A little more
Indonesia.
A lot less roaming.

Travelling to Indonesia: what to know before you go

Indonesia is the world's largest archipelago, stretching across the equator from Sumatra to Papua, with volcanoes, rainforest, coral reefs and hundreds of distinct cultures. Bali is the best-known island, but Java's temples, Komodo's dragons and the reefs of Raja Ampat give very different trips. It suits divers, surfers, hikers and culture lovers alike.

Where to go

• Bali. Ubud's rice terraces, craft villages and dance performances, clifftop temples such as Uluwatu and Tanah Lot, surf beaches in the south and quieter diving and snorkelling in the north and east.
• Borobudur and Prambanan. Near Yogyakarta in Central Java, Borobudur is a vast ninth-century Buddhist monument decorated with relief panels, and Prambanan is a complex of soaring Hindu temples.
• Komodo National Park. Islands in East Nusa Tenggara where Komodo dragons, the world's largest lizards, live in the wild.
• Raja Ampat. An island group off West Papua with some of the richest marine biodiversity on earth.

Best time to visit

For Bali, Java, Lombok and the islands east of them, the dry season from roughly April to October is the best time to visit, with July and August the busiest months. The wet season, from about November to March, brings heavy afternoon downpours, but travel is still possible and prices are lower.

Staying online in Indonesia

4G coverage is good in Jakarta, Bali, Yogyakarta and other cities and popular areas, with 5G in some places. Coverage gets patchy or disappears on remote islands, in the interiors of Borneo, Sulawesi and Papua, on volcano treks and at sea, including much of Komodo and Raja Ampat. Wi-Fi is common in hotels, cafés and co-working spaces in Bali. Ride-hailing, food delivery and payments rely on mobile data. Install an eSIM before you fly and switch it on when you land.