Bajawa on Flores in Indonesia
Bajawa is a small town with 44,000 inhabitants in the center of the island of Flores and must not be missed on any visit to the beautiful island. The city is located relatively high also at 1,100 m and is surrounded by volcanoes. The temperature is therefore much milder than in the rest of Indonesia. The majority of the inhabitants of Bajawa belong to the Ngada people. The Ngada are, like most of the inhabitants of Flores, Christians. Some of the people have very old biblical names, which are almost impossible to find in Europe today. Bajawa exudes a relaxed character and is a great starting point for excursions into the surrounding countryside. Especially worth mentioning are the viewpoint Wolobobo, the hot springs, the volcano Inerie and the traditional villages. If you are interested in a vacation on Flores, we have also written a post about it here.
Sights in and around Bajawa
1 Wolobobo
The hill Wolobobo is one of the most popular destinations of Bajawa. From Wolobobo you have a beautiful view of the volcano Inerie and the surrounding countryside. For a dreamlike view the best time is the evening hours. With the rented scooter, the mountain is relatively easy to reach even if you have to drive partly on gravel roads.
Sunset view of Mount Inerie View on Mount Inerie
2 Malanage Hot Springs
The Malanage Hot Springs are also easily accessible by scooter from Bajawa. They are located about 20 km from the village. Once you arrive, you have to pay a small entrance fee and can then sit in the springs. The cool thing here is that the springs are in a river that has a hot stream and a cold stream. This means you can choose your own comfort temperature by moving further towards the hot or cold stream.
3 Climbing Mount Inerie
One of the coolest things to do from Bajawa is to climb the Inerie volcano. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate with us, so we could not make the climb. There are some local guides who offer their service. As far as I know, the climb costs around 500,000 Rupiah and can be divided by the number of participants. The tour lasts one day and starts early in the morning.
4 The traditional villages of Bena & Gurusina
The villages of Bena & Gurusina must not be missed during a visit to the area. However, it must be said that the villages are no longer inhabited and have more of a museum character. Nevertheless, it is of course very interesting to explore the construction methods and the arrangement of the houses.
Bena Village Gurusina Village
Journey to Bajawa
The journey to Bajawa is relatively simple. Either you come from the west by bus from Labuan Bajo or Ruteng or from the east from Ende. Most buses run in the morning. Tip: The locals often have the number of the bus driver and can tell you more about the times. Or the bus driver can also call when he is almost there to avoid unnecessary waiting.
We had actually decided to rent a scooter and make a small road trip to Moni or the Kelimutu. This is just under 170 km easy. The route is super beautiful and leads past volcanoes, great viewpoints and the Pantai Batu Biru (Blue Stone Beach).
How much time do I need for Bajawa?
Theoretically, you can also tick off all the sights in one day (if you don’t want to climb the Inerie). Nevertheless, we recommend to plan at least 2 days for the area around Bajawa – optimal are 3.
Food in Bajawa
There are a few restaurants and small warungs in Bajawa. Most of the accommodations and restaurants for tourists are located on Jl. Ahmad Yani. If you want an authentic experience, you should try the Bajawa Food Corner. Here you can find a wide variety of Indonesian dishes.
Foodcourt in Bajawa Mi Ayam (Chicken noodle soup)
Acommodation in Bajawa
There is relatively little choice of accommodation in Bajawa on the well-known booking platforms. As already written above, we have seen some on Jl. Ahmad Yani. We liked it very well in the Kristian Homestay. Simple accommodation for the small purse including breakfast and you are in the middle of the family. In addition, you have a great view of the Inerie from the property. We paid together about 10 € per night. So you can contact the host directly here his Whatsapp number (+62 813 3948 0142). From the homestay you can also easily rent a scooter.
