Bandung
Discover Bandung
Bandung is the capital city of West Java province, and the third largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta and Surabaya. Nicknamed Parijs van Java (Paris of Java) by the Dutch for its resemblance to Paris and European atmosphere back in colonial times, it is locally called Kota Kembang, literally meaning the Flowery City because Bandung had a lot of flowers in the colonial era and republic era up to the early 1960s. A city sitting in a former lake with an altitude of 768 m above sea level, the surroundings of lush and beautiful Parahyangan mountains makes the climate cooler than most major cities in Indonesia. If you are into the city situation, look for its universities to study, apparel products to try on, and wonderful places for gastronomic adventure. Bandung has become a very popular weekend getaway for Jakartans due to its close proximity, especially during holiday periods, where the city is crowded with cars coming from the capital city.
Taste of Bandung...
Bandung is a heaven for food lovers who enjoy new experiences. There is a huge variety of places to eat, ranging from thousands of travelling hawkers and warung food stalls to high-end restaurants. Prices vary equally, but are generally lower than in Jakarta. A good meal from a warung or simple restaurant is likely to cost less than Rp30,000, but in high-end restaurants and in luxurious hotels you can easily spend 10 times this. Budget eateries, including street food, are abundant throughout the city. Most of the higher-end restaurants can be found in the city centre and towards the north of the city, mainly in the Dago area. In addition, there is a huge range of restaurants (from cheap fast food to high-end international cuisine) in the shopping malls, with the Paris Van Java mall in Northwest Bandung and the Trans Studio Mall in South Bandung standing out. Although vegetarian restaurants are not common, many Indonesian (and Sundanese) dishes are vegetarian. It is therefore relatively easy to find vegetarian food, such as lotek (spicy vegetable salad) and dishes with tahu (tofu) and tempe. Be aware, however, that many dishes are served with sambal (chili sauce) that may contain terasi (shrimp paste), or with krupuk udang (shrimp crackers). Your culinary tour in Bandung does not end at the restaurants and cafés. There are plenty of bakeries in the city where exotic pastries entices you to bring one home — a legacy of the Dutch colonial time.
A Rich Past
Explore the historical roots that shaped Bandung into what it is today.
On the banks of Cikapundung River and the shores of Bandung's Great Lake, there were numerous archeological early human remains found, including of "Java Man", estimated to be about a million years old. The first written reference to the city of Bandung is from 1488, when it was established as part of the Sunda Kingdom. In the 17th to 18th centuries, the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) created small plantations in Bandung, with a road to Batavia (today's Jakarta) completed in 1786. In 1809, Louis Bonaparte, the ruler of the Netherlands and its colonies, ordered the Dutch Indies Governor H.W. Daendels to improve Java's defenses against the threat of the English, who occupied the nearby Malay peninsula. Daendels responded by building the Great Post Road (De Groote Postweg) that stretched about 1000 km between the west and the east coasts of Java. The road was diverted through Bandung along what is now Jalan Asia-Afrika because of the North Coast's impassable swamps and marshes at the time. Daendels liked Bandung's strategic location so much that he ordered the capital to be moved there. Military barracks were built and Bupati Wiranatakusumah II, the chief administrator of that area, built his dalem (palace), Masjid Agung (The Grand Mosque) and pendopo (meeting place) in the classical Javan alun-alun (city square) near a pair of holy city wells (Sumur Bandung) and facing the mystical mountain of Tangkuban Perahu (near Lembang)....
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsBandung is in the central highlands of Parahyangan. It can be reached from Jakarta via the toll road or by train. Many buses and minivans connect Jakarta and Bandung. An alternative to the toll road is the winding road via the Puncak mountain pass. The route through Puncak is quite scenic but on weekends and public holidays the traffic is congested. In 2023, all jet flights from Bandung were transferred to Kertajati International Airport (KJT), inconveniently located almost 90 km by road from Bandung in the town of Majalengka. The airport has services to major Indonesian cities and a few international flights to Malaysia. The drive to Bandung can easily take 2.5 hours or longer if traffic is bad. DAMRI Bus at Kebun Kawung Bandung departs at 02:00 to Kertajati Airport and from Kertajati Airport to Bandung departs at 07:00 with headway every 2 hours. The tariff is Rp 75,000. Bandung's -6.902107....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
Travelling around in Bandung can be quite complex and frustrating, especially to newcomers, because there is no mass rapid transit system. Locals travel using small public minibuses, known as angkot from angkutan = transport and kota = city. This option has only origin and destination names on top, sometimes with a description of which street they pass if there is more than one angkot route for a certain origin-destination route. Although there is an official price for angkot from Organda (the local regulator of these private city transport), it is usually based on how far you travel. It's better to ask the driver or kernet (driver assistance) about the price to go to a location. To ask for an angkot to stop and pick you up, just raise your hand. When you're inside and want to stop, just ask the kernet to stop or say 'kiri' (kee-ree) or simply 'stop'. It used to be easy to find a bell that you could press to stop, but not anymore. Most angkot fares usually about Rp3,000-5,000.
Where to Stay
Bandung has a vast range of accommodation, being an important destination for domestic business travellers, a citytrip destination mainly for Indonesians, Singaporeans, and Malaysians, and foremost the main place for people from Greater Jakarta to go for a weekend break. Occupancy rates are therefore high during weekends, and especially long weekends and holidays, and so are accommodation prices. Broadly speaking, most accommodations are in the central and northern parts of the city. All major domestic (favehotel, Santika, Aston) and many international (ibis, Novotel, Holiday In, Hilton, Sheraton) hotel chains are present with one or more hotels in the city. Central Bandung is home to the city's grand old hotels, the Savoy Homann and the Grand Preanger, but also a very wide range of business hotels of various price and quality levels. Business hotels can also be found in abundance around the Pasteur toll gate in Northwest Bandung.
Money & Budget
Shopping for clothing and accessories is one of the main reasons that, every weekend, many people from Greater Jakarta visit Bandung. Many items are less expensive than in Jakarta. There are shopping malls scattered across the city. Many of them have a combination of Indonesian and international shops, cafés, and restaurants, and most of them also have a family karaoke venue (KTV) and a cinema. The largest and most modern shopping malls in Bandung are the Trans Studio Mall (South Bandung) and Paris Van Java (Northwest Bandung). A few malls are known for their cheap clothing, including the BTC Fashion Mall in Northwest Bandung, and the Pasar Baru Trade Centre in the city centre (which is a favourite for Malaysian tourists).
Language & Talk
The local language in Bandung is Sundanese, though nearly everyone speaks Indonesian. Bandung is in the central highlands of Parahyangan. It can be reached from Jakarta via the toll road or by train. Many buses and minivans connect Jakarta and Bandung. An alternative to the toll road is the winding road via the Puncak mountain pass. The route through Puncak is quite scenic but on weekends and public holidays the traffic is congested. In 2023, all jet flights from Bandung were transferred to Kertajati International Airport (KJT), inconveniently located almost 90 km by road from Bandung in the town of Majalengka. The airport has services to major Indonesian cities and a few international flights to Malaysia. The drive to Bandung can easily take 2.5 hours or longer if traffic is bad.
Safety Information
Safety Overview
The emergency phone number for police is 110, while the fire brigade can be reached via (022)113. There are numerous police stations in the city, with the largest ones being the provincial police headquarters (Polda) in East Bandung, and the city police headquarters (Polrestabes) in Central Bandung. There are 28 local police stations (Polsek) scattered throughout the city. Tap water in Bandung is not potable, although it is generally fine for a bath or a toothbrush session. Bottled water (generally known as 'aqua' after the most common brand) is cheap. Check if the tamper proof seal is intact. There are numerous hospitals and health clinics in Bandung. Although the standards of healthcare remain below what most visitors would be accustomed to in their home country, some of Bandung's major hospitals have among the highest standards of the country. Hospitals with 24-hour emergency units can be found throughout the city (see the district articles for listings of the major hospitals).