Belitung Island

writen by: belitung teacher

From a diver's point of view, Belitung is popular for its large granite clusters and beautiful surrounding coral reefs, plus shipwrecks to the west. The island is surrounded by beaches with white sand and also several beaches with the characteristics of smaller islands which also catch the eye. Only 45 minutes flight by plane from Jakarta, making Jakarta a favorite vacation location for the super busy Jakartans. Apart from diving, Belitung is famous for island hopping - one of the tourist destinations for tourists who come to Belitung. That, another interesting place is Batu Mentas, where you can see tiny monkeys as big as a fist that has the ability to rotate its neck 180 degrees, like an owl-, and to the beach of Tanjung Tinggi, recently became famous with its appearance in the film. philosoper.

Pulau Lengkuas

The headland forms a perfect bay of white sand and is flanked by giant round granite boulders jutting out into the sea. The beach became famous for an unforgettable scene in the film called Laskar Pelangi. This film uses the beauty of Tanjung Tinggi beach as the shooting location. Lasksr Pelangi itself is an adaptation of a best-selling novel by a Belitung resident named Andrea Hirata.

Unlike the rich and colorful Balinese culture, the island of Belitung has an interesting history. Not only are the real natives on the island, the population here is a mix of immigrants from other parts of Indonesia and Southeast Asia. Once upon a time the island was either a pirate residence or as a resting place for pirates who targeted the British East India Company in the 1800s. And it is now inhabited by a mixture of races and cultures, with the earliest Chinese and Malay settlers being thought to be descended from these pirates. .

Location

Belitung Island is located north of the island of Java, and is located between the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan, together with the island of Bangka which is a province, 45 minutes flight from Jakarta. The main city is Tanjung Pandan which is not too crowded. Ekomomi was satisfied at the Satam roundabout

There are a number of 3 to 4 star hotels along the pattimura road which get busy at night. Several cafes and restaurants and small pubs along this street are available. Also a karaoke place.

There are several dive spots, such as in the west of the galangal island, there are indo marine shipwrecks and bay reefs with healthy coral reefs.

The place of departure to the diving and snorkeling spots can be done from Tanjung Kelayang beach or from the village of Tanjung Binga where both of them have boat rental places for locations. From here it takes a 5-10 minute boat trip to the nearest dive site. Or you can go through the dive center in Tanjung Binga.

You can use car rental transportation in Belitung to reach this location from the hotel where you are staying. Moreover, you stay at a hotel in Tanjung Pandan.

Dive Sites

In the northern part of the beach there are dive spots with a depth of 20 meters. Some of them you only need to dive a few meters and have found beautiful coral reefs, especially around large granite rocks, usually surrounded by healthy coral reefs.

You must pay attention that there are sea urchins that can injure your feet.

Further west there are more wrecks and the diving appears to be interesting too.

Where to stay

Medium Reach

If you want a location near the beach, you can visit several hotels such as the Santika hotel, the Lorinn Resort hotel, the Kelayang Beach hotel, the Swiss Bell hotel. Meanwhile, if you want a food friendly location, you can stay at a hotel located near Tanjung Pandan. Such as the Grand Hatika hotel, the Bahamas hotel, and the BW Suite hotel

Budget

If you have a limited budget you can stay at Tanjung Tinggi homestay, or Tanjung Pandan homestay 

Where to eat

Stalls on Kepayang Island have a restaurant with seafood as the main menu which is usually used as a stopover for tourists who are doing maritime island hoopping or diving.

You can easily enjoy a variety of fresh seafood menus, which are obtained from the fishermen that day, favorites such as grilled prawns and grilled fish are the prima donna. While waiting for the cooked food, you can enjoy fried bananas and fried cassava. There is sweet tea and coffee served on the boat shaped table for free.

After eating, you can continue the adventure

In the center of Tanjung Pandan city center there is a lovely little restaurant called "Tenda Biru" serving local food such as Belitung noodles, chicken satay, soto lontong and fresh drinks with ice lemon konci

It is guaranteed that the guests who come to eat here will be addicted and want to one day have the opportunity to go to Belitung Island to stop by this restaurant again. Mamamia.

How to Get Around

There are airport taxis that serve the airport - hotel route. However, the best option is to rent  car  Belitung or rent a motorbike. Public transportation on an island this small and with a relatively small population cannot be relied on. Belitung residents generally have a private vehicle, at least a motorbike for their daily activities.

Other activities

tour belitung, Swim, snorkel, take pictures in giant granite boulders.

With clean seas and beautiful white sand beaches, don't you want to swim in this clear water?

On the Tanjung Kelayang beach and Tanjung Tinggi beach you can find a swimming buoy rental place or a rubber boat to play on the beach. There is also snorkeling equipment rental but according to our observations the conditions are not good. It's different when we rent a snorkeling equipment to hope the island is in better condition. It is better if you bring your own swimming goggles, especially if you have your own snorkeling equipment.

In certain months between April and August the sea is so calm there are almost no waves at all. It is very safe for those of you who also cannot swim. However, avoid late December and early January as the wind is usually quite strong and the waves are very big.

Take a picture

Pulau batu berlayar. Paling Instagramable

The small islands around the island of Belitung are very instagramable. Many beautiful photos produced by tourists who visit here go viral when uploaded on their social media. For example, sailing stone island, and Lebong island.

You can rent a boat for a hooping island on the coast of Tanjung Kelayang. Buoys and snorkeling equipment are rented separately. Although it is not mandatory, we recommend that you rent a life jacket or safety jacket. The price is quite affordable for Rp. 15,000 - Rp. 20,000

Kepayang Island Turtle Breeding

Apart from resting and having lunch, another goal for people to go to Kepayang Island is to see the turtle captivity. On the other side of this island, there is a hawksbill turtle conservation. Their eggs are collected from Nature. And hatched in captivity. You can participate in making a donation and you will get the opportunity to release the hatchlings to free.

Tarsius Paramount Hills Nature Reserve.

Most people in Europe only know that cute animals called tarsiers can be found in the Philippines. It turns out that these animals are also often found in Belitung. This is an opportunity for us to easily encounter these animals. Because geographically the island of Belitung is easier to access. Although almost all forests in the middle of Belitung island, these animals can be found. However, Bukit Peramun Nature Reserve is a place devoted to tourists to see these animals. This animal can be encountered by chance by residents who are passing in their forest or fields. Don't worry though. The paramount hill nature conservation team consisting of local residents will spread into the forest to find these animals. When one of them finds this animal, they will inform its existence and invite tourists to come to the animal's location.

This animal is threatened with extinction due to land clearing for oil palm plantations and mining areas. The conservation that is done here is funded by the tourism office to help conserve the surrounding shellfish forests.