Tourism Object in Tana Toraja

Indonesia is famous worldwide for it’s natural beauty. As a citizen of Indonesia I am very proud to be alive and was born in Indonesia and I feel more lucky,because my father comes from one of the regions is famous of tourist objects. Tana Toraja, here I will explain why you should choose Tana Toraja as a location to spend your holiday.

Tana Toraja, literally means land of Toraja, is a highland situated in the region of Southern Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is well known as the Land of Heavenly Kings. A land almost lost in time, it spans with green lush rice terraces, tall limestone and bamboo graves with blue misty mountains as backdrop.

The Toraja people still practices many ancient rites, despite many adopting Christians beliefs after the Dutch colony, and many says that they are obsess with the idea of death, not in a morbid way but as something really significant to them. You may find cave graves, hanging graves, tau tau (life sized wooden effigies), baby tree graves and even mass slaughter of buffaloes, all these bringing you a sense of strangeness yet captivating.

Where is it?

In the central highlands of South Sulawesi, about 328km north of Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi Province.

Why go

To see the rare ancient rites and unique of the Toraja people, almost impossible to find nowadays in accessible areas.Tana Toraja, almost unchanged for the last 100 years, is set in a stunning setting far out from globalisation or tourism, but still accessible given some small effort.

When is the best time to go

June – September is the dry season here and you may see more influx of tourists at this time too. This is the season where children are home from school, rice is harvested, and complex funeral for ancestors are done.

Located at the highlands of 300 – 2880 meters above sea level, Tana Toraja is generally cool at around 16- 28 degree Celsius thus making it ideal in terms of weather for traveling at most times.

What to see

Marvel at the traditional Tongkonan houses.

These houses with upward-sloping roofs are decorated with intricate design, and they are they are used as center for Aluktodolo (an old Toraja people’s religion or believe) rites. The Aluktodolo rites are like storing harvest in a carved rice barns or water buffaloes slaughters for ceremonies. Places with houses, granaries and / or ceremonial grounds and burials are Pallawa, Bori Parinding, Kande Api, Nanggala, Buntu Pune, Londo, Lemo and Tumakke.

 

Londa
                Londa is the steep rocks on the side of a typical tomb in Tana Toraja. One is located on high ground from the hill with a deep cave, where the coffin is arranged in accordance with the family line. in the other one is left open overlooking the hillside over the green scenery. Located approximately 5 km to the south of Rantepau.

 

Ke’te Kesu

            In this fascinating tourism object there is Tongkonan, barns and the megalith building. About 100 yards behind this village there is a cliff with the grave cemetery site dependent and tau-tau in a given stone building fences. Tau-tau is the wooden carving symbolize the decease and shows the performance of their owners. This village is also known for its sculpture of expertise possessed by its inhabitants as well as a great place for souvenir shopping. Located about four km from the southeast Rantepau.

Batu Tumonga
            In this area you can find around 56 stone menhirs in a loop with four trees in the middle. Most of stone menhirs have a height of about 2-3 meters. From here you can see the beauty rantepau and the surrounding valley. Located in Sensean areas with an altitude of 1300 Meters from the sea surface.

What to do

Take walks around the place to visit various grave sites or other popular sites, normally around 1 – 3 hours walk. If walking is not your thing, you may try taking short bemo (minibus) rides from Rantepao

What and where to eat

There are some restaurants in Rantepao and Makale. They serve menus of Indonesian, Chinese and western food. Torajan specialties, such as pa'piong (chicken/pork or fish cooked with vegetables in bamboo tubes) is also available and usually must be ordered in advance. Local Torajan palm wine, ballo, is also easily found.

Some restaurants in Rantepao and Makale:

• Wae Rumbang, Main Road to Makale, Pao Rura
• Rama, Main Road Makale - Rantepao
• Padang Restaurant, 58 Diponegoro st., Rantepao
• Idaman Restaurant, 28 Merdeka St. , Makale
• Mambo restaurant, 34 Ratulangi St., Rantepao
• Flamboyan, Main Road Makale - Rantepao
• Riman, A.Mappanyukki st., Rantepao
• Rahmat, Ahmad yani st. , Rantepao
• Sallebayu, Ke'te kesu' st.
• Celebes, Palopo st. , Rantepao
• Saruran, A.Mappanyukki st. , Rantepao
• Christo, Landorundun st. , Rantepao
• Rimiko, A. Mappanyukki st. , Rantepao
• Pong Buri' , Monginsidi st. , Rantepao
• Damai, Main Road Makale - Mengkendek, Makale
• etc.

Where to stay

Besides Makassar, Tana Toraja is the only area in the Province of South Sulawesi which owns several star hotels. Some widely known star hotels in Tana Toraja are Toraja Heritage Hotel, Toraja Misiliana Hotel, Toraja Prince Hotel and Toraja Sahid Hotel.

There are also a number of non-star hotels, home-stays and local residences available for accommodation. Wisma Maria has clean rooms starting at 115,000 RP.

Most of the hotels provide standard facilities such as single and double bed, hot and cold water, telephone line, entertainment, meals while some provide additional ones like sports facility, spa and massage, laundry and others.

Hotel Sahid Toraja

3 star hotel

Address

Jl. Raya Gettengan no 1 Mengkendek Makale

 

Hotel Sahid Toraja is surrounded by pine trees and is located on the slope of a mountain. It provides simple rooms equipped with en suite bathrooms and feature an outdoor swimming pool, a tennis court and a tour desk.

The rooms all come with a writing desk, a satellite TV and a comfortable seating area. A fridge is also available.

The tour desk helps guests organise excursions to tourist attractions.Sahid Toraja Hotel organises mountain trekking activities and provides a jogging area. There is also a volleyball court on site. Car rental facilities are provided at an extra charge.

The hotel is located a 1.5-hour drive from Pongtiku Domestic Airport and 30 minutes from Kete' Kesu (Ancient Tomb). The hotel is about 20 km from Lemo and 25 km from Londa.

The all-day dining Batu Kila Restaurant features an international menu and offers local specialities. Room service is also available. Start from $38 per night

 

Services & facilities

• Outdoor space
• Terrace
• Garden
• Guest services
• Tour desk
• 24-hour front desk

Toraja Misiliana Hotel

Resort

Address

Jalan Pongtiku No. 27, Rantepao Rantepao

Toraja Misiliana Hotel is located at the centre of Toraja, 2 km from Rantepao Town. Facing Sa’dan River, it offers an outdoor pool, 2 dining options and free parking on site.

The cosy rooms in Toraja Misiliana Hotel are fitted with cable TV, a minibar and tea/coffee making facilities. Each room has en suite bathroom with amenities.

Toraja Misiliana Hotel provides car rental as well as laundry services. For recreation, guests can visit the shopping arcade or enjoy a game of tennis at the tennis court. Traditional massage treatments are available at this hotel.

Services & facilities

• Non-smoking
• Designated smoking area
• Non-smoking rooms
• Guest services
• VIP room facilities
• Ticket service
• Tour desk

Heritage Toraja

3.5 star hotel

The Heritage is by far the swankiest resort, with many of the elegant rooms set in huge Tongkonan -style houses. Standards are high (with some odd details like a fresh flower in the toilet bowls) and there are lush gardens and a lagoon-like pool. Rooms in the more ordinary block are just as nice as the ones inside the Torajan-style houses but are less expensive. Ask for a top-floor room with a view. It’s about 3km from town towards Ke’te Kesu. From $81 per night

Services & facilities

• Bar
• Bar/lounge
• Guest services
• Room service
• 24-hour front desk

Toraja Prince Hotel

Inconveniently located a few kilometres from town on the road to Palopo, the colonial-style rooms here are in good shape. There’s an old 1970s-style swimming pool and lots of lush garden space, so this isn’t a bad choice for families with transportation. The staff we met spoke no English.

Services & facilities

• Family
• familyfriendly
• Swimming pool
• swimmingpool

Wisma Maria I

Guesthouse

Address

Jl Sam Ratulangi 23 Rantepao

 

At our favourite rock-bottom cheapie in the town centre, rooms are plain but good-sized, bright and very clean. This place also rents out scooters and bicycles and they can suggest itineraries. It’s all set around a large garden.

How to get there

By plane

Fly into Makassar, Sulawesi Indonesia. The Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport is located 20km away from town and has domestic flights from various points in Indonesia while international flights from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Singapore.

By bus

Tana Toraja is a solid 300-km, 8-10 hour drive from Makassar. There's several bus companies making the journey from Makassar to Rantepao and Makale. The cost is 70,000 Rupiah for a bus without air-conditioning all the way up to 150,000 Rupiah for an air-conditioned bus. There's morning and overnight buses. Frequent mikrolets/bemos leave from Makassar to the bus terminal and take about 40 minutes. Most buses from Makassar to Tana Torajo are clean and comfortable. Please note however, that if you intend continuing further north, the buses are generally slower, in poorer condition and far less comfortable. Always take care of your belongings when travelling overnight. Thieves are known to board the night buses and search your bags while you are sleeping.

By taxi or charted vehicle

A chartered car usually costs about 850,000 - 1.200.000 Rupiah one-way from Makassar. It is possible to find one for a few hundred thousand less if you can coordinate with someone who is driving in that direction. If you plan on staying for a few days and would like the return trip as well, a driver with car should cost about 550,000 Rupiah per day.

Please beware that if you are planning to drive your own car, the stretch of road from Makassar, starting from Maros district area up to the town of Pare Pare is currently undergoing a road widening works. You may have to suddenly switch onto the opposite lane, because the lane you are on is blocked for the construction work. Be very careful and watch out for this kind of roadblock, because road signs indicating this is virtually nonexistent. This problem is made incredibly worse during night time by the absence of proper street light, so exercise extreme caution.

The road from the town of Enrekang to Makele (the town before Rantepao) is a stretch of unlit, small, winding, uphill road, accompanied with some fogging and drizzle at night. Along this road, you will frequently come across big buses going downhill from Makele. Gas station is few and far between, with intermittent local shops along the way. Again, these conditions make night time driving best avoided.

    

How to get around

Bemo/mikrolet rides run from 2,000Rp for short rides of a few kilometers up to

10,000 Rp. A guide is useful for some of the more distant villages.

Stay safe

Contact

International phone operators: 101. International Direct Dialing prefix: 001, 007, or 008.

Directory inquires

·         108 (if using a cell phone locally dial 0423 108)

Emergency :

Ambulance: 118.

Police stations:

·         Polres Tana Toraja, Jl. Bhayangkara, Makale. Tel: 0423-22100

·         Polsek Rantepao, Jl. Budi Utomo, Rantepao. Tel: 0423-21358

Army Headquarter:

·         Kodim 1414 Tana Toraja, Jl. Pong Tiku, Rantepao. Tel: 0423-21255

Hospitals:

·         Lakipadada Hospital, Jl. Poros Makale - Rantepao. Tel: 0423-22118,22023,22264

·         Fatimah Hospital, Jl. Nusantara. Tel: 0423-22058

·         Elim Hospital, Jl.Jend. Ahmad Yani. Tel:423-21258

·         Marampa' Childbirth Hospital, Jl. A.Mappanyukki.Tel:0423-21036

The hospital is fairly serviceable by developing world standards, however, for serious problems you should return to Makassar.

That are the reasons why you should visit and spend your holiday in Tana Toraja.It's just a few examples. Certainly, there are many things you can find in Tana Toraja. So, let's choose Tana Toraja as a place to spend your holiday. I guarantee you'll have so much fun in here.