Jakarta Transportation

I just came back from jakarta/bandung yesterday (28/5/08)...i went there with may family (15 of us) and we took microbus from Javasoltour to travel around jakarta & bandung...so, the name of out driver is Pak Rudi & the porter name is Jasmin...the thing is,as a tourist of course we wanna go around jakarta & bandung, but Pak rudy always gave us excuses (such as traffic jam/no praking area) & he doesn't want to go there...and he always make facces whenever we ask him to bring us anywhere...in bandung & jakarta, all places is congested...u can't avoid the traffic jam...so,if u guys happens to take javasoltour,try to avoid pak rudy as your driver...but take Jasmin instead because Jasmin is very helpful & nice...

Jakarta is very crowded. Expect a lot of traffic jam and smog. The traffic jam can be at every hour of the day. If you are coming from the airport or have to go to the airport, you might need a lot of time for your trip. It can take more than 3 hours from the airport to Jakarta Kota (the old city).

ofcourse its possible!! if your plan is Bali - Yogya - Jakarta well its good and possible ofcourse!!
if you wish not use flight, well from Bali to Yogya, if you chose to not use Flight it will be very difficult. You must get to the harbour takes 2 hours by public transport, in bali they dont have train, to go by ship it cost you +/- Rp 60.000,-/person.
In the ship please becareful of pick pocket, and dont buy some foods in the harbour, too dirty, when you see it i think you will understand.

after you get in the harbour in Java Island that is in Banyuwangi city, you must get into train, I think you should transit in Surabaya and change the train, I dunno about the schedule it requires you to stay in Surabaya or not, then you can go with tran to Yogya, usually it in the morning at 8, Argo Wilis. I took about Rp 200.000,- 1 way
1 $ = Rp 9.200,-

Actually other public transportation beside train is available, but since you are a foreigner,I dont suggest you to go by bus, too dangerous, drivers are crazy, too much accident and too often happen, If you can afford train or plane, dont choose bus please!!

From Yogya to Jakarta took about 9-10 hours by train.

if you go by plane it wont cost you time too much.
By plane :
Bali - Yogya (Visa Versa) : +/- 45 minutes
Yogya - Jakarta (Visa Versa) : +/- 30 minutes
Jakarta Bali (Visa Versa) : +/- 1 hour

Ticket are not expensive, but better you buy from travel agent, in Indo there's no cheap last minutes ticket like you buy from the flight company itself.

How many days, well...it depends on your budget and how long you have off. But in my opinion I would stay in Bali more than 1 week, even I dont have money!!
Yogya is more historical. Jakarta is not my type of city, too crowd, Mall, mall, mall and mall.

Have a nice trip!!

Taxi Kijang (for driver + 4 persons + luggage) orded by "Silver Bird" in airport:
From airport to Jakarta kota: 170.000 Rp.
If there is no traffic jam (in the middle of the night maybe?) it will takes half an hour. Monday is allways a bad day. We had a very bad day: it took 3 hours for 20 km!

Taxi Kijang (for driver + 4 persons + luggage) arranged by hotel from Jakarta kota to Jakarta airport: 180.000 Rp. It was a normal day: 2 hours in stead of half an hour for only 20 km.

Train to Bandung vv
Argo Gede's schedule
From Gambir Station
06.15, 09.10, 11.45, 14.45, 17.45 dan 19.30 (local time)
From Bandung Station
06.00, 07.35, 10.30, 14.30, 16.15, dan 18.30

Parahyangan's schedule
From Gambir Station
05.15, 08.30, 10.45, 13.30 an 16.30
From Bandung Station
05.00, 06.30, 08.45, 13.00, dan 17.15

For such a chaotic city and one of the most terrible traffic jam I have ever seen, Transjakarta is the best thing that has ever happened. They have their own bus lanes which is only allowed by Transjakarta buses and it comes in handy when the traffic jam hits the city. Don't be surprised on how to get on this bus as all their bus stops are situated in the middle of the road.

The bus runs on almost all the main routes in the city. The routes are:-

Korridor I - Block M - Kota
Korridor II - Harmoni - PuloGadung
Korridor III - Harmoni - Kalideres
Korridor IV - Dukuhatas - PuloGadung
Korridor V - Kp.Melayu - Ancol
Korridor VI - Halimun - Ragunan
Korridor VII - Kp.Melayu - Kp. Rambutan

Transfer points are:-

1) Harmoni Harmoni Central Busway (HCB); Korridor I - II - III
2) Dukuhatas Dukuhatas; Korridor I - IV
3) Halimun Halimun; Korridor IV - VI
4) Central Senen Plaza Atrium; Korridor II - V
5) Matraman Pramuka Flyover; Korridor IV - V
6) Kp. Melayu Kampung Melayu; Korridor V - VII

Prices are fixed at Rp3500 no matter where you stop.

Bus runs very frequently (almost every 5 minutes - 10 minutes at every stop).

Bus only runs from 7.00am till 10.00pm.

There is a automated computer voice-over to announce you of the next stop, so, don't worry if you do not know where all the stops are.

Upon arrival in Jakarta, I purchased myself a map of Jakarta which includes a Transjakarta Busway Map which pin points all the bus stops, the direction of the bus and also all the bus interchange points. As the bus only covers all the main routes, what I did was to take the transjakarta to the nearest bus stops of my intended destination and from there, I took either an Ojek, Bajaj or Blue bird to get to my destination. For example: To get to ITC Mangga Dua mall, I took the Transjakarta to Kota Station and from here, I took a 5 minutes ride on an ojek. The most cost effecient way to get around, if you ask me.

If it is not raining and the traffic is really terrible, hop on one of motorcycle transportation called Ojek. I could not differentiate between the ordinary guy who is riding a motorcycle and an Ojek guy as they all look the same but the only way to know is that the Ojek guys will be calling "ojek, ojek" and thus you know. You really need a nerve of steel if you want to ride one of these. Trust me...

Remember to negotiate the price before hopping on a ride. I took a 15 minutes ride in the traffic jam from Kota station to ITC Mangga Dua for Rp7000.

From tuk-tuks in Thailand to the tricycles/Jeepney in Philippines and now the bajaj in Indonesia. This cute looking piece of transportation is good if you want to take a short ride. It is quite an experience but remember to negotiate the price before you get on it. Cost will defer depending on distance...