Published on Sep, 2024
After looking back at our month in Indonesia, this one week tour of Northern Sumatra was definitely the highlight for my Wife and I.
Christine was so easy to deal with and everything came seamlessly together after the very first email. She was so helpful in ensuring we made all the correct decisions for our trip.
Tip, even if you think you know best, listen to Christines advice, it is gold dust.
The jungle trekking in Bukit Lawang was outstanding.
We paired up with a very lovely, much younger and fitter German couple for the trek but we held our own on the physical aspects of the trip.
At 64 years years old, I don't get too excited about much but this was simply amazing.
We thought we would be lucky to see one Orangutan but we must have seen at least 16 up close and personal. We were so lucky to see a large (100kg) adult male and he came to within a few metres of us to take a better look at the ugly primates venturing onto his territory.
We were not the only trekkers in the jungle and all the guides communicate with one another if an Orangutan is spotted. It seemed like we were always the first to arrive onsite whenever an ape was spotted, this was purely down to our guides Fabio and Iman knowing their craft.
Fabio was a superstar, so informative and helpful, he is constantly studying to improve his knowledge. Iman was so friendly and helpful always smiling, we were so lucky to have these guys looking after us.
I was not really looking forward to a jungle dinner given my background of baked beans, Heinz tomato soup and charred potatoes from old Scout treks. This however, was on a different level. Our chef and guides cooked us up a veritable feast of various tasty currys, sambals and fruit so we all went off to bed with full bellies, tired but very happy.
The overnight stay in the jungle was brilliant with the night air filled with the sounds of a billion insects and animals. With hindsight, I would have brought my Thermarest (superlight inflatable camping mat) with me for a more comfortable sleep for my old bones but for one night it was manageable. Even the toilet in the jungle was a pleasant surprise!
The second days trekking was superb seeing more Orangutans, Thomas Leaf monkeys, white handed gibbons and long tailed Macaques. We even saw a spectacularly beautiful Hornbill.
In order to get back to civilization our group had to brave the many rapids whilst being swept back down the river to Bukit Lawang, what a hoot with our two German friends and my wife Fiona howling with laughter for the full 30 mins it took for the journey.
The night was spent in Bukit Lawang when Discover Sumatra very kindly took our party of 4 out for dinner to celebrate our new friends 1st wedding anniversary and our 40th!
Next day our Driver/ Guide took us to our next stop Berastagi.
There was no rigid agenda for the drive so we could stop on our suggestion or on our guides recommendation. The scenery was mostly agricultural with a diverse variety of every fruits and vegetable you could think of being grown.
The drives in Indonesia are long and it takes much much longer to travel similar distances in Indonesia than it ever does in Europe. Being quite tired after the trekking, a days driving was a relief.
The following day was spent climbing Sibayak with Nicola our guide, then a long drive and ferry ride to the Island of Samosir in Lake Toba.
We spent 2 nights on the Island with a days touring with our own Driver/ Guide.
This Island was really beautiful and it would have been nice to spend another couple of nights here. Zoe's Waterfront hotel was the best hotel we stayed in on this tour, we even upgraded the room for about £10 per night to a lake view room to treat ourselves. The staff were excellent, friendly and could not do enough for us. Meals were excellent and value for money this was probably the best we had after 30 days in Indonesia.
The hotel rooms on this tour are comfortable, clean and perfectly adequate but they are not 5 star. For this type of trip, I actually believe they are perfect.
Our last day was a road trip back to Medan.
The trip that Christine and Discover Sumatra have put together has been planned meticulously using their extensive knowledge of the area and it really shines through in every aspect of the tour. Be prepared for some long unavoidable car journeys as Sumatra is huge.
This was definitely one of the best and most exciting trips we have ever done, a truly magical experience.
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