#2 Puncak – The Sweet Escape

Puncak is a common weekend destination for residents of Jakarta. It is located in the Bogor Province and lies at the foot of Mount Gede Pangrango on Java island. It is about two-hour drive from Jakarta to Puncak if there is no traffic.

Puncak is known as the weekend destination for people of Jakarta because of its breeziness and natural beauty. There are also many tea gardens where one can experience plucking the tea leaves. It is also possible to visit Mount Gede Pangrango National Park, if one loves hiking.

In Puncak, there is also the famous zoo or animal theme park, called Taman Safari I. Currently, there are three Taman Safaris in Indonesia, and one of them is located in Puncak. The zoo has a collection of 2,500 animals. There are also six wildlife shows, including a dolphin show, an elephant show, etc. What makes this zoo more interesting is that the visitors are allowed to drive through the park, and it is possible to see the animals within close distance. Visitors are also allowed to give the animals food, such as carrots. The ticket price costs around 12€ (185,000 Rupiah) on weekdays and around 15€ (220,000 Rupiah) on the weekends. They are charging for the car as well, which costs around 2€ (20,000 Rupiah).

If one is travelling with their family or friends, there are also many hotels or villas, which can be rented. There are also other activities that people can do, such as paragliding, walking around the tea plantation or just enjoying the view at Puncak Pass (‘Pass’ is the Indonesian word for ‘top’ or ‘peak’).

Because Puncak is located in the Bogor Province, it is possible to go to Bogor City and visit one of the Presidential Palaces. It is not possible to go inside the palace, of course, but the front yard of the palace is accessible for public. Near the presidential palace, there is also a botanical garden. Today the garden owns 13,983 specimens of trees and plants.

As you can see from the pictures above, Puncak has more nature than Jakarta and is also some type of countryside. Therefore, there can also be some problems especially for foreigners. It will probably be hard to talk with the locals, since not everybody can speak English. There is also traffic, that has been getting more unpleasant in the past years. Make sure to go there earlier in the morning if you do not want to be sitting and stuck in your car.

That is all for today’s post and see you on my next one!