Itinerary Sumatra | Indonesia - Lonely Planet Forum

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Thu, 24 Aug 2017 16:45:15 +0000

Hi
I have 6 weeks in total in Indonesia and I wanted to spend main time in Sumatra.
I was in classical trip Java-Bali-Lombok-Flores and also at Sulawesi (north to south) and Maluku (Banda, Ambon).
I can easily waste time in Bali, or visit things I missed last time (Ranjani, CutaLombok, again Comodo, again Bunaken),
but I prefer to visti places worth to see in Sumatra. I have some basic of Bahasa.
I prefer snorkeling, climbing volcanos, orangutans. I dont want surfing.

Itinerary
1.day - Jakarta-Medan-Berastagi
2.day - Berastagi city, Karo villages
3.day - Berastagi - Gunung Sibayak
4.day - move to Katambe
5.day - Katambe 2day track (one night)
7.day - Katambe-Parapat-Samosir-TukTuk
8.day - Samosir - motorbike around
9.day - relax
10.day - Parapat-Bukittingi
11.day - Bukittingi city and around
12.day - motorbike trip to Lake Maninjau
13.day - motorbike trip to Harau Valley, overnight
14.day - return to Bukittingi, Bukittingi-Padang
15.day - Padang city
16.day - Padang beach, islands near Padang
(im aslo not sure if this is not to ambitious itinerary)

Questions
A) Is it better to go from Lake Toba to Bukittingi???
1) by plane
(bus to Medan, fly to Padang and then bus to Bukittingi - maybe discover Padang and make moving shorter)
2) go by overnight bus
(from Parapat to Bukittingi, maybe make it in two day and stop in the middle of the way - Gunungtua Temples or something like this)

B) Is it worth to go to Kerinci Valley when I dont want to climb to mt.Kerinci?
Just to go Gunung Tujuh. Because It seems to me that mt.Kerinci 2days trip
is difficult and it will be 5day in total (travel, Gunung Tujuh, mt.Kerinci 2x, travel back to Padang)???

C) Is it worth to go to Mentawai when I have time, but I dont like surfing?
Or is it better to add Nias??? Or more distant Aceh and Palau Weh?

Thanks for reply.

Edited by arcadiox

ONLINE

Fri, 25 Aug 2017 03:11:05 +0000

You are moving very quickly. I think 14 days for each of North and West Sumatra is about right. Add more for B or C.

When does your plane arrive? Perhaps go to Ketambe first and return via Brestagi and see the Karo highlands on the way to Tuk Tuk through Kabanjahe (you can use your Indonesian here). Taking the bus to Bukittinggi is a good experience (but most people don't). Remember the "Padang" airport is really the Minakabau airport. It is a bit closer to Padang than Bukittinggi.

Bukittinggi is a nice town, worth a day or two in itself plus tours to see a Rafellasia Flower and the Minakabau traditional houses as well as the Harau Vally and Danau Maninjau.

Ask more detailed questions when you have worked the basic route out.
Paul

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Fri, 25 Aug 2017 11:08:43 +0000

I would add more time or stick to one part of Sumatra. You could go straight to Lake Toba from the airport then Berastagi, Ketambe, the Gayo Highlands then Banda Aceh and Pulau Weh and fly back to Medan from Banda Aceh. Or do it the other way around and fly to Banda first and make your way back to Medan via Ketambe, Berastagi and Toba. That's what I'm doing in November. I've got 15 days and think my schedule is pretty tight - not much slack in case of landslides, flash floods, rough seas, etc.

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Mon, 28 Aug 2017 12:27:22 +0000

For arriving to Berastagi first is one reason. From Europe to Jakarta it is one day in plane and after we wanted to go striht to Medan and by bus to Berastagi. It isnt far like Katambe or Lake Toba. I dont expect that we will be able to spend two days without proper sleep.

Banda Aceh? In first sight Im only interested in Pulau Weh, but there are more fish than corals according to the wonderingstar:
https://whatsthesnorkellinglike3.wordpress.com/2015/11/25/indonesia_weh/
And second thing against is that I need to go by plane, I think.

Still Im not sure about Kerinci, Nias and Mentawai. Is it worth the yourney? Mentawai seems to me to much expensive.

Edited by arcadiox

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Wed, 29 Aug 2018 01:00:23 +0000

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