Sumatra logistics

Thanks for the replies. I would rather stay in Medan the night and get transport to BL the next morning. I’m sure by the time I get out of the airport it would be almost 21:00.
Is it easier to reach BL ( public/ shared transport) from Medan city or airport?

Well if you are at the airport you are not in Medan. You can take a taxi (around 150,000IDR) to a Medan city hotel (room from around 150,000IDR I think, I don't know for sure I don't stay in cheap places). Or you can take a train (around 100,000IDR) directly to the d'prima Hotel (around 4-500,000IDR), or an onward rickshaw from the train station (expect to get ripped off, around 50,000IDR, though 10,000IDR is nearer the mark) to a different hotel.

From the airport you are <5km to a few airport hotels Wings, Crew and Thong's Inn. I guess you can get a taxi to there from the airport. Room prices from 300,000IDR and up. There are probably some fleapit homestay in Lubuk Pakam or somewhere like that that would be less, but IDK.

If you stay the night in an airport hotel it will be less easy to catch a bus onwards, but maybe you can stop a bus I'm not really sure though, I guess taxis are more normal if you stay in an airport hotel.

If you go to the city then the next day you can head out to Kampung Lalang where you will meet some red-eyed meth fiends who will try and charge you around 100 or 150,000IDR for the 18,000IDR bus fare to Bukit Lawang.

A private car to Bukit Lawang should take 3 hours at that time, possibly slightly less if the driver has good technique for flying over the potholes. Possibly a bit longer on Saturdays, as there's a bit of traffic with people going out for Saturday night. So you should be there before midnight.

OP, if you're heading for Samosir from the airport, you can get Paradep minibus to Pematang Siantar. I was informed at the airport Paradep operates daily up till midnight, sometimes 24 hours during the holiday seasons. You can overnight in PS & get the door-to-door shared taxi to Parapat Tigaraja in the morning.
You can then use the shared taxi from Parapat to BL after Samosir.
FB also is a good source of local transport options.

Cost us 200,000 on the meter from our hotel in Medan to the airport. The share taxis from Parapat to BL go via Medan and think airport as well. Something like 150000 if my memory serves me correct. Left about 10.30 am.

Cost us 200,000 on the meter from our hotel in Medan to the airport.

which hotel was that?

from Medan I think most people now use go-car or grab-car. AFAIR, go-car works with bluebird but you pay the go fare, so the meter runs and the driver gets reimbursed by go, but you only pay the go fare. I think it was around 100,000 I paid to the airport from a distant point - metered fare was over 150k. Not sure from the airport, might work same. but you need to download the app.

Hotel City International. Stayed there mid November just gone.

Hotel City International. Stayed there mid November just gone.

there are two of them.

Cant rremember which # it was. Its up the road from Sun Plaza or something like that and the other way was a hospitall. I' m navigationally challenged so you might have to take a guess.

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