Bukit Lawang

Bukit Lawang, 60 miles (96km) northwest of Medan, is a sprawling tourist village laced along the fast-flowing Sungai Bohorok and bordered by the dense vertical-rising jungle of Gunung Leuser National Park. Its legend is built around the orangutan rehabilitation centre set up here in 1973 and, although the feeding platform has closed, this is still the best place in Sumatra to spot habituated orangutans on a trek.

Trekking aside, it’s a very traveler-friendly place, where you can while away the days lounging in hammocks, splashing or tubing in the river and enjoying some of the best-value jungle resorts in Sumatra.