Hello readers! Welcome back to my blog. Today I want to write about problems that may occur during your travel in Indonesia and its solutions as well. On my previous posts, I have written about the places that you can visit. However, it is not always rainbows and butterflies in Indonesia. The places are indeed beautiful but this does not imply that there are not any problems. Therefore, I want to write about current issues in our tourism.
The first question would be ”How foreign-friendly is Indonesia?” Travelling to Bali and Java, for instance, is effortless for the majority of tourists for good services. On the other hand, it might be hard to travel to the other part of the country. One of the reason is the lack of promotion from the government and also, the lack of infrastructure in the area. Some places are still not accessible by cars and public transportation are not operational.
That was an insight into the problem of tourism in Indonesia. Now let me describe the problems for foreign tourists to keep in mind before coming to Indonesia.
1. Dual pricing for foreigners
Dual pricing is a common thing in some part of Asian countries, like Indonesia. For those who does not know what ‘dual pricing’ means, it is a different price charging between the locals and the foreigners. For example in Borobodur, foreigners have to pay approximately 280.000 Rupiah (around 18 Euro) whereas locals only have to pay 30.000 Rupiah (around 2 Euro). It may be an upsetting fact but it is the reality that I think one should know beforehand.
Sadly, I do not have a solution for this dual pricing since it is approved by the government. However, I can give one useful solution, for instance: do not forget to convert foreign currency into Indonesian Rupiah. In the past years foreign currency is no longer accepted as a method of payment. Therefore, it is recommendable to have the local currency before going to tourist attractions.
2. Language problem
As I already mentioned in my previous posts, it may be hard for foreigners to travel to different areas in Indonesia. Many Indonesians are not very fluent in English, especially for people who did not receive a full education. This can create communication barriers between the locals and the foreigners. One useful tip is to learn the basic phrases such as ‘Berapa harganya?’ (How much is this?), ‘Di mana toilet?’ (Where is the bathroom?), ‘Maaf, saya tidak mengerti’ (Sorry I do not understand), etc.
3. Traffic and transportation
Traveling around the city in most cities in Indonesia can be a problem if one is not used to it. Especially we have traffics that can be so stressful even for the locals. If one is traveling in Java island, the train may be the best option. It has the advantage of avoiding traffic and mostly stick to the timetable. However, I do not want to say that our train’s timetable is always on time. Traveling by bus is also possible. The public buses are cheap, but they have many stops and often got stuck in traffic, despite having their separate lane.
The advice that I give will depend on one’s intention of traveling. If one wants to travel in just one island, the train is the best option. However, if one wants to travel from one island to another, domestic flights are possible, but it depends on one’s budget.
Those are some problems alongside with the solutions that I can give you today. I hope that my solution can be, somehow, useful for your future trip to Indonesia. What do you think about this post? Please write in the comment and also, if you have questions do not hesitate to ask me. See you on my next post!
Indonesia Tour 
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Thanks for the inspiration and good ideas for travelling to Indonesia! I really enjoy reeading your blog.
Honestly your entries are fitting perfectly into my vacation plans because I’m thinking of doing a trip to your home country for 3 weeks in summer 2020 after finishing my bachelor degree.
But your text opened my eyes and showed me what I need to think of before going there. I didn’t know about the dual pricing for foreigners! And because of the language Problem you mentioned: I want to learn some bases of the Indonesian language because I think it is an important part of travelling and getting to know the culture and the country. But my pronunciation will be terrible 😀
Do you have any insider tips for me? I would love to hear about some places which aren’t fully overcrowded. Furthermore I’m really interested about the Indonesian cuisine.
I can’t wait for new entries and my vacation there!
Greetings,
Mareike
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Hello! It is lovely to hear that you enjoyed reading my blog, and I’m so glad that this blog gave you an idea about your future trip to Indonesia.
I will write about more places in the future post if possible. For Indonesian cuisine, I can give you an insight that most of them are spicy, thus if you do not get used to spicy foods, you should ask first.
For the Indonesian language, if your mother tongue is German, you only have to read the sentences the way it is, just like the German language. For the pronunciation, you don’t have to worry the people will still understand you 😀
I wish you a great time in Indonesia!
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Hey!
First of all I really want to appreciate the work you put into your blog! A lot of interesting facts and knowledge to hear from a local. I want to travel South-East Asia once in my life and your blog is perfect for learning about that the culture there. The first fact that they have dual prices for foreigners is kind of strange. But if you are in country like in Africa or the Middle East people try to scam you all the time when they recognize that you are a foreigner. So I guess you get deceited all over the world if you are a foreigner. Some friends who have been in Asia also told me about the language problems there. They told me that in the huge citys people are more likely to speak English than in the rural areas. I got also told that the traffic situation is unbelievable vor Europeans. It is just a huge mess with loud noises. But I guess that is what you have to accept when you want to travel such a stunning country.
Greetings Malte
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Hi! Thank you for your feedback, I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed reading my blog.
I agree with what you said about the scam. Unfortunately, it also happens in my country, especially in rural areas. Even local people sometimes get scammed too! Also, the traffic is indeed awful, but if you are taking public transportation, you could probably survive the traffic 😀
Greetings, Eryn
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I‘m glad you made this blog about your country! It‘s very interesting to read and you gave really good ideas. 🙂
Last summer I travelled to Indonesia for a month. I‘ve spend my time in Nusa Penida, Gili Trawangan, Lombok and of course in Bali. I loved my time there! Indonesia is such a beautiful country, the nature is amazing, the food is sooooo delicious and the people are so lovely and funny. I never had any problems in Indonesia and I always felt very safe.
I totally agree with your point about the traffic and transportation in Indonesia. We often had to use a taxi, the streets where mostly very crowded but that was always an adventure. After a few days, we borrowed scooters, it was much easier and faster to get to the next destination. Luckily we never had an accident. I heard that there are many accidents with tourists and scooters especially in Bali. Have you ever had a bad experience with driving in Indonesia and how is it for you to live in a completely different culture right now?
I‘m definitely planning to visit Indonesia again and to give Bali another chance (I preferred to stay in the other places).
Can‘t wait to read more!
Best wishes,
Henriette
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Hello! Wow! It’s so lovely to hear that you enjoyed your holiday in Bali. Now to answer your question about driving, I can’t drive right now, even motorcycle. However, I had a bad experience falling from a motorbike together with my uncle and my brother, because at that time it was raining and the road was slippery. Luckily, we weren’t seriously injured.
For me, right now living in another country with a different culture sometimes can get challenging. One thing that I’m still not used to is calling someone older from us with their first name. In my country, it is considered impolite to do that. Sometimes I also miss my food with all the spices 😀
It’s lovely to hear that you are planning to visit Indonesia again. I hope in your next time you will have a pleasant holiday.
Greetings,
Eryn
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