Travel Within Indonesia

Sumatra, Java, Bali, Nusa Tenggara and Sulawesi are all linked by regular ferries, and you can use them to hop from an island to another all the way from Sumatra to Timor. These ferries run either daily or couple of times a week, so there’s no need to spend days in drowsy little haven towns. Pelni is still the leading shipping line, with services almost all over the place. It has contemporary, all air-con passenger ships that function set routes around the islands, either on a fortnightly or monthly schedule. The ships generally stop for four hours in each haven, so there’s time for a quick glance through. There’s a whole array of floating tubs you can use to jump between islands, down rivers and across lakes. Fishing boats or other small vessels can be rented to take you to tiny offshore islands.