Jungles and Volcanoes

Five days, four nights

Medan - Bukit Lawang - Berastagi

Suggested Itinerary

Day One

Your friendly English-speaking guide and driver will meet you at your accommodation or the airport in Medan ready to drive the 2.5-3 hours trip to Bukit Lawang in private air-conditioned transport.

On arrival in Bukit Lawang you will transfer to your accommodation upstream where you can enjoy some light refreshments while discussing the plan for your trek on day 2 with your guide.

River life in Bukit Lawang village

Join us for a cultural tour of the village and meet some local people

You are free to spend the day enjoying the local atmosphere. Enjoy a refreshing swim in the river, wander around the cafes and curio shops or just kick back and relax in your accommodation.

If you prefer to get up and out, we can also arrange a variety of short tours in the local area. If this is something you may be interested in check out our cultural tours and contact us to discuss the options.

Day 2

After a relaxing night and an early morning breakfast, your guide will collect you to take you into the Gunung Leuser National Park to begin your two day* trekking adventure.

Guide Fabio with guests.

Your trek will begin at the park boundary where the terrain consists of gentle sloping foothills. Depending on the time of year you may encounter wild orangutans and other primates such as long-tailed macaques, pig-tailed macaques, silver langurs and white-handed gibbons. While your guide will happily discuss the human-wildlife conflicts that happens in the area, we encourage you to move through the Park boundary area swiftly as this is where a large majority of tourists are taken to see orangutans and often becomes crowded.

We will lead you away from the main tracks to maximise your chances of seeing the wildlife in their natural states. As with all our treks we adhere to strict wildlife watching guidelines, which you can read by clicking here. Along with the orangutans and other primates, you may also encounter the endangered Siamang, Great Argus pheasant, Siamang, White-handed gibbon and Rhinoceros hornbills. In addition, the area is also home to Sumatran elephants, tigers and sun bears as well as hundreds of bird, insect, amphibian and reptile species.

As you enter the National Park itself your guides will point out fauna and flora of interest, including tracks and signs of wildlife and stories passed down over the generations of our family.

Sumatra’s jungles are teeming with wildlife everywhere you look!

Thomas Leaf Monkey relaxing by the river

Pig-tailed macaque showing his impressive canines.

Sumatra’s jungles are teeming with wildlife everywhere you look!

During your trek you will want to stop frequently to watch wildlife but please remember we enforce strict rules on maintaining a safe distance and time in close proximity to the orangutans and other primate species in the area (read the wildlife watching guidelines here).

We will provide you with a fruit snack and a traditional local lunch of nasi goreng (fried rice) before we reach our camp location for the night. Expect to walk for around 5-6 hours in total on your first day.

Taking a break during a trek

While our guides prepare you a delicious local meal for dinner you can relax and unwind by the slow-moving crystal-clear river. Float around on a tube, try a spot of fishing, read a book or join in with the cooking! There is plenty of opportunity to enjoy your jungle escape.

Head guide, Wanda loves to catch fish for our guests!

When the sun goes down you can rest or be entertained by our guides and their stories, read a book by the fire or play some cards. Everything will be provided for your overnight stay, so just kick back relax and soak up the jungle sounds!

Day Three

After a restful night, wake up to the sounds of the jungle, including some gibbon song if you are lucky! Your guides will be up with the sun to prepare you a delicious breakfast while you enjoy your morning.

When camp has been deconstructed you will continue your adventure, taking in a beautiful waterfall, stunning rainforest scenery and more wildlife. On your second day in the jungle you can expect to walk for around 2-4 hours and return to the village by land or enjoy the thrills of riding the rapids on one of our rubber inner-tube rafts.

Join us for a bike ride through the village and get to see the real Sumatra

Once back in the village you are free to relax by the river and your accommodation. Or if you wish we can arrange to take you on one of our short excursion tours in the local area; maybe a visit to the bat caves, a refreshing swim at the beautiful meandering Landak River, or a bike ride through the rice fields. Talk to us about your options at the time of booking.

Day Four

After breakfast we will check out of the guest house and take the private car for the (approximately) 3 hour drive to the refreshing hill station town of Berastagi.

Along the way we will stop to admire the view at the tree house café in Simarjarunjung where you may wish to join the locals in a spot of Instagram worthy photography.

Photo opportunities with the magnificent lake Toba in the background at the tree house café on the way to Berastagi

We continue the short distance to Berastagi and stop once more to visit the famous Berastagi fruit market. The rest of the day is yours to explore the hill station of Berastagi town. Perhaps some time in one of the local cafés, a visit to the market or a spot of shopping for traditional Karonese textiles or handicrafts.

Berastagi fruit market is famous throughout Indonesia

Day Five

In the early hours of the morning your guide will meet you for the start of your sunrise trek to the summit of the sulfuric Sibayak volcano. After a couple of hours walking up a gradual ascent, you will reach the summit for some stunning sunrise views over the surrounding landscapes. On our descent we will pause to visit a natural hot spring where you can relax and unwind in the soothing mineral waters.

Enjoy a stunning sunrise at the Sibayak volcano

After your natural spa and rejuvenation, you will return to your hotel to prepare for your onward journey back to Medan.

We aim to get you back to Medan or Kuala Namu Airport in the late afternoon or sooner if you have an onward flight to catch.

All of our tours are flexible and can be altered to suit your requirements and budget.

Be a Responsible Tourist

Please be aware that as ecological experts with over 30 years’ experience in the area, to reduce the risks of disease transmission we strictly follow the IUCN Guidelines for viewing wild primate populations (please read the wildlife watching guidelines here). Orangutans and other primates are extremely sensitive to common human illnesses and so joining a trek while you are experiencing any sort of cold, flu or gastrointestinal sickness puts the whole local population at risk. Please let us know if you are experiencing any symptoms before you embark on any trek.

Our guides will never feed, touch or encourage our guests to touch or feed orangutans or any other wild animal, so please do not ask and if you witness other tourists doing so, please share the guidelines with them.

After an early morning hike up Mount Sibayak, relax and soak your tired muscles away at the natural hot springs in Berastagi

What’s included?

Private air-conditioned transport.
Expert, English-speaking guide and assistant.
Two-nights accommodation in Bukit Lawang.
One day trek with overnight camp with fresh fruit snack, dinner and lunch with 1.5L mineral water.
Entrance and camera permits to Gunung Leuser National Park.
One-night accommodation in a deluxe double room in Berastagi (upgrades may be available if discussed at time of booking).
Guided sunrise trek to the peak of Mount Sibayak.
Entrance to hot springs pool in Berastagi.

What’s not included?

Food and drink at your accommodation or tree house café (except welcome drink on arrival).
Bottled water (aside from that provided on the jungle trek).

What you need to bring

Clothing suitable for hot, humid jungle.
Sturdy walking shoes or boots.
Two or three changes of lightweight clothing.
Long socks.
Small backpack to carry camera.
Sun block
Insect repellent.
Extra water.
Rain gear if bad weather.
Clothing suitable for cooler weather on the early morning volcano trek and evening in Berastagi (fleece jumper or similar, long trousers).
Swimwear
Towel or sarong.
Plastic bag for wet clothes (you will get wet bathing the elephants!).