Bukittinggi, West Sumatra—Indonesia’s Undiscovered Treasure

Mountains are where heaven high-fives the earth. Indonesia is a diverse destination with 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, the world’s sixth-largest island.  West Sumatra, on the Indian Ocean, is often overlooked by most international travelers.  However, Indonesians have long been drawn to this province’s much cooler mountainous highlands, particularly its centerpiece, Bukittinggi.

The presence of Islam is unmistakable here, but it never overwhelms. Equally present are the people and language of the Minangkabau ethnic group native to West Sumatra. From backpacking hangouts to bucolic five-star hotels, these hills check all the boxes—divine cuisine, Mother Nature, sightseeing—for the ultimate vacation. If Indonesia had a San Francisco, this would be it.

Proklamator Waterfall Photo: Bruce Northam

Getting There is Half the Fun

Bukittinggi is a 2.5-hour drive northeast from Padang, West Sumatra’s urban and transport center. En route, you sweep into the mountains, past roadside waterfalls, and via a short jungle hike, behold Proklamator Waterfall.

Ascending further into cooler air, monkeys begin to line the roadside. The impressive Museum Bustanul Arifin showcases numerous vintage photographs from the early 1900s and also serves as a cultural center for Minangkabau. The structure that houses the museum honors that traditional home style.

Museum Bustanil Arafin Photo: Bruce Northam

West Sumatra’s Uplands Paradise

Bukittinggi is West Sumatra’s uplands paradise. This mountain-encircled hilltop town is pedestrian-friendly and friendly in every other way. It features open-air markets for both locals and tourists, as well as a naturally air-cooled modern shopping mall.

Adjacent to the marketplace is an inviting town square and a Dutch colonial-era icon, the Big Ben clock tower, which features similar internal mechanisms to London’s namesake. One of my favorite things about Bukittinggi is the nasi kapau food stalls, which offer quick and tasty dining options. There, rows of bowls and saucepans are filled with various fragrant dishes and doled out to seated customers using long serving spoons that eliminate the germ concern common to public buffets. Locals eat with their hands, as did I.

Bukittinggi’s Big Ben clocktower has similar internal mechanisms to London’s namesake Photo: Bruce Northam

Like many other Indonesian towns, Bukittinggi also has a Dutch-colonial neighborhood and a Chinatown. This getaway is touristy in specific areas, with visitors from Indonesia and Malaysia, but remains intimate and likable. Horse-drawn carriages clop about, and there’s a nearby horse farm offering riding and racing. Panorama Canyon is a worthwhile attraction where local artisans showcase their work, and the main draw is a restored World War II Japanese bunker.

Don’t Miss Bedudal Cafe

The soaring views from every angle here make it a great place to get a regional perspective. My favorite hangout was the Bedudal Café, a cozy and fun spot in mellow-but-buzzing Chinatown. Artsy, rugged, and soulful, it features a flipside menu that splits Indo and Western classics, such as jazzed-up baked potatoes. It resembles an old-style backpacker joint with a mini stage and a groovy staff. Music, your choice or someone else’s, is central to the experience here.

Bedudal Café is a cozy, fun hangout Photo: Bruce Northam

Where to Stay

Conveniently located in the center of town, Hotel Monopoli’s enchanting Morocco mosque-style architecture provides instant charm and atmosphere. I enjoyed its stately yet relaxed ambiance. The GM, Yon, has 35 years of experience in the hotel industry.

An eternal hit with the Dutch, Sianok (canyon) Restaurant offers an extensive menu featuring both local and Western dishes. Try the Soto Padang soup, a curry broth delight. The hotel’s inspiring four-story lobby, bar, restaurant, and 133 rooms provide a homey refuge from the bustle that awaits beyond its doors. As is the case in most of these highlands, there’s no need for AC at night. The hotel also features three suites, one of which has hosted every Indonesian president since its construction in 1995. P.S., just down the road is Bedudal Café!

A less-fancy accommodation option, the riverside Canyon Jungle Stay Ecolodge, features nine cabins. It’s located across the street from the Dumspiro Café, which is situated in a gorgeous rice field.

Hotel Monopoli Moroccan-style architecture provides instant charm and atmosphere Photo: Bruce Northam

Outside Bukittinggi

Sometimes you need to truly live it up. Mountain ranges surround the hilltop Balcone Suites and Resort, an ultra-luxury nine-story hotel. Completed in 2023, its 233 rooms are divided between five-star and four-star accommodations, as it is the result of two hotels merging seamlessly into one.

Every room boasts superb mountain views, including those of the six private villas. You’ll enjoy the three pools (two are infinity pools), a rambling multi-mood lobby, and the 360-Skylounge.

This singular hotel, offering diverse accommodations, also features exciting dining options, including side-by-side authentic Japanese and Korean restaurants. The Japanese restaurant’s signature Stairway to Heaven sushi is served on a staircase-like wood block, and the miso soup is spot on. Padang urbanites travel 2.5 hours to enjoy the flown-in fish masterpieces.

Balcone Suites & Resorts features authentic Japanese and Korean restaurants Photo: Courtesy of Balcone Suites & Resorts

The eco-concerned chef is not shy about gleeful customer interactions. His motto is “Fresh everything, all cooked to order.” The Japanese beef curry also dazzled during my ongoing feast, a lavish affair including chicken gyoza and fermented pudding (Japanese caramel custard).

Balcone also features two ballrooms, a medical clinic, and exotic highland-tropical landscaping throughout its lush 12-acre campus. And, as awarded by the region, no need for nighttime AC, and often no daytime AC, either. Sole ownership here means that it doesn’t have a corporate feel. Another one of the restaurants has a daily first-rate breakfast buffet where you can dine in the midst of low-lying clouds looming above the forest. This luxury castle on a hilltop is a great base camp for exploring the region. Don’t miss out on one of their star desserts: a banana-coconut soup!

Sungai Angek’s rice fields are flanked by mountains Photo: Bruce Northam

Day Trips beyond Bukittinggi

A spectacular day trip drive from Bukittinggi takes you through Sianok Canyon to volcanic Lake Maninjau. The route passes fields of rice, pumpkins, peanuts, and sugarcane (harvested to make local brown sugar). Nearby small villages feature tidy Minangkabau-style homes.

The mountainside view of Lake Maninjau means abundant greenery, cool air, and a chance to behold the paved coastal road that circumnavigates the lake, which you can experience via scooter or bicycle. Lawang Park’s rustic Villa Anggrek guesthouse and several cafes share spectacular views of the lake ringed by mountains. This lake and its environs are an untouristy alternative to Lake Toba, Sumatra’s second-largest volcanic lake.

Another day trip dazzler is Sungai Angek, a hidden traditional village where gorgeous ricefields are flanked by a wall of mountains. Guided tours—on foot or in a motorbike-truck—include pounding rice with locals, visiting the interior of traditional homes, participating in wood-fired cooking classes, tubing, rafting, caving, and trekking into the adjacent wilderness. Close to Bukittinggi but a world away, you can sleep in a traditional homestay or camp in a tent perched on a platform looming above the scenic rice terraces.

West Sumatra’s Bukittinggi offers affordable opportunities to embrace its mountain-enhanced experiences of a lifetime. The scenery, culture, cuisine, outdoor activities, and celebration of music here are one-of-a-kind and as good as it gets.

Musical comrades

Indonesians love music, in both singing and listening modes. Most West Sumatran homes and businesses have impressive music setups, so tunes are ever-present. Whenever I encounter musical opportunities, my favorite pastime is marathon-listening sessions in which another person and I trade song faves back and forth, sometimes for hours. I eventually introduced natives to Robert Cray and mellower ZZ Top tunes, then later broke out some Bad Company. One of the favorite tunes I brought home from Indonesia is “Future” by child-prodigy guitarist Abim Finger, whose parents support his virtuosity—that’s his mom on bass!

For more information, visit Indonesia.Travel. Consider hiring a guide to enhance and simplify your experience—Bayu Kumbara (westsumatratraveler@gmail.com) is a pro!

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