Yogyakarta is known for…

Last monarchy in Indonesia
Arts and Cafe Culture
Historical Sites
Museums
Center of Indonesian education
Batik Textile
Shopping
being also called Yogya, Jogja or Jogjakarta

Why visit Yogyakarta?

Yogyakarta (Javas soul) is a must-see because it embodies Javanese culture down to its very core, with the island’s most pristine examples of the Javanese language, art, and way of life.
Apart from being the town’s epicenter for art and education, it is also well-known for its shopping and a variety of tourist attractions.

Experience life as a Sultan for a day in his palace, part of a kraton (royal complex) that dates back to the 18th century and is still in use today.
Traditional dance and music, batik design and production, wooden and leather Wayang puppets, ‘Kris’ (knife) production, silver craft, stone carving, and so much more all contribute to Yogya’s reputation as Indonesia’s cultural capital.

Hotels in Yogyakarta

There is so much to choose from. Best practice is to narrow down the location you want to go, and then filter the list of hotels by price and star ratings.

Marriott in Yogya

Booking.com

International hotel chains, such as Marriott, have opened their doors in Yogyakarta, ensuring that you receive the service and quality that you would expect from a star-rated and internationally managed hotel. Finally, there are hotels in Yogyakarta to suit every traveler’s needs, from those on a tight budget to those with lavish tastes.

Yogyakarta Guide

Many visitors flock to Indonesia to see Yogyakarta. Located in the southern part of Indonesia’s Central Java province, Yogyakarta is the capital of the Yogyakarta Special Region and very near to the world famous Borobodur Temple.

Modern Yogya is a bustling metropolis with cybercafés, shopping malls, and traffic jams; nonetheless, the city is still known as a hub for batik, gamelan, and ritual thanks to the guidance of its sultan, whose royal palace (kraton) serves as the center of daily life for the city’s traditional people.

When everything is said and done, Yogyakarta stands out as Indonesia’s most beloved and livable city complete with innumerable hotels providing the finest value anywhere in Java, no matter how much money you want to spend.

Yogyakarta has a lot of rural areas where you can stay with a family, learn the language, learn about the culture, or even work in the rice fields. It’s a city rich in cultural opportunities, particularly in the field of the arts. It is known as the center of Javanese art; almost every street contains a studio or atelier where visitors can purchase unique keepsakes. After a few days of exploring the backstreets and local shops, you’ll see that ancient and modern art live side by side, which is a fascinating mix of the old and the new.

Don’t miss to visit Borobudur and Pramanan, two of Indonesia’s most recognizable ancient temples, situated on the outskirts of the city and are easily accessible by car or motorcycle rental.

Good to Know

General Vibe

The city proper is only 32 square kilometers in size, and there are only about 400,000 people living there. However, it is situated in the most populous part of Indonesia. The Yogya plains have a population density of 1,100 people per square kilometer. In this respect, it’s not unlike some major cities in Europe.
There are no skyscrapers in Yogyakarta, and very few buildings there exceed 10 stories. The majority of the buildings are single-family homes with no more than two stories.
The Kraton, or Sultan’s Palace, is the city’s most well-known historical landmark. Yogyakarta is the only special region in Indonesia to be ruled by a monarchy.
For a couple of years between 1945 and 1949, when Jakarta was occupied by the Dutch, Yogya served as the Indonesian capital. The subsequent governments of Indonesia recognized the Sultan’s importance to the independence movement and granted him the privilege of maintaining his monarchy until the present day as a token of their gratitude.
Last but not least, Yogyakarta is a hub for higher learning thanks to its abundance of prestigious institutions of higher learning.

Getting to Jakarta & Getting around

You won’t be able to miss the bicycle rickshaws (becak), whose drivers may be aggressive if you let them, but who provide a unique and entertaining way to move about. Don’t get in with drivers who promise low hourly prices unless you plan on doing rounds where they get commissions for transporting you to various batik galleries and landmarks.

The Yogyakarta Special Region recently finished building a new airport in the Kulonprogo Regency. The airport serves the city of Yogyakarta. The previous Adi Sucipto Airport in Yogyakarta was at capacity and couldn’t be expanded because there wasn’t enough land.

The distance between the Yogyakarta New Airport and the city center is 44 km, which is about 1 hour and 30 minutes by car. This made it hard to build infrastructure to support the airport. This also meant that the city needed a faster, large-scale public transportation mode, such as a train.
At the moment, the airport’s own train station is still being built. So, if you want to take a train to the center of the city, you’ll have to leave from Wojo Station (located 8 km northwest). You could also take a taxi instead.
Next, you’ll need to take a train from Wojo Station to Tugu Station. This station is closest to Malioboro Street, which is where most tourists go in Yogyakarta.
It takes about an hour to get there, and tickets start at 30,000 IDR ($2). You can take a regular train or one that goes to the airport. At least one bus should leave every hour.

Adisucipto International Airport (IATA: JOG), located 8 kilometers east of Yogyakarta’s city center, serves as a small but busy mostly domestic hub. The national airline, Garuda, serves major cities on Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Sulawesi, as well as frequent connections to Jakarta and Denpasar.

Safety - Friendly & Safe

The crime rate is quite low compared to other mega-cities in the world. Of course, like in any other place in the world where lots of people mingle, there is always the odd scam going on, and some might try to take advantage to make an extra buck on you. But even the poorest people in Yogyakarta are very friendly and optimistic.
Don’t be duped by shady batik salesmen who hang around in the kraton and try to tell you a sob tale in order to get you to spend money at one of their commission-paying spots.

Yogyakarta Weather

Tropical Monsoon Climate

Yogyakarta, like the rest of Indonesia, experiences warm temperatures all year and a yearly monsoon because of its tropical location. Yogyakarta is located in Indonesia, south of the equator, so the hottest months are April and December, and the coolest months are June, July, and August for people living in North America and Europe.

Although December, January, and February are the wettest months of the year, the cool season is also the driest. It’s not necessarily a bad idea to visit during the rainy season, as is the case in most tropical countries. The rain tends to come in heavy downpours in the late afternoon, but if you plan your day carefully you can still have a wonderful time in Yogyakarta and save money by visiting during the off season.

Rainy Season in Jakarta is from November to March.

Prices - Great Value for money

You can stretch your hard-earned cash much farther in Yogya.
If you like to shop, it’s a fantastic place to go if you’re interested in arts and antiques, and particularly if you’re looking for batik, one of the city’s most authentic artistic expressions.
So, bring enough of Rupia with
you, since there are many banks but not many money exchangers.
And before you open your wallet, make sure you’ve viewed all the items available, beginning with the inexpensive areas like marketplaces and mass production galleries near Taman Sari.
Many unsuspecting visitors end up purchasing overpriced batik so keep in mind that a small batik item that should cost just 50,000Rp can be offered for 500,000Rp.

Attractions - Hidden Treasures

Many of Yogyakarta’s historic landmarks, such as the UNESCO-listed Candi Borobudur and Candi Prambanan, as well as Keraton Yogyakarta Palace, Kota Gede, Malioboro Street, Tebing Brexi, and many more, are popular tourist destinations.

Borobodur Temple Site

Evidence suggests that Borobudur was constructed in the 9th century and subsequently abandoned following the 14th-century decline of Hindu kingdoms in Java and the Javanese conversion to Islam. Worldwide knowledge of its existence was sparked in 1814 by Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, then the British ruler of Java, who was advised of its location by native Indonesians. Borobudur has since been preserved through several restorations. The largest restoration project was undertaken between 1975 and 1982 by the Indonesian government and UNESCO, followed by the monument’s listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.