This fascinating 11 night/12 day trip will start by taking you to the wonderful Island of Java where you can experience some of the highlights of the region including Mt Bromo, Yogyakarta and the legendary Mt Krakatoa. From here you will fly across to the Indonesian side of Borneo, to visit Kalimantan, home of the 'Men of the Forest'. Kalimantan Selatan and Kalimantan Tengah (south and central Kalimantan) are by far the most interesting provinces on this huge island which accounts for almost 30% of the total land area of Indonesia.

 

Day 1: Departure

Today you will depart the UK on a flight to Singapore on Singapore Airlines.

Day 2: Land Jakarta

Land Singapore. Transit and board the flight to Jakarta, Java.

Upon arrival you will be met and transferred to your chosen hotel. Overnight in busy Jakarta city, the capital of Indonesia.

Day 3: Bogor / Jakarta (B/-/-)

This morning you will enjoy a visit to the nearby Bogor Botanical Gardens. The gardens cover more than 80 hectares and were built by Java's Dutch Governor-General. Today the garden contains more than 15,000 species of trees and plants located among the streams and lotus ponds.

After your tour, return to Jakarta for the afternoon at leisure.

Day 4: Mt Krakatoa (B/L/D)

This morning you will be collected after breakfast and take a boat out to Krakatoa Island. Krakatoa is the name for the island group and is well known for exploding in 1883 killing approximately 40,000 people and the explosion could be heard as far away as Perth, Western Australia. You will take the 1.5 hour boat transfer and sail around the Volcano to see the impressive steam larva with the rest of the day to swim and snorkel. Before the sun sets you will set up camp on big Krakatoa and enjoy a nighttime bonfire and barbeque. Camp overnight on big Krakatoa.

Day 5: Mt Krakatoa / Yogyakarta (B/-/-)

This morning enjoy breakfast and some free time before you take the boat back to Tanjung Lesung and onwards to Jakarta for the short flight across to Yogyakarta.

Upon arrival you will be met and transferred to your chosen hotel. Enjoy the afternoon at leisure.

Day 6: Yogyakarta (B/-/-)

This morning you will get to know Yogyakarta, rightfully dubbed 'the cradle of Javanese culture'. Top of your list is the stately Kraton, right in the centre of town. It was built by venerable Sultans in the second half of the 18th century as a representation of the Javanese cosmos. Meander through the pavilions and low rise, white and green clad buildings. In the city outskirts, various handicrafts villages can be found. Up to this day, these villages remain vital cultural centres where craftsmen still pursue age old handicrafts.

After lunch, you will discover the mystery and history of the world famous Borobudur temple, one of the most impressive Buddhist monuments ever erected by mankind. It lies tranquilly against the splendid background of the Menoreh mountain range. The terraced temple tells the times and lives of the Lord Buddha in well over 1.500 bass-reliefs. Once enshrined by a wild jungle, it took more than ten years and great effort to restore the monument. Return to Yogyakarta and enjoy the evening at lesiure.

Day 7: Yogyakarta / Semarang (B/L/-)

This morning is at leisure until you are collected for the trip by car to Semarang. Late afternoon, check-in to your hotel in Semarang, a bustling port on the central north coast of densely populated Java. Like so many other Javanese towns, it has a distinct old and new face. Enjoy the afternoon at lesiure to relax or head out to explore the city.

Day 8: Tanjung Puting, Kalimantan (B/L/-)

This morning your flight crosses the Java Sea heading north to Pangkalanbun, a tidy little town with a neat waterfront market with lots of gem shops. Take a short drive to Kumai and then continue by boat into Tanjung Puting, a national park comprising of a large lowland reserve of more than 300.000 hectares. You are travelling on the Sekonyer River on the edges of a vast wilderness.

Before you check-into Rimba Lodge you'll have a first encounter with some orphaned orangutans at Tanjung Putih. Rimba Lodge resembles a wonderful Dayak style jungle house on wooden stilts, with walkways over the swamp connecting the rooms. Spend the night listening to the sounds of the jungle.

Day 9: Tanjung Puting, Kalimantan (B/L/-)

Spend today touring the vast reserve with several rehabilitation centres for lost or orphaned orangutans. The reserve consists mainly of freshwater swamp forest and can be explored through a network of trails or by small canoe. It is easy to observe the giant forest dwellers on dedicated paths. You will encounter other wildlife too! Highlights will be Camp Leakey, a centre dedicated to research. Pondok Tanggui on the other end, is a rehabilitation centre for infant orangutans, a few kilometres upriver from Rimba Lodge.

Return to Rimba Lodge for overnight.

Day 10: Tanjung Puting / Surabaya (B/L/-)

This morning you will leave the national park the same way as you came in, floating over the Sekonyer until Kumai. Take the flight taking from Pangkalanbun, will bring you back to Semarang. Continue the journey by car straight into Surabaya and your chosen hotel for the night.

Day 11: Surabaya / Bromo (B/L/-)

Take a morning drive onwards to Tosari, nestled against the mighty slope of Gunung Bromo. On the way, there are plenty of photo ops, with sights of dormant volcanoes, rice fields, picturesque Javanese villages, old sultanate towns and the never boring street sights, cluttered with thousands of vehicles and people, moving goods in becaks, bicycles and pushcarts. Arriving late afternoon, the rest of the evening is free, allowing you to prepare for a nightly excursion you will never forget.

Day 12: Mt Bromo (B/L/-)

After an early breakfast, it is off to Mount Bromo. It takes a jeep ride along the spectacular hanging vegetable gardens and even some horse riding to get to the foot of the volcanic cone rising out of a sea of sand. Steep stairs lead to the peak where you can enjoy an awesome look into the inner nucleus of the still active volcano.

Afterwards it's back to the hotel for a hearty breakfast and then onwards to Surabaya for the afternoon at leisure.

Day 13: Departure (B/-/-)

Enjoy the day at leisure until your transfer to Surabaya airport for the return flight to the UK, via Singapore.