Indonesia comprises more than 17,000 islands and spans more than 5000km from east to west – to travel across it would take far longer than your regular visa-on-arrival would allow but, at an enormous theme park in East Jakarta, you could simulate this epic journey in a day. Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (tamanmini.com; 35,000Rp) celebrates the culture and history of Indonesia through an astounding collection of museums (15 in all) as well as traditional-style buildings that represent the architecture, clothing and culture of the archipelago’s provinces.
The park is vast (it covers 150 hectares) and, even if you have the best intentions, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to see and do everything in a day. A good way to tackle it is to pick up a map at the entrance, then do a loop around the entire park on one of the free electric shuttle buses – you’ll then know what to expect (and see what’s open), and can plan which places you’d like to stop off at on your next loop around. If you’d prefer to travel independently, you can hire a bicycle, e-bike, buggy or electric scooter near the entrance; there’s also a cable car that spans the length of the park.
Your entrance fee covers most of the museums (which cover transportation, science, communication and even stamps), but if you’re wanting to visit the bird garden, insect museum, reptile park or Komodo museum you’ll need to pay extra. You can buy tickets online, or pay at the gate.
