Town in Central Java, Indonesia
Photo: el legowo, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Ambarawa is a small town in the mountains south of Semarang, in Central Java province, Indonesia.
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Museum Kereta Api Ambarawa
A railway museum, exhibiting many old locomotives, carriages, and other train paraphernalia. Before its current use as a museum, the station was decommissioned in the 1970s. It is possible to get a ticket for an old diesel train trip to the nearby station in Tuntang on weekends, through which visitors can see the vast rice fields of Ambarawa, and the panoramic view of Lake Rawapening and Mount Merbabu, Telomoyo, and Ungaran.
A monument to commemorate the Battle of Ambarawa, in which the Indonesian army defeated the British and Dutch troops in 1945. It houses several weapons and vehicles used during the National Revolution Period.
Benteng Pendem
An 18th-century Dutch fortress which was used as a Japanese internment camp for Europeans during World War II, with the southern part now serving as a penitentiary facility and the northern part serving as the home of several of the facility's wardens and as a tourist destination.
Gereja Jago
A Dutch church built in the early 1900s, this church was the center of missionary activity in Ambarawa.
A resort on a hilltop at Bawen, with a stunning view of the Mount Telomoyo, Merbabu, Lake Rawapening and Ambarawa.
A cave with a big statue of St. Mary. It is a site for pilgrimage and praying with a view of the mountains and Rawa Pening.
Swamp Hamlet
The complex is situated in the middle of many rice paddies and borders Lake Rawa Pening. From the site visitors have a view of Mount Merbabu and Mount Telomoyo, both to the south. The 300-seat restaurant at Kampoeng Rawa floats in a small lake and serves Indonesian dishes using locally produced ingredients, including catfish, gourami, and tilapia. Dishes included nasi goreng and mie goreng. Customers can sit in the main hall or one of the floating gazebos. All are floated by plastic drums, and to reach the main hall customers must use covered boats which are guided by a rope. In the center of the complex are an open stage, a craft center, and a pendopo for special events. This has included weddings, colouring contests, training sessions, and seminars. A variety of activities and facilities are available onsite, including ATVs, flying fox, jet skis, and fishing. Boats leave from a dock and travel through a canal to Lake Rawa Pening.
Stasiun Bedono
The station is located at an altitude of 711 meters. It was built in 1873. There is also an old railway turntable.
Kampoeng Kopi Banaran
Operated by state-owned PTPN 9. You can do camping, horse-riding, swimming, and riding an ATV or Jip (off-road vehicle) around the coffee plantation.
Gunung Telomoyo
Riding a motorcycle to the Mt. Telomoyo summit.
Wisata Alam Gumuk Reco
Do flying fox, walk beside the cliff and try the giant swing.
Originating from Tuntang, a district on the east side of Rawa Pening Lake. Gecok kambing is the lamb in a spicy soup.
Serabi Ngampin
Serabi Ngampin is an Ambarawa pancake in sweet coconut milk soup.
Try Pecel keong, Javanese salad in peanut sauce with cooked freshwater snail, and Kripik belut (Swamp-eel chips).
Serve hot and iced both coffee and tea. Operated by state-owned, PTPN 9. There is a coffee factory and Museum Kopi Banaran (Banaran coffee museum).
A coffee shop whose coffee comes from a local farm of the same owner. They also sell gudeg manggar (young coconut flowers stewed with coconut milk and some herbs).
Pasar Projo Ambarawa
Buy the daily products, vegetables, and traditional snacks.
By bus
There are three options for getting to Ambarawa via buses:
By prona/isuzu
A prona/isuzu is the local term for a large angkot (an Indonesian type of shared taxi, not unlike the Philippine jeepney) which, despite the name, is made from repurposed Mitsubishi shuttle vehicles.
By ojek
Ojeks are an Indonesian motorcycle taxi, whose service can be obtained at local ojek stops (Pos/Pangkalan Ojek) where drivers rest.
By online ride-hailing apps
Two online ride-hailing services operate in Ambarawa, Go-Jek and Grab, known to locals as "Ojek Online".
By rickshaw (becak)
Rickshaws can be commonly found at Lanang Market (Pasar Lanang), in front of the entrance to the Indonesian Railway Museum.
By horse carriages (delman/dokar)
Horse carriages, much like rickshaws, can be found near the entrance to the Indonesian Railway Museum.
On foot
Walking around Ambarawa presents some challenges of its own.
Choose an airport to see hotels, stations, taxi ranks and car rental desks around it.
Semarang · International · SRG
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