A Thousand Islands: Java, Indonesia

By Wombat | February 9th, 2006 | 4 Comments »

In the Jakarta Post recently there was an excellent travel article by Simon Pitchforth about the Thousand Islands situated 80 kilometres off the Jakarta coast.

Set sail for one Thousand Islands of fun

One of the city’s more enticing escape routes involves catching a boat from the less than pristine waters of Ancol’s marina out to the tropical tranquility of Pulau Seribu, or the Thousand Islands as they are known. These islands extend northwards for a good 80 kilometers or so from the Jakarta coast. There aren’t actually a thousand islands, of course. As with any good Indonesian business deal, the number has been marked up. There are though over 500 islands in the chain, a kind of Indonesian Archipelago in miniature, which is quite enough to be going on with.

A handful of these islands are quite substantial and have significant local populations, other medium-size islands house beach chalets that are rented out to tourists. Many of the islands are absolutely tiny, little more than sand bars with a few palm trees on them and you half expect some ragged trousered, bestubbled Robinson Crusoe type to be shouting for help as you sail past.

The combined effect of all these islands is quite wonderful; to be bobbing through the ocean surrounded by islands on all sides is a magnificent spectacle and is perhaps more reminiscent of a Pacific atoll than of Jakarta.

How does one gain access to this paradise though? Well, there’s an office at Ancol Marina where you can book your trip. A few companies are located in the office, including Liguna Wisata, who will take you on a speedboat outing to popular islands such as Pulau Putri or Pulau Kotok. A day trip to Putri costs Rp 550,000 (US$57) which includes a tasty buffet lunch, refreshments and snorkeling gear.

Overnight stays on various islands cost around Rp 1 million for a double room. You can call 021-640-6461 or 021-641-3236 for bookings and for further details. Islands nearer to Jakarta such as Pulau Bidadari are cheaper and quicker to reach, but are comparatively grotty in comparison with the sandy idylls to be found further out.

Indeed, you have to travel 15 kilometers or so away from the capital’s coastline before the brown, sludgy waters clear and it’s safe to go swimming without running the risk of dissolving in the heady brew of sewage and industrial waste that is constantly pumped into the sea from Jakarta.

A speedboat will whisk you to the far end of the island chain in around 90 minutes. It’s an exhilarating ride, although bouncing across the sea at such a high velocity can be a little harsh on the backside. Disembark and then it only remains for you to relax and entertain the illusion that you’re considerably further away from Jakarta than you actually are.

Diving and snorkeling facilities are available as well as glass-bottomed boat trips. A lot of the coral reef is in a bad way around the Thousand Islands; with much of it being as dead as a doornail. However, there are a wide variety of species of fish to be enjoyed. Dive-a-phobics can also live out their tropical fantasies by lounging on the beaches or exploring the densely jungle-clad interior of the islands via footpaths. I once fell asleep on one of Pulau Putri’s beaches only to be awoken by a huge five-foot long monitor lizard breathing down the back of my neck. I had to go in the sea and wash my swimming trunks after that I can tell you.

The Thousand Islands can also be reached from the port of Dadap, which is situated near Sukarno-Hatta airport. Indeed you can almost see the whites of the pilots’ eyes as the planes come in to land. Dadap is not quite as salubrious as Ancol Marina. In fact it’s a nostril-scorching harbor full of impoverished fishermen, oil slicks, rickety wooden schooners and dodgy karaoke bars frequented by sailors. You might be able to persuade one of the sailors there to take you out for a weekend (to the islands that is).

My first experiences of the Thousand Islands came via Dadap. Several friends and I used to sail out of the harbor there on a creaky old hulk called the Sea Monkey, which was owned by a long-time, American expatriate teacher. It used to take us five hours, as opposed to 90 minutes, to chug out to the furthest islands but there was always plenty ‘o’ beer and rum on hand to turn us land lubbers into scurvy old sea dogs and it was all terrific fun.

Alas, on one trip, which thankfully I wasn’t party to, our intrepid American skipper, a little the worse for wear for the Bintang, sailed into some rocks, fatally holing the Sea Monkey and scaring the bejesus out of the poor English teachers who had paid for the privilege of standing on the deck of a sinking boat with a drunken and belligerent 300-pound (140 kg) Bostonian. Still, never one to say die, I heard later that our skipper hero, in a fantastic display of Titanic-esque bravado, had managed to unscrew and rescue the toilet before the boat finally disappeared beneath the waves. Fittingly, it was the only part of the Sea Monkey to survive.

Don’t let this little tale put you off though. If you’re bored with sitting on Anyer beach then these impossibly exotic islands could be for you. Just visualize the grass skirts and coconut-shell bikinis.
– Simon Pitchforth