Free & Easy Travel to Yogyakarta from 5th to 8th June 2009

Buddha's statue in one of the opened Stupa within Borobudur Temple Complex.



Photograph of myself taken inside the Prambanan Temple Complex.



Myself, HK Wan, my elder brother, Heng Wah and my elder sister, Lai Meng taken at the Borobudur Temple Complex.

We planned our budgetted self-tour to Yogyakarta or Joyga about 9 months prior to our Air Asia Flight on 5 June 2009. Our return tickets cost us RM 220/person (excl. airport tax at Jogya) despite it was during the School Holidays so that my younger sister, Lai Ling - a teacher could accompany us.

There were 4 (four) of us, namely, my elder brother, Heng Wah, my elder sister, Lai Meng, my younger sister, Lai Ling and myself, HK Wan

On arrival at Adisucipto International Airport, we took the Prambanan Express Train to Tugu Railway Station at Joyya. It cost us Rupiah 7000/person. Our first ride on an Indonesian Train (although we travelled regularly by trains in other countries like Thailand, China, etc) . On arrival, we walked to our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel and stayed there for 3 (three) nights.

The next day, we booked a 7-seater MPV for our full day tour within Jogya, viz. The Buddhism Borobudur Temple Complex, The Hindu Prambanan Temple Complex, Merapi Volcano, etc. it cost us Rupiah 412,000/person including all entrance fees (excl. lunch). It was so easy as the tour operator was located right opposite our hotel.

The next day, we went on our walking tour within Jogya and visited various tourist attractions such as Jogya's famous Malioboro Street, Vredeburg Fort, Beriningharjo market, The Independence Monument, The Palace or Kraton, etc. We returned by horse-cart @ Rupiah 30,00 for the 4 (four) of us.



Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken at Tugu Railway Station, Yogya. This is the Prambanan Express Train from Jogya to Solo or Surakarta; a distance of approx. 60 Kilometres. The cost of the train ticket is fixed at Rupiah 7000, irrespective of the number of stops

My recommendation is that should you travel by air to either Yogya or Solo, you should not miss the cheap train transportation between the 2 cities @ Rupiah 7000/trip. The trains are regular scheduled and you should plan your holidays by visiting the best of both cities at budget prices.




Photograph of my younger sister, Lai Ling taken outside our budget hotel, Mataram Hotel. It cost us Rupiah 275,000 per night inclusive of a simple breakfast plus free WIFI.

This hotel is located just diagonally opposite the rear exit (for motor cycles parking). We were not aware of this exit. On our arrival, we just followed the crowd via the main entrance and ended up taking a 20 minutes walk to our hotel (instead of less than 1 minute) if we exited via the rear entrance.

Posted by HK Wan on 7 September 2009