The Setumbu Hill Borobudur Sunrise Tour is one of the
tourism highlights of Yogykarta. Find out how to join a shared tour and see the
sunrise on a budget. First I’d like to share with you my experience visiting
the temple for sunrise. I’ll also share with you how to visit the Punthuk
Setumbu Hills for yourself and give you an overview of the itinerary. Let’s get
started.
Arranging Your Own Tour
If you want to join the Borobudur Sunrise Tour you have to
leave Yogyakarta very early in the morning. Most people will arrange a car
rental or join a shared tour, I’ll explain a bit more about that option later.
On my first visit I decided to drive a motorbike. I’m not sure if it was a good
idea, but I still enjoyed the adventure.
How to Get There
It takes between an hours to an hour and a half to drive to
the Punthuk Setumbu hills from Yogyakarta. I left my house at 4.30 am, the
journey to the Punthuk Setumbu hills probably took between 1-1,5 hours. If you
decide to drive by yourself you should wear a coat as it does get quite cold.
Punthuk Setumbu hills are located 2,5 km west of Borobudur.
It’s a bit difficult to find the viewpoint if you travel here by yourself. You
have to turn right on the intersection, then just follow the road, maybe around
2 km, and you find the office of this tourism spot.
When we arrived close to the tourist office we found lots of
Ojek (motorbike taxi) drivers. We paid around Rp. 20.000 for one of the drivers
to guide us to the tourist office. When we got to the tourist office we bought
an entrance ticket so that we could watch the sunrise.
Remember, you have to pay the entrance fee; Rp. 15.000, for
local tourist and Rp. 30.000, for foreigners. Don’t let the ojek guy tell you
how much you need to pay at the counter. The bad thing about the counter is
that they didn’t put the notification for the price differences between the
local and non local tourists. They just stated the price Rp. 30.000, without
any other details. I’ve been told that this is a scam so that the Ojek drivers
can make extra money. If you are an Indonesian you should ask for the correct
price. Yes it is not a big amount of money, but it is a crime to scam people
like this.
Best Time For Sunrise
If you’re going to come to the Pethuk Setumbu Hills to see
Borobudur at sunrise make sure you arrive at around 5.20 am. You still need to
do a short bit of trekking; probably around 10-20 minutes to reach the spot.
It’s not a hard trek if you are reasonably fit. After waking up so early you
want to make sure you actually get to see the sunrise.
Borobudur Sunrise Tour
The Borobudur Sunrise Tour from Pethuk Setumbu Hills is a
great option for backpackers on a budget it can be quite intimidating. In fact
there are two far more convenient options that you can choose; one option is
hiring a private car, while the second option is joining an arranged tour.
Catching the Bus
If you join an arranged tour then you get picked up from
your hotel or from a pre-determined pickup point between 3 am to 4 am. Once the
driver has picked up all the guests you are taken to Sethumbu Hill for sunrise.
After the sunrise you are taken to Borobudur temple and then back to Yogyakarta
where you will be dropped off at your hotel. There’s also the option of joining
a shared tour to both Borobudur and Prambanan temples.
Arranging a Car Rental
While a minivan is a great option, the more convenient
option (and if you are a family or a large group the cheaper option) is
arranging a car rental. This is a more convenient option. The driver will pick
you up from your hotel and take you to Sethumbu Hill. From there you go to
Borobudur and on the way back you can visit Prambanan. The good thing about
this option is you don’t need to wait around for the other guests.
Watch Sunrise over Borobudur
The view of the sunrise with Borobudur, Mount Merbabu and
Mount Merapi in the distance is a great reward for waking up so early. If
you’re interested in experiencing this for yourself I can make it easy for you.
You can book a shared Borobudur Sunrise Tour through Discover Your Indonesia.
Included in the Package:
Hotel pickup
Breakfast
(optional)
Drop off at your
hotel