IndonesiaThis article has been translated from Russian language using an artificial intelligence-based translation algorithm. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the quality of the translation. You can read the original of this article in Russian here, and ask questions on the topic of our travel forum in English here.
Meru Betiri National Park is one of the most beautiful and inaccessible national parks of the island of Java in Indonesia. The territory of 50,000 hectares is almost completely covered with dense jungle, in which bulls, wild boars, leopards, muntjaks, Javanese deer, pythons, giant squirrels and countless monkeys are found. But the most important treasure of this park is hidden in the sand of Sukamade Beach. On this beach, every night all year round, four species of sea turtles lay eggs by burying them deep in the sand. And visitors to the park can watch this, help the turtles get to the water, or together with the park rangers get eggs from the clutch to then put them in the incubator.
Usually the park is visited in the form of a tour / excursion for 2 days with one overnight stay, but it can be longer if desired. The main settlement and base camp for tourists is the village of Sarongan, which lies next to the long Rajegwesi beach and the small Green Bay beach (Teluk Hijau). You can stay here in the homes of local residents, in a ranger park with the simplest living conditions, or in special tourist camps in the vicinity: Mess Pantai and Raflesia Guesthouse Meru Betiri. Payment is also made here for staying in the park. After check-in, you can go directly to Sukamade Beach along the trail (at night), but only accompanied by park rangers. During the day, you can take hiking trails through the jungle, but they are not marked and are also only accessible when accompanied by rangers or experienced guides.
🕐 Working hours: it is best to visit the park during the dry season from April to November. From December to March, the rainy season passes, the roads become difficult to pass, and sometimes the rivers come in from the banks and it is impossible to get into the park at all.
Seasons in Meru Betiri National Park by month, when is the best time to go
| Jan | Feb | March | Apr | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
* the best time to visit;
acceptable time to visit;
not recommended time to visit
Current weather in Meru Betiri National Park (Jember) and the forecast
💵 Entrance fee / tickets price: a permit to stay in the park costs 150,000 rupees per day on weekdays ($11 see the currency of Indonesia and its exchange rate), and 250,000 rupees per day on weekends ($18). In addition, you will have to pay for accompanying a guide on the beach (from 150,000) and visiting the jungle (from 100,000 rupees). Renting a car with a driver from Banyuwangi will cost from 800,000 rupees ($60)
🚶 How to get there: The national park is located in east Java (national park on the map). Theoretically, you can visit the park yourself by getting here by rented transport, but in practice it is not easy to do this without a guide and an experienced driver. Therefore, it is easiest to hire a driver and a guide with a good SUV in Banyuwangi or Jember. The road will take you to the village of Sarongan, which will be your base camp and overnight stay.
If you drive a motorcycle well, you can rent it in Banyuwangi during the dry season and get here on your own, but prepare for difficulties on the road. There is a normal paved road leading to Sarongan Village, but there is almost no asphalt road for the last 10 kilometers to Sukamade Beach. Although the locals move here even on the simplest motorbikes with an automatic transmission, we would still recommend renting at least a mechanic, and ideally a passable off-road motorcycle.