We travelled as a couple and our itinerary was:
Makassar - Bira - Makassar - Rantepao (Tana Toraja) - Tentena - Ampana - Togean Islands (Bomba) - Ampana - Luwuk // Tomohon (Manado)
There are no ATMs on the Togean Island, so stock up on cash. Even though many resorts on the Togeans have full board, snorkeling and diving trips quickly add up.
Roads are actually in mostly good condition. However, it still takes a long time to get from "one place of interest" to another. Another logistic thing that can eat days are that long distance buses often only leave in the morning, meaning you can only catch one bus a day. We opted therefor to hire private cars (with driver) a lot of the times to minimize transit days. These were either just a taxi or a private car booked through a hotel or travel agent.
These are the transport prices we paid:
Taxi from Makassar airport to the city 150,000 IDR (fix price).
Makassar - Bira, private car, 600,000 IDR, 5 hrs.
Bira - Makassar, shared taxi (with 10 passengers), 90,000 IDR/pax, 7 hrs.
Makassar - Rantepao (Tana Toraja), nightbus (company Charisma), 150,000 IDR/pax, 9 hrs. The bus leaves at 9 pm from Terminal Daya far from the city center (near the airport).
Rantepao - Tentena - Ampana, private car (hired with 4 other travellers) with overnight in Tentena, 2,450,000 IDR, 11 hrs (Rantepao - Tentena) + 5 hrs (Tentena - Ampana).
Ampana - Luwuk, private car, 800,000 IDR (hired through Marina Cottage in Ampana), 6 hrs.
The travel agent at Marina Cottages in Ampana is a goldmine of travel information to the region and can arrange onward transport (public and private) and book hotels.
The nearest airports to the Togean Islands are Luwuk, Palu and Gorontalo (but the ferry from here take ages to reach the Togeans). We flew from Luwuk to Manado with Express Air.
Taxi from Manado airport to Tomohon costed 150,000 IDR (+ 6000 IDR for airport parking). The fix taxi price at the airport is 200,000 IDR, but we negotiated with a private driver.
How to get to the Togean Islands
The boat schedule for Togean Islands is rather complicated as there are several companies, they go to different islands within the Togeans, and travel on different days of the week. And then there are changes, delays and cancellations. But the schedule was:
Ampana – Bomba, Togean (Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday. 10 am from Ampana and about 3h).
Bomba, Togean – Ampana (Monday, Thursday, Saturday. 9 am from Bomba and about 3h).
Ampana – Wakai (Sunday. 9 am from Ampana and about 5h).
Wakai – Ampana (Wednesday, Saturday, Sunday. 10 am from Wakai and about 5h).
Ampana – Wakai – Gorontalo (Monday, Thursday. 10 am from Ampana and arrives in Gorontalo at 6 am).
Ampana – Wakai – Katupat – Tongkabo – Malenge – Dolong – Gorontalo (Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday. 10 am from Ampana and arrives in Gorontalo at 6 am).
Malenge – (Tongkabo) – Katupat – Wakai – Ampana (Tuesday, Thursday, Sunday 6 am from Malenge, arrives in Ampana at 14:25 am).
To figure out which island you want to go to, see "Where to stay" for the Togean Islands below.
If possible we booked hotels in advanced either online, by email, or by phone (get someone from the hotel you're staying at to call the next one).
We stayed at the following guest houses and hotels:
Bira: Cosmos Bungalows (400,000 IDR), the best place to stay - hands down.
Rantepao: Pison Hotel (250,000 IDR), because Pias Poppies Hotel was fully booked. If coming with the bus from Makassar, ask the bus driver to let you off there (or mark it on Google maps and ask the driver to stop).
Ampana: Marina Cottage (250,000 IDR). Their travel agent has a lot of travel information.
Togean Islands: Island Retreat near Bomba (41 USD per person with beach view and full board). Rustic bungalows (expect animal noises), private beach and a reef a few swimming strokes from shore.
Luwuk: Igora Hotel (250,000 IDR) nondescript place 3km from the town center.
Manado: We didn't stay in Manado, but choose to stay in Tomohon near the volcanos instead. Highland Resort (450,000 IDR), nice bungalows but their tours (70 €) and scooter (15 €) rental were expensive.
There are of course other places to stay on the Togean Islands. This is the list based on the boat stop:
Bomba: Island Retreat, Poyalisa Cottages, Pitate Beach Resort.
Kadidiri Island: Kadidiri Paradise Resort, Black Marlin Dive Resort, Pondok Lestari
Tobil Island: Sunset Beach
Katupat: Fadhila Cottages, Bolilanga Cottages
Malenge: Lestari Cottages, Malenge Indah, Sera Beach Cottages, Sifa Cottages
Tana Toraja
Tana Toraja is amazing and there are so much to see in this region. If possible, go to a funeral. It's a mind blowing and bloody affair, but also a lot of waiting around (you will be offered tea, cookies and often food too). Beside attending a funeral or wedding, there are two main areas to explore. The north of Rantepao with terraced rice paddy fields, some cave graves, and many traditional houses, and the south of Rantepao with rice paddy fields - less terraced, many cave graves and traditional houses. As many places are hard to find, it's recommended to go with a guide. Also to a funeral, as they know where they are and how to behave. We paid: Guide 375,000 IDR, motorcycle 70,000 IDR/day, and many places had an entrance fee of 20,000 IDR. Remember to bring a gift if attending a funeral. A carton of cigarettes (120,000 IDR) seem to be the norm.
Togean Islands
Of course the main thing to do is diving and snorkeling, but you can also do excursions to sea gypsy villages and hornbills. Jellyfish Lake is near Kadidiri, meaning 4 hrs (one-way) boat ride from where we stayed (near Bomba), so we didn't go there.
Tomohon
Surprisingly, there are a lot to see in this region. Two volcanoes, waterfalls, Japanese caves from WWII, and a local market with lots of strange food items, like bats, snakes, and dogs. We rented a scooter from Oneng's Palace (150,000 IDR/day) and toured the region on our own, but we were also offered to do tours with guides/drivers (they will find you). However, we had a lot of trouble finding many of the sights. There are just one sign on the main road in Tomohon, and that's it. So you have to ask a lot.
© Bo Løvschall
© Bo Løvschall
© Bo Løvschall
