Bandung (Indonesian: Bandung — possibly from the Sundanese word "bendung" meaning "dam" or from a word meaning "lake" relating to the ancient lake that once occupied the Bandung Basin, population 2.5 million in the city proper and 8.7 million in the metropolitan area (Greater Bandung — one of the ten largest urban agglomerations in Southeast Asia) — the capital of West Java Province and the third-largest city in Indonesia after Jakarta and Surabaya) is a city of multiple extraordinary identities: the "Paris of Java" (the Dutch colonial-era epithet for Bandung — the city that the Dutch colonial government of the Dutch East Indies planned as the future capital of the colony (the plan to move the colonial capital from Batavia (Jakarta) to Bandung was under active preparation when the Japanese invasion of 1942 ended the Dutch colonial era): the Dutch built Bandung in the Art Deco style (the 1920s and 1930s Dutch interpretation of the Art Deco architectural movement — the "Nieuwe Zakelijkheid" or "New Objectivity" in the Dutch-Indonesian colonial context: the most complete surviving Art Deco colonial streetscape in Southeast Asia after Hanoi), the city of the 1955 Bandung Conference (the Asian-African Conference of 1955 — the meeting of the leaders of 29 African and Asian newly independent nations that founded the Non-Aligned Movement (the political movement of countries that refused to align with either the US-led NATO bloc or the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact during the Cold War): the Bandung Conference is one of the most important political events of the 20th century and the founding moment of the Global South as a political category), the city of Sundanese culture (the Sundanese people — the largest ethnic group in West Java and the second-largest ethnic group in Indonesia (42 million Sundanese): the Sundanese culture is distinct from Javanese culture in language, music (the "gamelan degung" — the Sundanese gamelan orchestra which is distinct from the Central Javanese gamelan), cuisine and visual arts), and the city of volcanoes (Bandung sits in the Bandung Basin — a volcanic caldera at 768m altitude surrounded by active and dormant volcanoes (Tangkuban Perahu (2,084m — the "upside-down boat" volcano), Papandayan (2,665m) and Galunggung (2,168m)).
Gedung Sate (the "Sate Building" — the Central Government Office of West Java Province: the most recognizable building in Bandung and one of the most iconic colonial buildings in Indonesia): built in 1920 by the Dutch engineer J. Gerber in the "Indo-European" style (the Dutch colonial architectural style that fused the Dutch Nieuwe Zakelijkheid modernism with the Sundanese traditional architectural motifs (the three-tier roof, the carved lotus ornament and the wayang kulit (shadow puppet) silhouette friezes)): the distinctive feature that gives the building its popular name: the finial tower (the central tower above the main entrance crowned with a golden ornamental spike that resembles a sate skewer loaded with 6 satay skewers (the 6 satay pieces represent the 6 million guilders that the building cost to construct)): the building now houses the West Java provincial government offices but the lobby and the exterior are open to visitors.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideGedung Merdeka ("Freedom Building" — originally the "Concordia Society": the Dutch colonial social club building of 1895, rebuilt in the Art Deco style in 1921): the building where the Asian-African Conference (the Bandung Conference) was held on April 18–24, 1955 (the most important political conference of the 20th century decolonization period: the 29 heads of state who attended include Sukarno (Indonesia), Jawaharlal Nehru (India), Gamal Abdel Nasser (Egypt), Zhou Enlai (China), Ho Chi Minh (North Vietnam) and Norodom Sihanouk (Cambodia): the conference produced the "Ten Principles of Bandung" (the foundation document of the Non-Aligned Movement and the "Global South" political category): the building is now the Museum of the Asian-African Conference (the Museum Konferensi Asia-Afrika) with the most comprehensive documentation of the 1955 conference and its legacy available anywhere in the world).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideJalan Braga (the "Braga Street" — the most famous street in Bandung and the heart of the colonial city: the street that the Dutch nicknamed the "Champs Élysées of Bandung" in the 1920s (when Bandung was the most fashionable city in Southeast Asia — the "Paris of Java"): the 1km stretch of Braga Street from the Jalan Asia-Afrika intersection to the Jalan Lembong corner is lined with the most complete collection of 1920s–1930s Art Deco shophouses in Indonesia: the characteristic Art Deco facades (the geometric ornamental motifs, the stepped parapets, the horizontal window bands and the bold commercial signage) above the continuous ground-floor colonnade (the "selasar" — the covered arcade that protects pedestrians from the rain and sun): the Grand Hotel Preanger (the 1929 Art Deco hotel designed by the architect A.F. Aalbers — the most important heritage hotel in Bandung and the social center of Dutch colonial life: the ballroom, the terrace bar and the grand staircase are the best-preserved colonial hotel interior in West Java).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideNasi timbel (the "wrapped rice" — the traditional Sundanese way of serving rice: the steamed rice formed into a compact cylinder and wrapped in a fresh banana leaf (the banana leaf imparts a subtle herbal fragrance to the rice and keeps it warm during the meal)): the complete Sundanese rice meal consists of the nasi timbel at the center of the banana-leaf "plate" surrounded by the accompanying dishes: sayur asem (the Sundanese tamarind vegetable soup (the most important Sundanese soup: the "sour vegetable soup" (the tamarind (Tamarindus indica — the sour tropical legume whose fruit pulp is the primary souring agent of Sundanese and Javanese cooking) gives the characteristic sweet-sour broth): the vegetables in the sayur asem include young jackfruit, melinjo (the seed of the Gnetum gnemon — the most important Sundanese vegetable), long beans and corn), lalapan (the Sundanese raw vegetable platter: the selection of raw vegetables (cucumber, basil, raw cabbage, lemon basil, kemangi) that accompanies every Sundanese meal: the most important fresh vegetable serving tradition in Indonesian cuisine) and sambal terasi (the shrimp paste chili paste — the most important condiment in West Javanese and Sundanese cooking: the "terasi" (the fermented shrimp paste: the dried, fermented and compressed shrimp product that is the most important umami ingredient in Sundanese cooking) ground with chili pepper, garlic, salt and lime juice into the thick, dark, intensely flavored paste).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideTangkuban Perahu (the "Upside-Down Boat" — the active stratovolcano 30km north of Bandung (the most accessible active volcano crater in Java — accessible by car to within 100m of the main crater rim at 2,000m altitude): the volcano is named after its distinctive profile (the long, flat-topped ridge shape of the volcano when viewed from Bandung resembles an overturned boat): the Sundanese creation legend of Tangkuban Perahu: the story of Sangkuriang (the tragic hero who was ordered by his own mother (Dayang Sumbi, who did not recognize her son after a long separation) to build a boat and a dam in a single night as the condition of their marriage: Sangkuriang nearly completed the task using supernatural powers, but Dayang Sumbi prayed for the dawn to come early (before the deadline): the rooster crowed before the boat was complete and Sangkuriang, enraged, kicked the unfinished boat — it overturned and became the mountain): the three craters: Kawah Ratu (the most active, accessible by a 10-minute walk from the car park), Kawah Upas (the larger but less active secondary crater) and Kawah Domas (accessible by trekking, with active fumaroles (the sulfurous steam vents) and the boiling mud pools accessible by guided trekking).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideCiater Hot Springs (the volcanic hot springs at the base of Tangkuban Perahu on the northern slope — the water (temperature 38–42°C, rich in sulfur and calcium minerals from the Tangkuban Perahu geothermal system) flows into the traditional bathing pools (the "kolam renang" — the public bathing pools in the tropical garden setting): the most accessible geothermal bathing experience in West Java (the equivalent of the Icelandic Blue Lagoon in scale but in a tropical rainforest setting): the Subang tea plantations (the PTP Nusantara VIII tea estate on the highland plateau north of Bandung: the most important tea-growing area in West Java at 1,200–1,500m altitude — the high altitude and the volcanic soil of the Bandung and Subang highlands produce some of the most celebrated black teas in Indonesia (the "Jawa" tea (Java tea) is one of the most important single-origin teas in the world (the British tea blenders — Twinings, Lipton and Tetley — have used Javanese tea as a component of their blends for 150 years)): the tea estate tour (the processing of the fresh tea leaf into the finished black tea: the withering (the fresh leaf laid on ventilated racks for 18–20 hours to remove 50% of the moisture), the rolling (the withered leaf passed through the CTC machine to break the cell walls and release the enzymes), the fermentation (the 90-minute enzymatic oxidation that turns the leaf from green to copper-red) and the firing (the dried tea leaf in the hot-air dryer that stops the fermentation and produces the final black tea)).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideDago Pakar (the highland forest reserve at the northern rim of the Bandung Basin — the area where the volcanic plateau drops into the Citarum River gorge): the Maribaya waterfall (the most visited natural attraction in the immediate vicinity of Bandung — the 25m waterfall on the Cikawari River at the entrance to the Maribaya Nature Reserve: the waterfall tumbles into the forest canyon below and the spray creates a permanent microclimate of high humidity and lush vegetation): the agile gibbon (Hylobates agilis — the singing primate of the Sundanese rainforest: the Javan gibbon whose call (the most complex and most melodically beautiful vocalization of any primate — the male-female duet that the mated pair performs each morning to declare their territory) is the most characteristic sound of the remaining West Java highland forest): the sunset panorama of the Bandung Basin from the Dago Pakar ridge (the 360° panorama showing the entire Bandung metropolitan area (8.7 million people) in the circular volcanic caldera surrounded by the volcanic peaks of Tangkuban Perahu (north), Manglayang (northeast) and the Patuha massif (south)).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideSaung Angklung Udjo is the living classroom of the Sundanese angklung tradition — the bamboo instrument that UNESCO declared Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2010. The daily afternoon performance (15:00–17:30) includes angklung ensemble (audience participation required — you play too), wayang golek puppet theatre, jaipongan dance and a finale of 700 visitors playing "We Are the World" on bamboo together. Udjo Ngalagena founded this centre in 1966 to preserve the Sundanese musical tradition against modernisation.
Kawah Putih (the "White Crater" — the volcanic crater lake on the summit plateau of Gunung Patuha (2,434m) at 2,194m altitude: 50km south of Bandung): the most visually extraordinary landscape in West Java: the crater lake (the lake filling the collapsed crater of Gunung Patuha — approximately 800m × 600m in extent) with the distinctive turquoise-white color (the color is produced by the extreme acidity of the water (pH 0.5 — as acidic as battery acid: the sulfuric acid (H₂SO₄) and hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) from the volcanic fumaroles dissolve the calcium sulfate (gypsum) crystals from the crater walls into the lake water, creating the milky-white turbidity and the acid concentration): the dead trees at the lake margin (the acidic gas and the occasional acid rain kills the vegetation at the lake edge — the bleached white trunks of the dead trees at the shore create a ghostly landscape): the mist (the cool highland air (2,194m altitude gives temperatures of 8–18°C — dramatically cooler than Bandung at 768m) creates the persistent ground mist that drifts over the white lake surface).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideBandung factory outlet shopping (the most important fashion retail destination in Indonesia outside of Jakarta — the city that Indonesians from Jakarta, Surabaya and Singapore visit specifically for the factory outlet shopping): Bandung is the center of the Indonesian garment and textile manufacturing industry (the city and the surrounding West Java highlands contain 60% of the total Indonesian textile and garment manufacturing capacity): the factory outlet stores on Jalan Riau (the most concentrated factory outlet street in Bandung — 30+ factory outlet stores in a 500m stretch) and Jalan Dago (the "Champs Élysées" of Bandung shopping: the tree-lined boulevard with the upscale fashion boutiques, the concept stores and the indie design labels): the products: Indonesian fashion labels (the thriving Bandung fashion scene — the city is the most important center for independent fashion design in Indonesia: the "Bandung style" (the Sundanese aesthetic sensibility applied to contemporary fashion) is the dominant aesthetic trend in Indonesian streetwear), the international brand surplus (the leftover production runs from the Indonesian manufacturing of international brands sold at 30–70% below the brand's retail price) and the local textile crafts (the batik, the "lurik" (the traditional Javanese striped woven cloth) and the West Java woven textiles).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideGamelan degung (the Sundanese gamelan orchestra — the gamelan tradition of the Sundanese people of West Java: distinct from the Central Javanese gamelan in instrumentation (the gamelan degung features the "degung" (the large bronze gong-chime rack played by a single player), the "saron" (the bronze metallophone), the "kendang" (the double-headed hand drum) and the "suling" (the Sundanese bamboo flute: the most important melodic instrument in the gamelan degung — the suling player improves over the fixed gamelan melody in a manner unique to Sundanese music): the gamelan degung performance (the most accessible form of traditional Sundanese music for foreign visitors): the Saung Angklung Udjo Cultural Center (the most important Sundanese arts center in Bandung — the center dedicated to the "angklung" (the bamboo shaken idiophone: the most important Sundanese traditional instrument: the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2010 — the angklung is made from two or three bamboo tubes tuned to the same note in two different octaves and shaken to produce the note): the Saung Angklung Udjo offers daily performances of the angklung and the gamelan degung.
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuideBatagor (the signature street food of Bandung — the portmanteau of "bakso tahu goreng" (fried tofu meatball): the fish paste (tenggiri — Spanish mackerel) mixed with tapioca flour and stuffed into the tofu skin, then deep-fried until golden: served with the peanut sauce (the same peanut sauce as the gado-gado (the boiled vegetable salad with peanut sauce) and the kecap manis (the sweet Indonesian soy sauce) and the chili sauce: the most important snack food of Bandung and one of the most beloved street foods in all of Indonesia). Mie kocok (the "Bandung shaken noodles" — the signature noodle soup of Bandung: the flat egg noodles served in the rich brisket and bone marrow beef broth (the broth is made by simmering beef brisket and bone marrow for 4+ hours with the sweet aromatic spices (star anise, clove, cardamom) and the savory aromatics (ginger, galangal, shallot)), shaken vigorously in the soup bowl (the "kocok" — the "shaking" refers to the mixing of the noodles with the broth and the toppings) and topped with the braised beef brisket slices, the bean sprouts and the emping (the melinjo nut cracker)).
🎫 Book tickets via GetYourGuide