Tom So we were thinking of travelling to a nearby destination. A short flight from Singapore, a good mix of nature, things to do and it had to be light on our pockets. After scanning through several destinations, we finally decided on Yogyakarta – well mainly because it was relatively light on our pockets and is known to be a destination with the most affordable luxury hotels in the world. Sounds great? Let’s check out our 6D5N travel itinerary to Yogyakarta!
Travelling from Singapore to Yogyakarta
For this trip, we flew via SilkAir (SQ5152) from Singapore to Yogyakarta. You must be thinking why we didn’t fly via a budget air? This is because, we managed to snag a deal of $240 for a return ticket from the Singapore Airlines website – 6 months in advance! The cost turns out to be cheaper than the price of budget airlines – on a full service airline. This means that if you plan your trips in advance, you can probably have substantial savings on flights and hotels 😉
Just before we boarded our flight, we headed to the airport at T2 and enjoyed a coffee toast ($4.8) and Yang Zhou Fried Rice ($7 – quite ex!) at the food court. Mostly for our morning caffeine fix 😛
Things to do and Attractions in Yogyakarta
Upon arrival at Yogyakarta’s Adisutjipto International Airport, we were quickly whisked off by our driver Arif whom we booked via Yogyakarta Drivers. Arif spoke basic English but was able to accommodate most of our requests. At $50/day, the price included Arif’s services (and parking) of driving us to all the destinations that we had planned prior. PLUS, Arif is REALLY good at photography! Our first stop – Prambanan Temple…
Yogyakarta Attractions – Prambanan Temple
According to the information on site, Prambanan Temple (aka Rara Jonggrang Temple) was built in the 9th century and is the largest Hindu temple complex in Indonesia. The entire temple complex consists of a total of 240 temples (big and small). The three main temples are Candi Siwa, Candi Brhma, and Candi Wisnu. Candi Siwa located in the centre of the temple complex stands at 47m and is the highest temple in Indonesia.
After Arif took photos of us at the Prambanan Temple signboard (see above), we checked out the temple complex via the train ride. The ride is a loop that goes past Candi Lumbung and Candi Brbrah before stopping at Candi Sewu for about 30 minutes. There, you can take some photos or check out the temple complex. After which, the train takes you back to the main temple complex…
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Heading back, we alighted at the same spot where we boarded the train. This time, we walked along the perimeters of the complex before heading back to Candi Siwa…
In reality, you can spend a long time exploring this vast temple complex. We even climbed up one of the temple steps and saw a huge statue within it. There are also museum exhibitions, restaurants/cafes and a small animal theme park for the kids to enjoy. Having checked out most of the sights and sounds of Prambanan Temple, we took one last look at Prambanan Complex and headed off to our next destination, Parangtritis Beach!
Upon leaving the gated area of Prambanan, we immediately entered into a market place. You can get souvenirs, snacks, drinks and even grab a meal. The great part of visiting Yogyakarta is that the locals are very friendly and they do not tout that much either – which makes it a more pleasant shopping experience for visitors.
Prambanan Temple
Entrance Fee: 350,000 IDR ($32SGD)
Opening Hours: 6am to 5pm
Enroute to Parangtritis Beach, Arif recommended that we have our lunch. He recommended an economical rice restaurant (Nasi Padang) as well as a fried chicken restaurant. We chose the later…
Yogyakarta Attractions – Parangtritis Beach
The car ride from Prambanan to Parantritis Beach took about an hour. As it was a week day, the beach was not so crowded. Ideal for what we were about to do next…a horse ride along the beach at Parangtritis!
It costs 100k IDR ($9 SGD) for a 30 minutes ride on the horse drawn cart. Alternatively, there’s a shorter version for 30,000 IDR ($3 SGD). The 30 minutes ride took us to the far ends of the beach. First towards the east to see the cliffs and then to the west of the beach…
At the eastern part of Parangtritis Beach, we alighted. There were actually photo booths with photographers who would take photos for you and print them on the spot. It costs 10K IDR or approximately $1 SGD, which isn’t too bad. We also tested the temperatures of the water – it was cold! Eventhough it was cold, we still saw kids frolicking in the waters…
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Along the beach, you’ll also see many sign boards with heart shaped structures. These are photo spots for tourists to take photos as well. Do note that a small fee applies. However, as we had tipped our driver a little, he offered to take the photo “free of charge” even when another lady wanted to charge us for taking photos with those heart shaped structures…
The ride back from Parangtritis beach to Greenhost Boutique Hotel was approximately 45 minutes. Enroute, we picked out our dinner at 
Though a little expensive for Indonesia standards, the price would be considered cheap in Singapore. Taste wise, the beef was tender and had a good taste from the local spices while the chicken curry was rich and flavourful.
Where to stay in Yogyakarta – Greenhost Boutique Hotel
After we picked up our packed dinner at Bu Ageng, Arif dropped us at our hotel at Greenhost Boutique Hotel…
One of the reasons why we stayed at Greenhost Boutique Hotel was because of its location in central Yogyakarta. It has a swimming pool, has an ecological theme to the hotel and serves up deliciously healthy breakfasts (which we’d talk more in our later posts). What’s not to like about it? Check out the swimming pool as well…
To end off the evening, we headed to Tea Spa for our first massage of the trip. Kate enjoyed a one-hour facial while Tom did a 30 minutes massage followed by a 30 minutes facial, all for only 330k IDR ($30 SGD)!
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Stay tuned as we check out more of Yogyakarta. On day 2, we ventured further, covering the most famous attraction in Yogyakarta – Borobudur Temple as well as natural formations such as the Kedung Pedut Waterfall and Kalibiru!
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Yogyakarta Travel Itinerary Day 1: Prambanan Temple, Parangtritis Beach Horse Ride and Massage no. 1
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