Best Things To Do while on Vacation in Indonesia

Some photos
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adamcohn/sets/72157624121058355/page1/
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try going to these places:

• a lot of people would recommend Bali or Lombok and I'd say that you have to go there as well.
• Try going to Bintan or Bangka for great island vacations aside from Bali and Lombok.
• Try going to Bunaken if you want to see beautiful reefs.
• Raja Ampat is also nice.
• Try seeing the Komodo dragons.
• Visit the Borobudur temple in Java.
• Visit the botanical garden in Bogor.
• Visit the Thousand Islands in Jakarta.
• Go hike one of our many beautiful mountains.

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Raja Ampat

#1 in the world in underwater diversity, famous for diving; Raja Ampat is the rising star of Indonesian tourism. I haven't been here myself, but I'm quoting & translating one of the most famous Indonesian tourism blog [1] on the Raja Ampat experience:

My conclusion is that Raja Ampat is not for beginner divers. There is no dive site that has no current. It's fine if the current is slow or one-directional, but the current there is really fast! Almost on every dive, we have to do negative entry, alias doing a back roll from the ship, directly to the bottom of the ocean before the upward current sweep you back up. If you have problems with swimming, it's really easy to get left out by other people in your group.

All the hard work is worth it with the spectacular underwater view. (...)  Raja Ampat has 1309 fish species, 537 coral reef species, 699 mollusc species. (...) The underwater landscape includes wall, slope and caves - all covered in a variety of corals. In one area alone, you can see soft corals in the shape of table, brain, cauliflower, flower, pillar, etc. You can also see "leather" soft corals (...). Diving with a photographer, I can see species that I have not seen before, such as nudibranch, flatworms, and pygmy seahorse.

Raja Ampat is also famous with "Wobbegong", or carpet shark, because this shark species look like a carpet. My favorite is "Manta Ray". Only by lying in the sand, 7 Mantas, around 3 meter in size, came back and forth in front of me. In a spot called Blue Magic, I can see a different type of species - this one looks chubby and cute.

Bali

Bali has something for everybody - it has more than a pretty beach. I'm not a beach person myself, but I like going to other parts of Bali. You can expect:

• A pretty beach.
  
  
  Surf and skydive are popular, and some of the hotels on the coast have really nice views as well.
• Peaceful and exotic villages.
  I absolutely love Ubud. I spent my last trip to Bali hardly leaving my resort in Ubud for 2.5 days. Some of the resorts are really peaceful, with an absolutely gorgeous view of rivers, cliffs, and forests - in the middle of nowhere. Perfect place to chill, enjoy your surrounding, and treat yourself. The best resort in this area is arguably Amandari [1] - although I haven't had the chance to be there yet.

• Culture.
  Bali is one of very few places in Indonesia where Hinduism is the majority (around 92%). It is also extremely present in the society; spend a day in Bali and you will see scenes like this on the street:
  
  
  It also boasts an extremely diverse art forms, especially music and dances. If you're in Bali, go to at least one cultural dance show, one of which looks like this.
  
  

Yogyakarta - Central Java

Yogyakarta boasts the most prominent form of royalty that is still present in modern Indonesia. The province is governed by a king, who lives in a palace ("Keraton Yogyakarta"). The museum inside is really fascinating.

Also popular are two prominent Hindu temples in Central Java (extremely near to Yogyakarta) - Candi Prambanan (Prambanan Temple) and Candi Borobudur (Borobudur Temple), both UNESCO World Heritage sites.

Borobudur, the largest single Buddhist temple in the world. You should go to the very top - it's absolutely gorgeous.

Ramayana dance show in Prambanan - a must see!

Other destinations:

• Hike Mount Bromo (East Java), a really scenic volcano mountain.
• Visit the cultural Tana Toraja (South Sulawesi)
• Trekking in Irian Jaya
• Shopping in Jakarta - the city has a lot of big shopping malls for both cheap and expensive stuff.

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