The Beauty of East Java

Banyuwangi is the most eastern regency of East Java. Jember is the closest neighbour on the west side whilst Bali is only apart by the Bali Strait. The native people of Banyuwangi are the Osing. They have their own community and speak in their own dialect, a combination language between Javanese and Balinese.

The diverse natural scenery, art, culture, customs and traditions have created Banyuwangi as a unique destination worth to be visited. The beauty of nature is spread across the Banyuwangi district from west to the east. The mountains, forests and beaches create such outstanding attractions like the Ijen Crater, the Meru Betiri National Park and Sukamade.

Typical Handicrafts and traditional food are found plentiful in East Java. Batik Tulis which has its own characteristic in comparison with batiks from Central Java is a trademark famous for East Java. Gandrung dance is the well-known welcome dance performed only in Banyuwangi.

Kalibaru is a typical mid-size hill-country city. It is formed of 5 smaller villages. It is located on one of the busiest transit roads in Indonesia connecting Banyuwangi to Jember, Surabaya, Malang and Yogyakarta. Even though the road has been improved greatly, some stretches are still very narrow slowing down the traffic as overtaking the many heavy trucks is often not possible due to the oncoming traffic. A sizeable part of Kalibaru city is located along this main trunk road covering 7 km from the entrance to the exit. Kalibaru has a railway station connecting Kalibaru to Banyuwangi and to Surabaya. About 60.000 persons live in Kalibaru. Kalibaru is in the plantation belt with many big- size plantations. Being on 420 meters above sea level, the climate in Kalibaru is cooler than in the low lying areas like Banyuwangi, Jember, Surabaya and Malang. In the evening and during the night it can become quite cool at times.

Bali and its Ngurah Rai International Airport are about 220 km away from Kalibaru which can be reached in about 6-7 hours, crossing the Bali Straits in ferries plying this route 24 hours.

From the west side, the closest large international airport is Juanda Airport in Surabaya. It can be reached by either car, train or by plane from Blimbingsari Airport in Banyuwangi. The overland journey takes about 5 hours and passes through constantly changing scenes of life in a tropical paradise, busy towns, sleepy rural villages, terraced rice fields, plantations, orchards, forests and happy people with their warm smiles. The road journey winds over the forested Merawan range whilst the train passes under it through a historic tunnel which was built between 1902 and 1920 during the Dutch administration.

Tours

  • Sukamade Tour – Meru Betiri National Park

    Tour Info
    Location: South-west of Kalibaru
    Distance: 108 km
    Duration: 2 days and 1 night
    Schedule: 09:00 am

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    Witness one of the greatest natural events of surviving pre-historic turtles as a great and unforgettable vacation experience. The principal object of this adventure tour is watching the turtles laying their eggs on a virgin secluded beach which is well-known as Sukamade Beach. Before searching for the turtles you will pass through tropical low-land rain forest on the southern coast of Java. The peak season for green turtles (mostly found laying their eggs on Sukamade Beach) is on during the wet season but usually reduced activity can be found observed during the entire year.
    Please note that there is no guarantee we will observe the sea turtle laying their eggs during this trip.

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    Inclusions
    • English-speaking Tour Guide
    • Accommodation
    • Meals
    • Admission fee
    • Mineral water during tour

    Conditions
    • Additional Tour Guide / Leader joining the guest will be charged at Rp. 400.000 nett (1 person only with no additional car)
    • Additional charge if drop straight to Ketapang at Rp. 550.000 nett / car
    • Sunday / Public Holidays, there will be additional charge of Rp. 75.000 / person
    • Each car will be seated with maximum 6 guests
    • Management has rights to cancel this tour at anytime if weather not permitted

  • Alas Purwo Tour – The Jungle

    Tour Info
    Location: South-east of Kalibaru
    Distance: 83 km
    Duration: 1 day
    Schedule: 09:00 am

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    The tour to the Alas Purwo National Park is an outstanding experience to observe the pristine tropical low-land rainforest and the mangrove forests on the other side of the National Park. Alas Purwo which means “the first forest” is one of the best preserved rain forests which is protected by myths and law. The local people that it is a sacred forest. There are several other attractions to visit such as Ngagelan Beach (the turtle sanctuary), Pura Giri Salaka (an old Hindu temple), Sadengan (the observation tower) and Trianggulasi Beach. There will be unforgettable moments to discover Banteng/Javanese bulls (Bos javanicus), Green Pea Fowls (Pavo muticus), and Indian Deer (Muntiacus muntjak) in the wild. During the dry season most animals will go to the waterhole in savannah Sadengan. An additional trip to one of the biggest mangrove forests can be arranged on Bedul Estuary or Segara Anakan. It takes one hour by typical traditional fisher boat (katir) which is really a wonderful experience.

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    Inclusions
    • Transportation with 4WD Land Rover Jeep
    • Certified English-speaking Tour Guide from Margo Utomo
    • Entrance fee / admission fee
    • 1 lunch box, 1 coffee break – animal watch
    • Camera charge – mineral water during tours
    • Refreshment cold towel
    • First aid / standard medicines on stand by

    Conditions
    • Additional Tour Guide / Leader joining the guest will be charged at Rp. 375.000 nett (1 person only – with no additional car)
    • Additional charge if drop straight to Ketapang at Rp. 400.000 nett / car
    • Each car will be seated with maximum 5 guests
    • If you wish to combine this tour with MANGROVE VISIT, additional charge of Rp. 800.000 nett / boat for maximum capacity of 5 persons

  • Village Tour by Jeep – The Kalibaru Village

    Tour Info
    Location: Kalibaru’s surrounding village
    Distance: 10 km
    Duration: 3 hours
    Schedule: 09:00 am

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    The Village Tour by Jeep will show you the life style and conditions of typical villagers especially related to the plantations as Kalibaru is known for its agricultural heritage. Some local tourist destinations like the waterfall Wono Rejo which is also known as Tirto Kemanten and the natural reservoir Sumber Salak which was long time ago was used as swimming pool for the plantation general managers which are places of interest included in your itinerary. Or you visit, the Cocoa Factory in Afd. Sumber Baru to see how they process cocoa wet beans into dried cocoa beans. It is an important process to determine the quality of cocoa powder or chocolate bars.

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    Preparation
    Camera, sport shoes, casual dress, mosquitoes repellent lotion

    Inclusions
    • Transportation with 4WD Land Rover Jeep
    • Certified English-speaking Tour Guide from Margo Utomo
    • Entrance fee / admission fee to plantation area
    • 1 coffee break – mineral water during tour
    • First aid / standard medicines on stand by

    Conditions
    • No additional charge for Tour Guide / Leader joining the guest (1 person) with no additional car
    • Each car will be seated with maximum 6 guests

  • Amargo Tour – The Plantations

    Tour Info
    Location: North-east of Kalibaru
    Distance : 11 km
    Duration : 4 hours
    Schedule : 08:00 am

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    An enjoyable, interesting and educational excursion to one of the plantations which was established in early 1900 during the colonial era. It provides knowledge about plantation crops such as rubber, coffee, cocoa, and clove as well as the processing. An excellent trip to find out the long process of those commodities before ending up as tire on your car or a nice hot cup of coffee or hot chocolate on your dining table. The processing of rubber is possible to watch throughout the year but sometimes will stop at rainy days (especially early morning rain). The coffee season is from June to September, and the cocoa season on May and October. On this tour you will also observe home industries like tin smith on the way or stop at villages with different farming crops (chilli pepper, melon, peanut, etc) depending on the season.
    Please note factories are closed on Sunday and public holidays.

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    Preparation
    Camera, sport shoes, casual dress, mosquitoes repellent lotion

    Inclusions
    • Transportation with Innova
    • Certified English-speaking Tour Guide from Margo Utomo
    • Entrance fee / admission fee
    • 1 coffee break – mineral water during tour
    • First aid / standard medicines on stand by

    Conditions
    • Additional Tour Guide / Leader joining the guest will be charged at Rp. 50.000nett (1 person only with no additional car)
    • Each car will be seated with maximum 6 guests

  • Aroma Tour – The Spice Gardens*

    Tour Info
    Location: Margo Utomo Plantation
    Duration: 1-2 hours
    Schedule: Morning or afternoon

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    Various crops will be seen here and our experienced tour guides will explain about the plants during the tour in our own plantation adjacent to Margo Utomo Eco Resort. Vanilla, coffee, coconut, snake-fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, rubber tree, cocoa and many more are the variety of crops which you may not have known better before taking this trips tour. Our dairy farm with around 80 cows which are milked by hand every morning at 07:00 am and evening at 07:00 pm. Brown-sugar processing from sap of undeveloped coconut flowers (afternoon), and butterfly’s aviary are adding to the beauty of this tour. It is a worthwhile and wonderful tour suggested to be taken to deepen your knowledge of tropical plants and its products. This knowledge will be part of your memorable journey to Kalibaru and Margo Utomo Eco Resort as the Plantation Resort.

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    Preparation
    Camera, sport shoes, casual dress, mosquitoes repellent lotion

    *Educational Tours
    Tours can be arranged for students from Kindergarten to Elementary School as our generation should know more about the plants which mostly grow around them. The tour can be arranged by their school or teacher, or even by private groups. It is learning with fun!

  • Ijen Crater Tour – The Blue Flame

    Tour Info
    Location: North-east of Kalibaru
    Distance: 87 km
    Duration: 6-8 hours
    Schedule: 03:00 am

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    The Ijen Crater Tour brings you to the peak of the Ijen stratovolcanoes complex with a magnificent volcanic landscape. Observe the hard life of sulphur miners carrying sulphur rocks from deep down in the crater floor. They carry about 80-100 kg of sulphur rocks up to the crater rim and walk down about 3 km to the foot of the hill.

    This tour is recommended for active and fit participants only, as the journey quite challenging. All the tourists are prohibited to walk down to the Crater Lake which is also known as Hell’s Kitchen!

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    Preparation
    Camera, sport shoes, casual dress, mask

    Inclusions
    • Transportation with 4 WD Land Rover Jeep
    • Certified English-speaking Tour Guide from Margo Utomo
    • Entrance Fee / Admission Fee
    • 1 breakfast box, 1 coffee break
    • Camera charge – mineral water during tour
    • Refreshment cold towel – first aid / standard medicines on stand by

    Conditions
    •     Additional Tour Guide / Leader joining the guest will be charged at Rp. 200.000 nett (1 person only – with no additional car)
    • Additional charge if drop straight to Ketapang at Rp. 400.000 nett / car.
    • Each car will be seated with maximum 4 guests accompany with 1 guide
    • This tour can be cancelled at any time due to weather / other force majeure

  • Baluran National Park Tour – Bama Beach & Savana Bekol

    Tour Info
    Location: North East of Banyuwangi
    Distance: 100 km
    Duration: 2 days and 1 night
    Schedule: 09:00 am

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    Best Experience in Baluran National Park!
    Bama Beach, Savana Bekol and Baluran Mountain

    Baluran National Park or also better known by its nickname, Africa van Java is a natural conservation area that has original ecosystems, managed with a zoning system that is used for research, science, education, cultivation, tourism and recreation purposes. From the vast Savana Bekol field to the underwater beauty of Bama.

    And there are several other destinations you can visit such as Japan Cave, Tears, Old Well, Manting, Pier, Kramat, Kajang, Balanan, Lempuyang, Talpat, Kacip, Booth, Sejileh, freshwater bay, stone stack and Pandean or Bang Temple.

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    Price Lists
    1 person Rp. 3.036.000
    2 persons Rp. 3.312.000
    3 persons Rp. 3.381.000
    4 persons Rp. 3.737.000
    5 persons Rp. 4.082.000
    6 persons Rp. 4.427.000

    Inclusions
    • Transport Land Rover Jeep
    • Certified English-speaking Tour Guide
    • Lunch box and mineral water
    • Admission fee

Get in touch

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