Getting to Bandung, Indonesia

Although a very popular destination for Indonesians, Bandung can be a little tricky to get to for international travelers. While the city does have a small airport, the only regular service at the time of writing was between Bandung and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, offered by Air Asia. With air travel pretty much out of the picture, the viable options to get to Bandung are by road or rail.

Getting to Bandung by road is an entirely reasonable option. A relatively new four to six lane highway connects Jakarta to Bandung. The journey can be made in about two hours, depending on how bad traffic is around Jakarta. Golden Bird, a division of the highly respected Blue Bird Group taxi service, offers a transfer service between Jakarta and Bandung. At Jakarta airport, simply go to the Golden Bird counter in the baggage claim area to book your trip. The cost to Bandung from the airport is 700,000 Rupiah (42.00 USD) for a 'regular' car, more for a van. Most four and five star hotels in Jakarta also have Blue Bird desks where you can book a transfer. The same holds true for returning from Bandung to Jakarta.

If you have a bit more time, the train is a very easy and inexpensive alternative. It takes a bit longer, around three hours. Trains leave almost every hour, but should be booked in advance, especially if you plan to travel over a weekend, when all trains can be fully booked for days in advance. There are two classes of service.