNI City railway station, or a taxi by using the Airport Taxi Counter (the usual rule applies - DO NOT accept any random offers from random looking taxi drivers / porters etc). The best option, in my opinion, is to get a Grab (the Uber of Asia). Grab worked really well from the airport and we used it for our entire trip to get around the city. I always prefer using ride-share apps where available, as a way to chat to locals, support students and get a less ‘commercialised’ feel for the city. The grab stop is from the Public carpark.
In terms of getting around the city, the best options are Grab, Taxi or by foot. The local buses have excellent routes but jam-packed, so if that's you're thing, it's a good option. Jakarta does have a city train line but it has just opened, so has limited routes. The city was quite good for walking around, it even has a day dedicated to it - a 'Car Free Day' every Sunday from 6am to 11 a.m on Jalan Sudirman and Jalan Thamrin.
- Catch a Grab - super reliable, cheap and support locals
- Time your flights wisely - traffic can be horrendous
- Take advantage of "Car Free Sundays" and enjoy walking around the city
Where to Stay in Jakarta
Jakarta has SO many accomodation options. We did tons of research and compared heaps of 4-5 star hotels.
Our criteria was 1) Pool with good sun and bar for afternoon refresh between sites 2) Colonial luxury vibe (not too businesses) 3) Good location for getting around sites.
The Hermitage literally ticked all these boxes so we booked and weren’t disappointed. It’s a gorgeous little hotel with a cute (but excellent) small rooftop bar to watch the sunset after a few G&Ts. As usual, we booked through Agoda to add to our rewards points (I need to do a whole other blog post on that, we use Agoda every single time we go away and have certainly reaped the rewards).
Other hotels that we considered and look really good:
- Mandarin Oriental - A classic, in a very central location
- Keraton at the Plaza - Huge, modern rooms and literally joined to a major shopping mall
- Raffles - Another classic with really good ratings.
- ARTOTEL Thamrin - Funky hotel, epic rooftop bar, hip neighbourhood
Best Cafes and Restaurants in Jakarta
You’re spoilt for choice in Jakarta. It does food really well. From street food stalls to Michelin star restaurants, ultra modern hipster coffee hangouts to colonial heritage listed cafes, mid range traditional ‘typical Indonesian’ restaurants to international cuisine.
Typically, we wanted to tick all of these boxes. I scoured blogs, instagram, food guides etc to find the best options and pinned them all the map for you on the map at the bottom of the page.
Cafes
- Sisterfields PIK Avenue - the same cafe as in Bali, always so good and SO pretty
- Cafe Batavia - a busy colonial style cafe in the middle of Kota Tua (old town)
- Mister Sunday - super hipster, industrial vibe in South Jakarta
Others I haven't personally visited but have pinned:
- 3 Wise Monkeys
- Woodpecker Coffee
- District 7 Coffee PIK
- AYA JUICE
- Kopi Kalyan
- Pantjoran Tea House
- Common Grounds Coffee and Roastery
- Monkey Tail Cafe
- HONU Poké & Matcha Bar
- Pigeonhole Coffee Chapter 2
- NÔRD Coffee
- Kopi Nalar
- Social Affair Coffee & Bakehouse - PIK Avenue
- Gordi HQ
- Conversations Over Coffee
- Twin House Cipete
- Crematology x Puri
- Koultoura Coffee
- Lucky Cat coffee & kitchen
- Monolog - Plaza Senayan
- GIOI
- Pigeonhole Coffee
- BERMVDA
- Giyanti Coffee Roastery
- 1/15 Coffee, Gandaria
Restaurants
- Henshin - 67th-floor dining room serving innovative Peruvian cuisine & adjoining EPIC rooftopbar
- Plataran Menteng - really nice, traditional Indonesian food in an old Colonial bungalow
Others I haven't personally visited but have pinned:
- Bandar Djakarta
- Le Quartier
- Lara Djonggrang
- Namaaz Dining
Street Food / Markets
- Glodok - Chinatown grocery street market with tons of fresh fruit, food and nuts
Others I haven't personally visited but have pinned:
- Mahakam street
- Barito street
- Sambas street
Best Rooftop Bars in Jakarta
Oh my gosh. Jakarta does the best rooftop bars. Up there with Bangkok and Dubai for sure.
The views are INSANE and the vibe is epic. Drinks are similar to any top-end bar in SE Asia, probably around $15-$20 a cocktail. If more than 2 people, I’d recommend booking. It’s mostly full of Jakarta socialiates and expats, but won’t disappoint for music, drinks and epic views. Security was good at every bar and there are dress code requirements.
All of the bars listed below are pinned on the map at the bottom of this post:
- Lucy in the Sky
- Cloud Lounge & Dining
- Skye
- La Vue Rooftop Bar
- LOLA - Espíritu y Libación
- BART Jakarta
- Henshin
- Awan Lounge
Things to do and see in Jakarta
Jakarta has a beautiful eclectic mix of history, a strong Indonesian culture, and a very up-and-coming millennial hipster culture.
The history of Jakarta can be seen in the sites of Sunda Kelapa Harbour, Fatahillah Square and Merderka Square
Sunda Kelapa Harbour is the best place to start when exploring the historical Jakarta, or "Old Batavia". It was here that the Dutch East India Company setup their headquarters as they established important spice tradings route throughout South East Asia. To this day, you can still wander the docks of the old harbour and enjoy the sights of the sailing ships lined up in a row, porters still unloading cargo from sailing ships, just like yesteryear. Be warned though: Jakarta waters are super polluted and this area is certainly a little rough.
Merderka Square is essentially a 1km square 'open space' housing Indonesia's National Monument, built to commemorate the Indonesian independence. It's a really nice open space to walk around and enjoy the reprieve from Jakarta's busy streets.
Fatahillah Square is probably the most noteworthy of historical sites in Jakarta, as this was where the capital of Dutch East Indies was established. Today, you can stand in the middle of the square, and take in the panoramic view of Dutch warehouse structures that once housed spices and important cargo, now standing proudly as museums and cosmopolitan cafes. Spend a while here, hire a vintage dutch bike to cycle around the side streets, vist museums such as the Jakarta History Museum, the Wayang Museum and the Kota Post Office and Art Gallery, or be transported back in time as you have a Gin & Tonic within the 190 year old walls of Cafe Batavia
Local / Cultural sites include:
Selamat Datang Monument or Hotel Indonesia roundabout Sounds kinda strange, but this roundabout really is 'where it's at'. Walk past here any time of the day and night and there will always be families, friends and general groups of people wandering, chatting, eating and playing board games around this fountain. I LOVED the vibe here.
Taman Mangrove's Another very "local" attraction and a nice quiet spot in Jakarta. Take in the native mangrove trees, monkeys and birds. as you wander freely around the 100 hectre nature conservation along raised bamboo boardwalks. This was honestly a really worthwhile visit, we really enjoyed the mangroves.
Flea Market - Pusat Barang Antik was one of my favourite spots in Jakarta. It's only a short walk from the hotel if you stay at The Hermitage, and has some of the most incredible little trinkets i've ever seen! You can really get a sense of the history of Jakarta through whats on offer at this market - old Dutch chandeliers, wooden carvings, old keys, padlocks, coins, jewellery and mugs, diving helmets and ship wheels. Bartering is OK here.
Summary
Jakarta really is a suprising place - with so much to offer, and so little time to visit left!
I hope that this Jakarta city guide will help you to take the leap. And when you get there, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. I’ve pinned everywhere we went or wanted to go on the map to the right. If you have any questions though, pop them in below and I'll respond! Or, if you've been to Jakarta, i'd love to know what you thought!
Love,
6 Comments
Amazing Am! You’re going to have to take me here!
Yay yes lets go one day x
Congratulations Roamy your website looks amazing! So much good travel info. Jakarta’s restaurant’s options look amazing, can’t wait to visit one day and try them all out. Happy and safe travels!
Thank you so much Ashlea! I’m so glad you enjoyed the post! Happy and safe travels to you too 🙂
LOVE this I feel like you never see that much on Jakarta, so these tips are so handy! It’s now gone straaaight on my list!
Yayyy do it !!