Rantepao Travel Guide

  Farmer on the road to Ke'te Kesu
by Daihappydai
 
  • Farmer on the road to Ke'te Kesu
      Farmer on the road to Ke'te Kesu
    by Daihappydai
  • Color and symbols adorn houses and rice barns
      Color and symbols adorn houses and rice...
    by Daihappydai
  • Elegantly wrapped coffin at a Torajan funeral
      Elegantly wrapped coffin at a Torajan...
    by Daihappydai
  •   Rantepao
    by vinceckw
  • Walking through the Torajan countryside
      Walking through the Torajan countryside
    by Daihappydai
 

Pro

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  Exotic Places 


Con

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  Touristy - Cross-Country-Wide - Touristy-Priced 


In a nutshell

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  Tanah Toraja Magnificent Region Fascinating People 

 

Explore Rantepao

Things to Do  

Rock graves along the roadside

Rock graves along the roadside, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Throughout Toraja there are many sites where you can see graves carved into rocks. The Torajan people believe that people can take valued possessions with them to the afterlife. This is why you may find photographs, hats, items of clothing, food and water outside the grave... 

Funeral Services in Toraja

Funeral Services in Toraja, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  The Torajan funeral service is a massive affair. It is so big that temproary shelters need to be built to accommodate all the 'mourners'. When you arrive, you present the host with a gift - for close family members and friends this will be a buffalo or pig. For others such... 

Grave yard of royalty

Grave yard of royalty, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Perched on a hill is a cliff face weather beaten by the elements, grave yard of the royalty. Here Torajan kings and their family have been buried. The sheer cliff face is home to rows of impressive 'tau tau'. Most are now grey-white due to facing the weather. But one stands... 

Views from Batutumonga area

Views from Batutumonga area, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Batutumonga is about 20 km north of Rantepeo. On my first trip I had done a bit of cross country hiking before reaching the final steep ascent to Batutumonga restaurant. The restaurant is a great place to stop for a cold drink and lunch. But most impressive are the views... 

Palawa, a traditional village

Palawa, a traditional village, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Palawa is a village with rows of Tongkonan and rice barns in traditional Torajan style. Outside some of the Tongkonan are columns of buffalo horns - the larger the stack, the more prestigious the family is. When I was in Palawa I was taken into a Tongkonan that had a dead... 

Lemo - Touristy but amazing nonetheless

Lemo - Touristy but amazing nonetheless, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Lemo is probably the most photographed rock-grave site and the locals quite rightly try to cash in on tourists - there are a large number of stalls selling T-shirts and 'traditional' Torajan 'made-for-tourists' items. Having said that, it is well worth a visit. The best time... 

Ke'te Kesu - Traditional Village & Wood Carving

Ke'te Kesu - Traditional Village & Wood Carving, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Ke'te Kesu village is 5km south east of Rantepeo. There are bemo that travel up and down the road or see it as part of a healthy afternoon walk - take water. From the road itself, the village is picturesque seen across lush fields. There are traditional tongkonan and rice... 

Skeletons in caves at Londa

Skeletons in caves at Londa, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  In Londa there is a massive cliff face concealing the entrance to a warren of caves. As you get closer to the base of the cliff - taking care on the slippery steps - you will notice rows of 'tau tau' seemingly guarding the entrance to the caves. You need a torch to see... 

Hotels  

HERITAGE TORAJA

 1 Review and 31 Opinions  I would recommended this hotel if you want to centrally located in Rantepao area yet you feel 'the... 

Restaurants  

Mart's Cafe and Restaurant Mambo and others: Entertained by the guides

Mart's Cafe and Restaurant Mambo and others: Entertained by the guides, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Both Mart's Cafe and Restoran Mambo offer good simple dishes, both Indonesian and Western at decent prices. Both are clean and offer good service. But the 'fun' thing about them is that they are the meeting place of many guides. Initially this might be a hassle, but by day 2... 

Pias Poppies.: Every dish is good!

Pias Poppies.: Every dish is good!, Rantepao

 nabunay Says:  The chef prepares each dish with such dedication that each dish comes out so pleasing to one's palatte. You could also tell him your particular taste or that if you're suffering from some ailment, he will specially cook the dish that will be healthy for you. But as he puts... 

Transportation  

Getting to Tana Toraja from Makassar

Getting to Tana Toraja from Makassar, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  There are numerous bus companies that travel the route between Makassar and Rantepeo. Many buses travel overnight - leaving Makassar at around 10 pm and arriving in the Toraja region at 6 am. On my first trip to Toraja, I had just flown down from Manado. I got off the plane... 

Makassar to Tana Teroja

Makassar to Tana Teroja, Rantepao

 vinceckw Says:  We hired a car to to Tana Teroja instead, you should take a night bus (IDR$80,000, US$8.00 one way) which we think it will helps to save a lot of your times and money. Since we travel in the day time, we wasted our day time (almost 8 hours) on the car doing nothing to Tana... 

Shopping  

Art Shops in Rantepeo and villages: Torajan Handicrafts for sale

Art Shops in Rantepeo and villages: Torajan Handicrafts for sale, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  There are a couple of excellent art shops in Rantepeo. One on the west side of Jalan Ahmad Yani has an upstairs show room featuring items from throughout Indonesia, but it does have a section devoted to Torajan arts and crafts. There are some incredible weavings and hangings... 

Fruits All Over: Vitamins Ready To Hand

Fruits All Over: Vitamins Ready To Hand, Rantepao

 RoyJava Says:  It is well-known to eat fruit and stay healthy. Pay a visit to Rantepao's market place North of Rantepao. Watch the many many bemos loaded with pigs, bags full of coffee, rice and others. Country people with their goods and wears stream in and out of town all day long.... 

Local Customs  

Tau tau and bones - don't touch

Tau tau and bones - don't touch, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Besides the common tourist sites, guides with local knowledge can take you to lesser known places to see rock graves and tau tau. This is a great experience as you get to see the tau tau and coffins in 'untouched' condition. Coffins sometimes fall from their hanging... 

'Selamat Hari Natal' in Rantepeo

'Selamat Hari Natal' in Rantepeo, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  While the Torajan people have their own traditional funerals and burials, many also are Christian - all Indoesians ust have a nominated religion on their ID cards. As such, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are important occasions in Rantepeo. People go to church on Christmas... 

Re-wrapping of bodies

Re-wrapping of bodies, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  Not so much a tip, more a unique experience. While driving to Batutumonga we came across a temproary shelter where a group of men and teenage boys were wrapping bodies from a nearby rock grave site. Our guide who has lived in Toraja all his life said he had never come across... 

Off The Beaten Path  

Walking through the Sa'dan valley

Walking through the Sa'dan valley, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  There are a number of very good walks of half-day, day or multiple day length that you can take in the Toraja region with or without a guide. There are tracks through ricefields, passing villages, and one path even requires you to walk through a churchyard - built in the... 

Hurry, Enjoy The View

Hurry, Enjoy The View, Rantepao

 RoyJava Says:  Strange title huh? I've seen a lot of tourists running around snapping their camera's, taking their digitals, video's and, finishing a wonderful trip in the touristy souvenir shops. What a pity!Go for a walk, trek, and trip in very Indonesian way. Pelahan-pelahan... slowly!... 

Favorites  

Tree graves for babies

Tree graves for babies, Rantepao

 Daihappydai Says:  The Toraja area, its traditions and peoples are quite amazing but perhaps my fondest memory is the story behind the tree graves used to bury children. It is said that children who die before they have teeth are not yet fully part of this world. So these children are buried... 

The Place

Plan a Rantepao vacation with reviews, tips and photos posted by real travelers and Rantepao locals

Experience Rantepao
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Map of Rantepao
 

The People

4 Members Live Here
 
Our Members Say
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 It is really enjoyable to just take any bemo without a destination in mind. You could either sit through the whole journey or alight at any place which captures... 

4 members live in Rantepao

 

Questions and Answers

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Q:  Hi, Is it possible to get to Lemo, K'su Ketu etc by bemo? or is it preferable to have a car. Any idea on what a car for 3 days... 

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A: you need someone who takes you where straight to places, bull fights, markets, introduce you to funerals ect. ... in this way three nights would be enough. Consider long... 

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Top Rantepao Writers

1

Rambu Solo, Solo Traveller

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  After you learn about secret of life You'll be able to know How beautiful Life after death ~ Kahlil Gibran, Sand and Foam ~ In more simple words, Gibran's poems can be used to reflecting the... 

2

TANAH TORAJA - Sulawesi

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 RANTEPAO, the centre for tourists who visit Tanah Toraja (to ri aja in Buginese), is a market place in the rocky area of Sungai Sa'dan, where the Toraja people are living, and get overrun by swarms of... 

3

Tana Toraja - The Charming of Torajan Highland

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 The long trip from Makassar to Tana Toraja it took 8 hours by bus, it’s a great trip with great sighseeing, lush agriculture land, rice field, spectacular limestone mountains and rich valleys and... 

4

TANAH TORAJA

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  "Nor can a soul die except by God's leave, the term being fixed as by writting. If any do desire a reward in this life, We shall give it to him; and if any do desire a reward in the hereafter, We...... 

5

Amazing Torajaland

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 The Torajan people are very friendly, open people. They are happy to meet visitors and eagerly enquire about your home, family and religion. The beautiful old man in the picture above was working his... 

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