wandering_fred
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- Jun 12, 2006
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Having decided that a trip to Borobudur would have to replace a rather more expensive USA reunion trip, the problem of getting to Yogyakarta remained. Allowing for some inexpensive overnights in Denpasar, the local low cost carriers seemed the best options.
Day 1 QG 699 DPS 16:00 SUB 16:40
Day 2 train to Jogyakarta
Day 3 half day tour of Borobudur
Day 4 QZ 8449 JOG 15:40 DPS 18:05
Citilink is the LCC subsidiary of Garuda, so was considered acceptable. A normal seat/baggage fee was paid (the first 5 rows plus exit rows are more $$) and obtained seat 6F. Flight was less than half full.
Taxi into town was quite reasonable.
Walked to the train station (about a km) only to find out reservations had closed. The clerk however did check the trains for the next day. The express to Jakarta (I had expected) was booked full, but the express to Jogyakarta leaving 25 minutes later had more than 270 seats in "Executive Class" available. Plan was to arrive an hour before and buy.
Taxi the next morning took me to "new station" on the other side of the tracks where getting the ticket was a pleasure as "Show and Go" offered a 20% discount. And the donut shop was air conditioned while waiting for the train.
The trip was 5 hours for about US$17. The volcanoes were quiet and all well hidden by clouds. Those interested in local agriculture can follow the change in cropping over the course of the journey. Maize fields are added to the rice paddies by the end.The hotel had a problem with pre-authorizing credit cards but there were plenty of ATMs around which weren't picky about foreign CCs. The hotel provided the car/driver at reasonable cost (US$35) for the trip - an hour each way and two at world heritage site.
The second day was lazy though there is a historic area in the city that would likely be worth a few hours. Perhaps on my next trip.
Air Asia Indonesia requires that you get your boarding pass from a kiosk/machine and then drop you baggage off. I completeed the former and went off for a quick sandwich and by the time I returned there were no lines for the drop offs. Again the plane was perhaps half full. Again the basic seat/baggage fees were paid and I occupied 7D. Here the 6 front rows plus exit rows require additional funding. The spicy chicken with rice and vegetables was fine - served in the now normal "paper" tray.
No airline issues were encountered and I would be happy to fly either airline again.
Happy wandering
Fred
Day 1 QG 699 DPS 16:00 SUB 16:40
Day 2 train to Jogyakarta
Day 3 half day tour of Borobudur
Day 4 QZ 8449 JOG 15:40 DPS 18:05
Citilink is the LCC subsidiary of Garuda, so was considered acceptable. A normal seat/baggage fee was paid (the first 5 rows plus exit rows are more $$) and obtained seat 6F. Flight was less than half full.
Taxi into town was quite reasonable.
Walked to the train station (about a km) only to find out reservations had closed. The clerk however did check the trains for the next day. The express to Jakarta (I had expected) was booked full, but the express to Jogyakarta leaving 25 minutes later had more than 270 seats in "Executive Class" available. Plan was to arrive an hour before and buy.
Taxi the next morning took me to "new station" on the other side of the tracks where getting the ticket was a pleasure as "Show and Go" offered a 20% discount. And the donut shop was air conditioned while waiting for the train.
The trip was 5 hours for about US$17. The volcanoes were quiet and all well hidden by clouds. Those interested in local agriculture can follow the change in cropping over the course of the journey. Maize fields are added to the rice paddies by the end.The hotel had a problem with pre-authorizing credit cards but there were plenty of ATMs around which weren't picky about foreign CCs. The hotel provided the car/driver at reasonable cost (US$35) for the trip - an hour each way and two at world heritage site.
The second day was lazy though there is a historic area in the city that would likely be worth a few hours. Perhaps on my next trip.
Air Asia Indonesia requires that you get your boarding pass from a kiosk/machine and then drop you baggage off. I completeed the former and went off for a quick sandwich and by the time I returned there were no lines for the drop offs. Again the plane was perhaps half full. Again the basic seat/baggage fees were paid and I occupied 7D. Here the 6 front rows plus exit rows require additional funding. The spicy chicken with rice and vegetables was fine - served in the now normal "paper" tray.
No airline issues were encountered and I would be happy to fly either airline again.
Happy wandering
Fred
