Java in 3 days
An island of some 150 million people and around forty volcanoes, where you climb by night towards the blue flames of Ijen and wait for dawn on the rim of the Bromo caldera. In the centre, Yogyakarta, city of sultans and batik, is the base for Borobudur and its 504 Buddhas, and for the 47-metre Hindu towers of Prambanan.
The plan, day by day
Day 1
- Morning
Borobudur2 to 3 hThe world's largest Buddhist monument, built around 800 and rediscovered in 1814: nine terraces, 2,672 relief panels, 504 seated Buddhas and 72 latticed stupas.
- Afternoon
Yogyakarta Kraton2 to 3 hThe sultan's palace, begun in 1755 and still home to Hamengkubuwono X, also the region's governor; open pavilions display gamelans, royal batik and palanquins.
- Late afternoon
Taman Sari Water Castleabout 1 hThe sultan's pleasure garden of 1758 to 1765, 500 m from the Kraton, with bathing pools and the circular underground mosque of Sumur Gumuling.
Day 2
- Morning
Prambanan2 to 3 hIndonesia's largest Hindu temple complex, 17 km east of Yogyakarta and built around 850, with three main towers to Shiva, Brahma and Vishnu.
Day 3
- All day
The Dieng Plateaua full dayA farmed caldera at 2,100 m among steaming fumaroles, home to the Arjuna temples, among the oldest Hindu monuments on Java.
Further afield (over 130 km from the base hotel), best as a separate stop: Mount Bromo, Tumpak Sewu waterfall, Kawah Ijen.
Where to sleep in Java
- Delta Homestay · €22 a night
- Cemara Indah Hotel · €30 a night
- Adhisthana Hotel Yogyakarta · €40 a night
- Gallery Prawirotaman Hotel · €50 a night
- Duta Garden Hotel · €40 a night
- The Phoenix Hotel Yogyakarta · €80 a night
- Royal Ambarrukmo · €90 a night
- Hyatt Regency Yogyakarta · €100 a night
Plan this trip
Hotel prices per room per night, checked when written. Some links are affiliate links: we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.