Samalona Island, One of the Most Beautiful Small Islands in South Sulawesi

Samalona Island is a beautiful small island near Makassar. The total area of the island is just around 2.34 hectares. However, with such area, the island has beautiful cluster of circular coral around the island. Apart from the cluster coral, the island has white sand and crystal clear of water. The sand and the water make the island look so beautiful.
The beauty of the island has made it the main tourist destination of most tourists visiting South Sulawesi. Especially, the tourist attraction such as diverse marine tropical fish, coral reefs and many diving areas are managed well. This attracts more tourists to visit the island. If you are about to travel to South Sulawesi, the best time to visit Samalona Islands is from February to October.

Location

Samalona Island  is situated in the Straits of Makassar. Precisely, it lies on the Southwest coast of South Sulawesi. It is in the district of Wajo, Makassar, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The island can be reached by boat for about half an hour. You can also go by rental boat from Loasari Beach. You will have to pay for about Rp300,000 to Rp600,000 (US$31.00 to US$61.00). It takes about 30 minutes from Loasari. It sounds expensive.

However, if you rent the boat in group, it will not be expensive anymore. Especially, the island is so beautiful. You will not regret having a trip in this island. You can enjoy many things that it may be hard to find in many other places in South Sulawesi.

Activities

          The main attraction of Samalona Island is its beautiful underwater life. You can dive or snorkel to enjoy the beauty of its underwater. When diving or snorkeling, you will see a school of various fish. The colorful fish and the clear water of the sea allow you to see the sea creatures obviously. After tiredof diving or snorkeling, you can rest and relax in the beach.

The fine white sand allows you to rest comfortably. Rest in the beach until the sun sets.You will see the most fascinating sunset in the west. The sun seems to set in the sea horizon. It’s magnificent. Prepare a camera to perpetuate the beautiful object of the sunset.

Accommodations

          Samalona Island provides lodges. However, don’t be surprised that lodges are actually local people’s houses. Some people in Samalona purposely provides their rooms for guests visiting the island. Although most visitors prefer to spend the night in Makassar, some of them stay in the island at night. They usually spend the night in one of the local people’s houses.

The house can be some kind of lodge for visitors. When you visit the island, and you want to spend the night here in this island, you can stay in the lodge as well. The lodge is comfortable enough as it is near the beach. You can hear the sound of waves and feel the breeze of the sea wind.

          Samalona is one of the best tourist destinations in South Sulawesi. Never miss this beautiful Samalona Island in your travel plan. 

Pictures taken from www.wisatasulawesi.wordpress.com

Lihukan Island, the Island with Amazing Diving Spots in South Sulawesi

Lihukan Island is one of popular tourist destination in South Sulawesi. The existence of white sand and marine life is so amazing. If you love to dive, the island becomes the perfect choice to visit because the beach becomes a paradise for divers. You can explore underwater life with colorful fish and coral reef. Snorkeling and diving become more fun because the clear water will give you clear vision.

The uniqueness of Lihukan Island is come from Sikas Naga or Nikas Dragon. It is kind of a rare plant in the world. Besides that, if you want to know how to create a ship of pinisi, you can find the workers at the east of Bira. They make the ship by instinct because the experience they have come from generation to generation.

Location

Lihukan Island lies at Tanjung Bira, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. You have to through Tanjung Bira before you visit the island. From Makassar City, the island can be reached for about 3 – 4 hours by driving. Then, you can rent a boat from Tanjung Bira to Lihukan by paying IDR300,000 or US$30 in Kapongkolang Street which is take around 45 minutes.

Accommodations

Commonly, the tourist who visits Lihukan Island doesn’t stay in the island because there are only few guest houses. Most of them will stay in the Tanjung Bira and spend their time in Lihukan although only a day. Besides that, the facilities in the island are not adequate. Thus, you need to bring snacks and drinking from outside. 

Activities

Lihukan Island is one of favorite tourist destination in South Sulawesi. Thus, don’t be surprise when you find local and international tourist there. Besides that, there are many travel agents that offer a tour in the island. The clear water and white sand are the main attraction. You can play sand, sun-bathe, or just sit under the tree.

Not only these activities, you may want to see beautiful coral reef and fish. You can snorkel and dive. It can be unforgettable experience as you visit Lihukan Island. To get easy accommodations, you can take travel agent with complete snorkeling and diving equipment. If you unwilling to do these activities, you can swim around the island to feel the fresh and clear water.

Everyone who visits the island wants to relax and refresh their mind. Most of them love to do water activities. But, because the current of underwater a bit strong, you may not swim too far from the coastline. You also must be careful because there are sea snakes. Thus, you have to obey the rule in order to get the safety.

Visiting Lihukan Island in the low season will give you chance to be more comfortable because only few visitors visit the island. You can go there with your friends, family or your spouse. As you arrive there, you will surprise because you will be welcomed by incredible scenery. That is why Lihukan well-known as nirvana for divers from around the world.

Pictures taken from www.klikunic.net

Lae Lae Island, the Island with the Waves Breaker in Makassar

Lae Lae Island is an island in South Sulawesi that had history of Japanese ruins. The total area of the island is around 6.5 hectares with white sand and occupied by 2,000 residents. One of the main attractions here is the site of war ruins, like underground tunnel that said connected to Fordrotherdam in Makassar City. As a small island, Lae Lae Island is an option for local residents, especially from those who come from Makassar to spend the vacation at the weekend. The uniqueness of the island is that the island has square shape with building for wave barrier that stretches from the north to the south at the west of the island. During second world war, the island was used by Japanese soldiers as the defense area.

Location

Lae Lae Island lies around 1.5 km from Makassar City, South Sulawesi. It takes 10 - 15 minutes by speedboat through Bangkoa Pier at Pasar Ikan Street no 28 or the pier in front of Benteng Fordrotherdam. You only need to pay IDR 15.000 or US$1.5 per person for round-trip. You can make an appointment with the owner of boat to pick you up or keep their phone number so that you can contact them easily.

The short trip will give you chance to enjoy the main land in Makassar City with the stretches of calm waves. After you arrive, you will be taken to the small pier in front of the island or you can ask the owner of boat to drop you near the cliffs. 

Picture Bowosuhardjo.blogspot.com

Accommodations

The accommodation to Lae Lae Island is adequate because the location is not too far from the city. You can stay in Aston Makassar Hotel & Convention Center, Hotel Pacific, Hotel Santika Makassar, M-Regency Hotel, Favehotel Daeng Tompo, Hotel Aryaduta Makassar, Swiss-Belinn Panakkukang, Favor Hotel, Losari Beach Hotel Makassar, or you can stay overnight with the resident.

Stay with the local resident means you can enjoy the beauty of island while playing water, sun-bathe, playing sands or soccer. Along the coastline, there are gazebos that can be used for tourist. If you want to rest there, you need to pay IDR 25,000 – IDR 45,000 pr US$2.5 – US$4.5.

Activities

The first time you come to Lae Lae Island, you will see the houses are built so tight toward the ocean and the lane in front of the houses is used for pedestrian. This access will ease the visitors to stroll around the island because it is needed only 30 minutes. In one of corner in the island, there is stack of rocks that form pyramid.

At the south of the island, you can see stretches of rocks to break the waves. Because the houses are near the beach, sometime when the tide is high, the water will come into the house. That is why most of houses are build with stilts model.

The stretch of trees along the beach gives it extra beauty. If you like photography, you can find many spots to get stunning views. The pristine water and white sand make the beach looks so amazing. The sand is so fine and you can step it with your bare foot. Usually, the island will be crowded on Saturday and Sunday morning.

If you like snorkeling, you can do it as well. But, you have to bring your own equipment. The beach is good to learn water sports indeed, like swimming, scuba diving, snorkeling, and diving. Even, you can feed the fish while you snorkeling or swimming. You can give them instant noodle, rice or bread that is put inside the bottle. The group of fish will approach you and compete to take the food. It will be so fun to do it.

After those activities, you may feel hungry. Don’t worry because there are food stall that will offer you delicious fried fish. They use traditional ingredient with fresh seafood. You will enjoy your vacation in Lae Lae Island as you visit Makassar City.

Bantimurung National Park, Home of Thousands of Species in South Sulawesi

Bantimurung National Park was discovered by a British naturalist, Alfred Russell Wallace when he travelled to South Sulawesi Indonesia. He found that the area of the national park was home many species of flora and fauna. Today, the area where Alfred Wallace did his research has become the most amazing national park, Bantimurung. 

In this national park, you can find thousands of species, such as enchanting butterflies with its various colors and sizes. About 150 species of butterflies are found in this park.  The national park also has magnificent caves and incredible waterfall.

The total area of the national park is about 43,759 hectares. It is divided into three major types of ecosystems, i.e. karts, a lowland forest and a lower mountain forest ecosystem. The three ecosystems are ideal habitats for thousands of species, including rare endemic species like birds, insects and butterflies.

Location

          Bantimurung National Park is situated in Maros Regency, South Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. It is only about 20 km from Hasanuddin Airport or 50 km from Makassar. You can reach the national park by local public transportation called pete-pete. It takes about 30 minutes by pete-pete from Makassar to the national park. You will have to pay for Rp5,000 (US$0.50) driving pete-pete to the national park.

However, if you are in Makassar, you can go by public bus like Damri to Bantimurung. You need to pay for Rp8,500 (less than 1 US dollar) from Makassar to Bantimurung. Public transportation can easily be found in Makassar, so you don’t have to worry about how you can get to Bantimurung. 

Activities

Bantimurung National Park offers many things to visitors, like hiking, trekking and a challenging adventure. You can visit Bantimurung Waterfall to take pictures and enjoy the beautiful scenery. The waterfall is not too far from the entrance. You can enjoy the stunning panorama of the waterfall. You can jump into the clean and clear water. The water is so refreshing that you will not want to move out of the water.

You can also visit the Butterfly Conservation captivity and the butterfly Museum. You can learn various species in both of the location. Butterflies are the main attraction in Bantimurung, so it is a must to visit the location. You can also have a challenging advanture by exploring the Karst hills as well as the stunning caves in this national park.

Accommodations

          If you decide to stay in Bantimurung National Park longer, you can stay in one of the bungalows and inns available around the park. You can select one of the bungalows or inns that are nearest to the entrance of the Bantimurung Bulusaraung, so that you don’t to walk too far when you want to visit the park again. The rate for the bungalows and inns range from Rp50,000 to Rp80,000 (US$5.00 to US$8.00).  With such rate, you can enjoy adequate facilities and sleep comfortably.

          If you love nature along with its various species, Bantimurung National Park is the best place to visit. You can visit the park to learn more about the living species in the park.

Pictures taken from www.wahw33d.blogspot.com