Yogyakarta Travel Tips

Business Offices: 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday
Banks: 08:00 to 15:00, Monday to Friday; 08:00 to 13:00, Saturdays
Post Offices: 08:00 to 14:00, Monday to Thursday; 08:00 to 11:00, Fridays; 08:00 to 12:30, Saturdays
Shops: 09:00 to 21:00, Monday to Sunday

Yogyakarta has its share of petty criminals who occasionally target tourists. It’s wise to keep aware of your surroundings and valuables at all times. You can reduce your chances of being targeted by opportunist criminals such as pickpockets and bag snatchers by being careful about what you carry and how you carry it.

Wallets should be kept in front pockets. Avoid keeping valuable items in backpacks unless they are double-zipped and padlocked. Single-strap bags should be worn across the body, making it more difficult for bag snatchers to grab them. Pay special attention to your belongings while in busy places such as the city’s bus or train stations, or popular tourist attractions.

It’s sensible to arrange travel insurance before you embark on your trip. Taking out travel insurance will ensure you will be reimbursed for any stolen, lost, or damaged personal effects.

Electricity: 230 volts AC, 50Hz.

Yogyakarta presents visitors with a number of potential threats to their health, and it’s wise to take some basic precautions both before you arrive and while you are in the city.

Immunisations against hepatitis A and typhoid are recommended for all visitors. Anyone planning on close contact with animals should consider getting vaccinated against rabies. Tap water should not be consumed; bottled water is readily available. Still water can harbour dangerous bacteria, so it’s wise to avoid swimming in anything other than the sea or chlorinated swimming pools.

Standards of hygiene at some eateries fall short of western standards, so it pays to be discriminating when choosing where to eat. Should you fall ill while holidaying in Yogyakarta, you may find the standard of healthcare in government hospitals below that of western counterparts. It’s therefore wise to seek treatment at a private hospital such as Bethesda or Panti Rapih.

All visitors should make sure they have travel insurance with adequate provision for medical treatment before they arrive in Yogyakarta.

Bethesda Hospital: +62 274 586688

Bahasa Indonesia is the country’s official language. Most residents of Yogyakarta speak Bahasa Indonesia with a regional dialect. English is also commonly spoken, especially in hotels and popular tourist areas.

The rupiah is the official currency of Indonesia. Banknotes are issued in denominations of 1,000, 5,000, 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 and 100,000 rupiah, while coins come in 50, 100 and 500 sen. Coins are not especially common in tourist areas as most prices are multiples of 1,000 rupiah.

ATMs are prevalent in Yogyakarta and accept most international cards. Credit cards such as Visa, AMEX or Diner’s Club are accepted at some establishments. Currency exchange bureaux are available at a number of locations including hotels, though hotels invariably offer the worst rates. Banks are the best places to exchange cash and traveller’s cheques as they offer the best rates without the hefty commission fees that other places may charge.

Customs allowances differ according to how long you plan on holidaying in the country. For a week-long stay, visitors are permitted up to 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars or 100 grams of tobacco and 2 litres of alcohol. For a two-week stay, the cigarette allowance doubles and triples for stays of more than two weeks. Alcohol allowances remain the same irrespective of the length of stay, while gifts up to a value of US$100 and a reasonable amount of perfume are standard for any length of stay.

Visitors must declare all cameras on arrival, while other personal items such as sporting equipment, video cameras and audio players are permitted into the country on the understanding that they leave with the visitor who brought them in. All audio-visual and computer media is subject to screening by the country’s censor board. A list of prohibited items includes pornography, Chinese publications, drugs not accompanied by a doctor’s prescription and fruit and vegetables.

When meeting locals for the first time, a handshake is an acceptable form of greeting and should be accompanied by a subtle nod of the head. After initial meetings, it’s acceptable to greet the same person with a nod. Ordinarily women don’t engage in handshaking. The traditional spoken greeting in Indonesia is ‘selamat’, which translates as ‘peace’.

Physical contact between members of the same sex is common. Physical contact between members of the opposite sex is considered taboo and should be limited. Ideas of personal space may differ to those in the west and visitors should not feel offended if locals position themselves especially close to them in public places.

As with many Asian countries, the head is considered sacred and you should avoid touching another person’s head, even if it’s intended as friendly gesture. The feet are considered the lowest part of the body and should not be used to point with. Visitors should also refrain from exposing the soles of their feet to others and from touching anyone with any part of the foot. The left hand is considered unclean and should not be used for passing or receiving items, pointing or touching.

Dining Etiquette
Shoes should be removed prior to entering an abode and left at the front door. At the dinner table, the host typically sits and eats last. Guests should wait until they are invited to eat and drink before dining. Food is invariably offered in large quantities and it’s important not to refuse dishes offered. It is considered polite not to eat everything, as an empty plate suggests you were not offered sufficient food and may therefore embarrass your host.

Utensils are used infrequently during Indonesian meals, with the fingers of the right hand used to eat with. Be sure to keep both hands above the table for the duration of the meal. At restaurants, the person who invited the others to dinner is expected to pay.

Visas on arrival are available to visitors from 53 countries for a charge. Visitors from the following countries qualify for free visas that are valid for 30 days: Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, Malaysia, Morocco, Peru, the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Singapore. Visitors who do not qualify for a visa on arrival need to apply for a tourist visa from an Indonesian embassy in their home country.

There is a tourist information desk at Adisucipto International Airport. Staff manning the desk speak English and have a good knowledge of the local area, its attractions, transport and accommodation.