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City in East Java, Indonesia
Photo: ESCapade, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Batu is a pleasantly cool and verdant hill station on the slopes of Mount Welirang (Gunung Welirang) in East Java. Batu, Selecta and the surrounding villages are a charming area worth a couple of days to explore, and more importantly to relax.
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Batu town square
A small park in the middle of Batu town, where locals regularly take walks and idle about. The newly re-worked Alun Alun is adorned with representations of pretty much all of Batu's specialities: apples, strawberries, milk-producing cows, rabbits, etc. as booths, lanterns and statues. There is also a decent-sized Ferris wheel with Rp5,000 entrance fee.
You can see Mount Panderman looming large from the centre of Batu. It is a good hiking and birdwatching area. If an organised hike is of interest you should be able to find a guide at Coban Rondo Waterfall.
Transport Museum
Opened in 2014 and part of the Jawa Timur Group, it presents the history and development of transportation around the world. It has many classic cars and motorcycles, and replicas of the presidential airplane, Batavia (old Jakarta), "Gangster Town", Broadway, Italy, France, Germany, England, the Buckingham Palace, Las Vegas, Hollywood, and a floating market.
Selecta Recreational Park
This landscaped park was established by the Dutch in 1930 and although very changed, it remains a charming place to visit outside of the school holiday seasons when it is overrun with children. Nice swimming pool. There are hot showers for Rp5,000, but no hot springs or hot pools. Opportunities for some guided walks and horse riding. There is a hotel and restaurant attached to the park.
Hectare after hectare of apple orchards and orchid nurseries. Pay a nominal rupiah sum and pick and eat as many apples as you can manage. Other villages nearby have similar setups and include Sidomulyo and Pandanrejo.
This is probably the single most attractive village in the area and a day or half day spent just wandering here will be time well spent. Don't get cheated, they sell some hot showers as "hot springs". There's also a notable Hindu temple dating from the Majapahit period in the 15th century.
Jawa Timur Park 2
Sate kambing (goat satay), and other sate, including beef and chicken. Steaks and many vegetable, noodle, tofu and tempe dishes are also on the menu.
Delicious local interpretations of Chinese cuisine. Generous portion with local price range. Lesehan (sitting on the floor) dining is available. Specialities include Fu Yung Hai, Koloke and fried rice.
Cart food are commonly sold in batu. The single-manned hand-pushed carts commonly sell food such as bakso (meatballs in soup), Mie tek tek (fried noodles), Tahu Lontong (tofu and rice cake in peanut sauce), Roti Goreng (Sweet fried bread), Putu (steamed pandanus cake served with coconut and red sugar), etc. They come with eating utensils handy, and will wait for you to finish eating before moving on.
A lot of the tents on the roadside on the mountains of Pujon sells Jagung Bakar (barbecue corn), where you can pick your own corn from the stack and season the corns yourself if you prefer. The sites juts precariously out the ledge of the roads, propped with bamboo. Beautifully casual, one can see the city of Batu with the lights at night. It gets chilly, so be prepared.
The most famous hotel in Batu, this grand old heritage building was built in 1891 as a holiday villa for Martin Sarkies of Raffles Hotel fame. It was turned into a hotel in 1986, but it has seen better days and there are many reports of disappointed visitors. Offers individual cottages and conventional rooms in the main building.
A 15-room hotel set in over 2,500 m² of landscaped gardens.
A hotel that views Mount Arjuno.
Low-key rooms feature Wi-Fi, flat-screens and sitting areas, plus tea and coffeemaking facilities.
A very modern hotel set in 12 hectares of grounds. Full service facilities, spa, massage, restaurant etc.
A 30-room boutique style hotel all built with re-used timbers in traditional East Java style, claims to be eco-friendly. You can also find vanishing East Java buildings architecture from old teak houses that are rebuilt for several villas in this hotel.
Nice enough mid-range hotel which is popular with weekend trippers form Malang.
A nice and cheap little villa with a beautiful view surrounded. With its traditional architecture and well decorated with some contemporary arts it will assure that you will have something worth remembering. It has 1 main villa (with 3 bedrooms, kitchen, hot water bathroom, living room, dining room) and 2 small pavilions (bed, TV, water dispenser, bathroom). The last ones for Rp100,000 per night (May 2016). Free pick up available.
A hotel that overlooks Mount Kawi.
A swanky establishment with regular hotel and condominium sections. Two restaurants, two bars and private tennis courts. A notably good in-house spa.
Contemporary rooms with balconies and mountain views.
A one-stop-shop on the way towards Selecta, where you can get various Batu snacks specialties. The shop also sells everything from daily needs to clothes.
A large array of local food and snacks, served in permanent makeshift tents that gives you truly local tastes and lifestyle. Most famous street food includes tahu brontak (deep fried stuffed tofu), pisang molen (banana wrapped in flour-based batter), pisang goreng (fried banana), ketan (sticky rice, served with ground soy bean and coconut), bakso (meatballs in soup), and tahu lontong (tofu and rice cake in peanut paste).
It is a 45-minute drive from the centre Malang to Batu and 3 to 4 hours drive from Surabaya to Malang.
Read in the guideThe area lends itself very well to walking. There are regular local bemo services and all of the better hotels offer tours and/or private transport to the main sights.
Read in the guideChoose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Malang · Regional · MLG
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