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Capital and largest city of West Kalimantan, Indonesia
Photo: Medelam, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Pontianak is the capital of the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan, on the island of Borneo, and bisected by the Equator. The city is mostly populated by ethnic Chinese, Dayaks and Malays, as well as significant numbers of minorities such as Bugis and Javanese.
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Equatorial Obelisk
It is built directly under the 0 degrees equator line. It is 11 km from the city centre and is comparably easily and quickly reachable by public buses (Rp2,000). There you can learn lots of interesting facts about the equator and to see how unique is Pontianak, one of the few cities in the world situated exactly on the equator line. There are friendly English-speaking staff and a souvenir shop, actually maybe the only one in Pontianak.
This museum is made of concrete, with concrete reliefs depicting the lifestyle of the two well-known West Kalimantan ethnicities Malay and Dayak.
Masjid Sultan Syarif Abdurrahman
The oldest mosque in Pontianak. This mosque is one of two buildings that marked the founding of Pontianak City in 1771 AD, besides the Kadriyah Palace.
Keraton Kadriyah
The palace of the Pontianak Sultanate which was built from 1771 to 1778 AD.
Rumah Radakng
Radakng is a long house derived from Dayak Kanayatn original house located in the province of Kalimantan Barat
Try the local noodle dish of Pontianak, mie kepiting.
Serves bubur ikan (rice porridge with fish soup).
Malay cuisine
Try local Pontianak dumplings called choi pan or chai kue.
offers all-day dining with a selection of Asian, Western, and authentic Indonesian favourites. At open deck area, you can enjoy the views of the landscaped gardens while enjoying the chef's specialities.
Pontianak cuisine
Pontianak cuisine.
Japanese food
They have great local menu at very affordable price and average-English-speaking staff. The restaurant is centrally located. Its signature dishes such Ikan Gurame Terbang, Gulai Kepala Ikan, Ikan Jelawat Kukus, and have been featured and reviewed by many national TVs cooking show.
Serves sotong pangkong, one of Pontianak's specialty dishes, grilled dried cuttlefish with special sambal.
Serves es lidah buaya.
Pontianak cuisine
No air, no fan, no window and fairly mosquito-ridden with no insect spray available.
Faded rooms. Staff friendly enough. All have AC and attached bathrooms. On a busy junction between two streets so window rooms will be slightly noisy, (but non window rooms are a bit musty). Travellers have reported overpricing and demands for security deposit from the staff here
Commercial hotel
National chain hotel
By plane
To get to or from the airport, DAMRI runs hourly bus service to the city centre for Rp35,000. The easiest spot to catch the bus in the city is at the DAMRI office at Jl.
By boat
There is a fortnightly service by the Pelni ship KM Lawit from Jakarta to Pontianak. The same ferry then continues to Semarang, Java.
By car
Pontianak can be reached by car from Kuching in 6-8 hours, although the road is not in very good shape. See Pontianak to Kuching for a detailed itinerary.
The most convenient way to explore Pontianak is either by taxi or rented car. The entire Pontianak is integrated by road link, parts of which are not well maintained.
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Pontianak · International · PNK
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