Must-see attractions in Jakarta

  • Top Choice
    Museum Nasional

    The National Museum is the best of its kind in Indonesia and an essential visit. The enormous collection begins around an open courtyard of the 1862…

  • Top Choice
    Merdeka Square

    It is here that Jakartans come to take a breather from the traffic. The figurative centre of Jakarta, Merdeka Square (merdeka means independence) is…

  • Top Choice
    Taman Fatahillah

    Kota’s central cobblestone square, surrounded by imposing Dutch colonial buildings, is Jakarta's most attractive location and a popular gathering spot for…

  • Top Choice
    Museum Layang-Layang

    Families will love Jakarta's kite museum, located in a quiet backstreet in Pondok Labu, South Jakarta. Inside a traditional Indonesian house, complete…

  • Top Choice
    Galeri Nasional

    Over 1700 works of art by foreign and Indonesian artists are part of the National Gallery collection. While only a few works are on display at any time,…

  • Top Choice
    Museum Bank Indonesia

    This museum presents an engaging and easily consumed history of Indonesia from a loosely financial perspective, in a grand, expertly restored,…

  • Top Choice
    Museum Macan

    Opened in late 2017, Museum Macan is Indonesia's first modern and contemporary art museum and an exciting cultural development for the city. It was built…

  • Top Choice
    Jin De Yuan

    This large Chinese Buddhist temple compound dates from 1755 and is one of the most atmospheric and important in the city. The main structure has an…

  • RUCI Art Space & Cafe

    RUCI Art Space has become a favourite on the city's burgeoning art scene. Occupying an industrial space in the hip neighbourhood of Senopati, the gallery…

  • Taman Mini Indonesia Indah

    This 100-hectare park has full-scale traditional houses for each of Indonesia's provinces, with displays of regional handicrafts and clothing, and even a…

  • Jakarta History Museum

    The Jakarta History Museum is housed in the old town hall of Batavia, a stately whitewashed Dutch colonial structure that was once the epicentre of an…

  • Ancol Luar Biasa

    On Jakarta's bayfront, the people’s ‘Dreamland’ is a landscaped recreation complex popular with families. It has worn amusement rides, and sporting and…

  • Monumen Nasional

    Ingloriously dubbed ‘Sukarno’s final erection’, the 132m-high National Monument (aka Monas), which rises into the shroud of smog and towers over Merdeka…

  • Museum Wayang

    This puppet museum has one of the best collections of wayang (flat wooden puppets) in Java and its dusty cabinets are full of a multitude of intricate,…

  • Jakarta War Cemetery

    During WWII, thousands of people were made prisoners of war and killed in and around Jakarta. Early victories by the Japanese killed scores of troops from…

  • Museum Perumusan Naskah Proklamasi

    This atmospheric mansion saw historic events as Indonesia proclaimed its independence at the end of WWII. It was the home of the Japanese naval commander…

  • Museum Bahari

    Near Jakarta's historic port are several 17th-century VOC (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie; the Dutch East India Company) warehouses that comprise the…

  • Masjid Istiqlal

    The striking, modernist Masjid Istiqlal is adorned by patterned geometric grates on the windows. Completed in 1978, it's the largest mosque in Southeast…

  • Museum Bank Mandiri

    One of two bank museums within a block of each other might have you scratching your head, but it's worthwhile popping in to explore the behind-the-scenes…

  • Istana Merdeka

    The presidential palace (one of six in Indonesia) stands to the north of Merdeka Square. It was built in 1879 and was Sukarno's official residence during…