Want to add Bromo and Ijen to your Indonesia tour but having trouble deciding on the ideal method of transportation?
If you are traveling on your own you have up to 4 options to choose from:
How to visit Bromo and Ijen
Most travelers visit Bromo and Ijen one-way on their way to Bali (or as a return route).
At least 99% of the tourists we passed along the way did.
However, we opted for an alternative to Bali that is much less crowded and therefore also less accessible 😉.
So we decided to make a round-trip (circular) route Surabaya-Bromo-Ijen-Surabaya but we only had 3 days and 2 nights to do it.
Is it possible? And so much!
What's more, you have up to 4 options to make it:
Local travel agencies
This is the most suitable alternative if you have:
- High budget.
- Short time before and during the trip.
- Low need for customization on the route.
These were some of the quotes we received by email for the circuit of 3D/2N Surabaya-Bromo-Ijen-Surabaya:
Attention: these are prices and conditions in effect in 2012, so they may have changed a lot.
Public transportation
This is the most suitable alternative if you have:
- Low budget.
- A lot of time during the trip.
- The desire to move 100% at your own pace.
As I did not experience this option, I cannot give you too many details, but I can give you some basic indications that I researched when preparing the trip.
You can access Bromo National Park from Probolinggo, Wonokitri and Ngadas, the first option being the easiest to reach using public transportation.
So to get to Probolinggo:
- From Surabaya airport you need to take a bus to Purabaya station, located 10 km south of the city center, so you will probably need to transfer.
- From Purabaya, take a bus to Probolinggo (3 hours). In theory they leave every 30 minutes, but traffic jams and delays are common.
- In Probolinggo you can spend the night and go on excursions from there or continue to Cemoro Lawang, one of the park's entrance gates, by taking the private minibuses that connect both places (chartered by agencies).
3. Car or motorcycle rental
Do you dare to drive in Indonesia?
Then the most common option is to rent a motorcycle and it is the most suitable alternative if:
- You have a medium-low budget.
- Do you feel like living an adrenaline adventure?
- You want to move how and where you please.
Overcoming traffic in some areas of Java, such as on the road from Surabaya to Probolinggo, is an odyssey.
However, on other more isolated roads it must be a pleasure to have your own bike and be able to go at your own pace, enjoying the scenery.
I wouldn't do it, but I know people who recommend it.
So the decision is yours 😉.
4. Private driver from Surabaya
And finally, this is the method that best suited my trip: hiring a private driver.
This is the right alternative if you have:
- Medium-high budget.
- Short time before and after the trip.
- Need to customize the route 100%.
Moreover, this option did not need to be "closed" in advance, but could be negotiated upon arrival in Surabaya.
How?
I'll tell you in detail:
How to hire the driver at the Surabaya Airport Tourist Office
When you arrive at Surabaya airport, head for the exit.
Just as you walk out the door where family members, drivers with signs and other people who want to sell you their means of transportation are waiting anxiously... right there, on the right, you will find the tourist office.
It is a small place with one or two people inside who, in our experience, will serve you very attentively in English.
After telling them that we had only 3 days (2 nights) and that we wanted to do a circular route to see Bromo and Ijen, but returning on the third day to Surabaya, this is what they offered us:
- First we were told how to get to Cemoro Lawang by taking 4 buses.
- We were then offered one-way or round-trip transportation to Bromo (49 and 82€ respectively).
- One of them offered us their tours, but none of them included Ijen.
- The last offer was the final one: private driver for the 3D/2N (petrol and driver's allowance included) for 1.900.000 rupiah (154€).
If you look at the price table the agencies gave us, that budget for 2 people was a bargain, even if it didn't include meals or entrance to the parks.
And it gave us the option to move on our own (without a large group) and just when we needed to.
So... sold!
Our experience with private chauffeur in Java
The driver, Abdul, did not speak English. According to what we were told, it was better this way so that he would not ask us for more money. But this sometimes made communication difficult.
The car was not air-conditioned, but as soon as we approached Bromo that was not a problem, as temperatures there are much cooler.
We discovered during the trip that if we did not invite the driver to eat, he would not take anything when we stopped at our request. So we would offer him to eat with us (sometimes he would accept, but he would sit at another table, we never found out why).
This was not a problem because I always stopped at very cheap places where we paid 3,5€ for a meal for 3 people.
He also tried to take us to very specific hotels.
For example, in Bromo he wanted to take us to Cemara Indah, but we refused and asked to go to Cafe Lava, as we knew it was cheaper.
Apparently, not having an agreement or "commission" with them, he slept in the car that night. So we felt bad for having insisted and decided to leave it up to him to decide on accommodation in Ijen.
He took us to the Catimore...
The next morning Abdul looked much better: he was well rested in a room reserved for the drivers and had been fed dinner.
However, our experience there was not so good, more due to bad luck than anything else. But I'll tell you about that in the route summary 😉.
As a driver in Indonesia? A 10.
Abdul got us everywhere we wanted to go in record time, overcoming imposing traffic jams, navigating bumpy roads and even avoiding being swallowed alive by a bus driving the wrong way in our lane.
By the skin of my teeth!
The only real downside I could put is that, on one occasion, he started smoking inside the car (with the windows open). It was just the day he had spent the night in the car next to Bromo (and it had been very cold), so we let him do it even though it annoyed us.
Conclusion
The decision is in your hands, but if you want to organize a route around Bromo and Ijen on your own, here is my advice:
- Do you like to have everything done for you? Hire a trip organized by a local agency. In the table you have many options, ask them for a quote!
- Backpacking? Then take public transportation (if you have the time) or rent a vehicle (with a steady hand and a lot of adventure).
- Do you want to go on your own but you don't have enough time to travel and you prefer to be insured? Hire a car with driver at the tourist office and enjoy!
Useful Links
- Cafe Lava.
- Cemara Indah.
- Catimore.
- Other accommodations in the area.
- Flights to Indonesia: Trabber, eDreams and Momondo.
- 5% discount when you purchase your travel insurance at IATI from here.
On the road in Indonesia? Then this is of interest to you:
- Route 3 days and 2 nights by Bromo and Ijen.
- 3 weeks tour in Indonesia: Java and Borneo.
- 4 days klotok trip in Borneo: encounter with orangutans in the wild.
- Experience a sunrise from the temple of Borobudur.
- Meditate with Buddhist monks at the Mendut temple.
- Prambanan, the largest Hindu temple in Indonesia.
- Selogriyo: a Hindu temple among rice plantations.
- Pulau Derawan: how to arrive and stay 7 days on the island.
Map
Do you know another way to organize a visit to Bromo and Ijen, and have you not yet decided which one suits you best?
Tell me about it in the comments. Maybe between my opinion and those of other readers we can help you choose yours 😉.