Indonesian cuisine is generally fairly simple and cheap, with rice as the main staple, though noodles are also common, accompanied by dishes flavoured with cloves, chilies, coconut and lemongrass. Fish is popular but meats are also common.

Peanuts are a popular ingredient, especially in dishes such as sate or gado gado, so you should inform your tour leader if you have a peanut allergy. Nasi (rice) and mie (noodles) are very popular, especially the staple dish nasi goreng (fried rice). Quite often tea or water (aqua) is drunk with a meal. Beer is not always cold, and coffee is unfiltered and usually very sugary.

Vegetarian food is available in Indonesia; however, the concept of vegetarianism can be misunderstood so if you are a vegetarian, please be clear and state that you don’t eat meat, chicken or fish. Please advise at time of booking if you have any dietary requirements.

Meet your tour leader and fellow travellers at a hosted gathering in Borobudur, Central Java. Hear an introduction to the journey and get to know the group over dinner at the hotel restaurant.

This shared meal offers a welcoming setting for your first conversations about Java and Bali. It is a social start to the tour rather than a formal culinary demonstration.

Explore Borobudur Temple, the vast Buddhist monument rising above the countryside of Central Java. Walk among its terraces, carved reliefs and bell-shaped stupas, taking in the scale of a sanctuary built in the eighth and ninth centuries.

This UNESCO World Heritage site was conceived as a representation of the Buddhist path towards enlightenment. Its layered architecture and detailed stonework reveal the skill and ambition of Java’s early Buddhist builders.

Cycle through rural Java on an approximately two-hour ride around Borobudur. Follow village lanes past rice fields and family homes, seeing the working landscape that surrounds the celebrated temple.

The unhurried route brings everyday life into focus: cultivated plots, neighbourhood streets and the rhythms of a farming community. It offers a more personal perspective on the Borobudur area than a monument visit alone.

Meet local changemaker M. Riza Perdana Kusuma in Karangrejek and learn about the Narapuspitan Library & Public Space, a community hub supporting reading and education. A local guide leads a village walk, sharing stories of daily life.

Discover jamu, Java’s traditional herbal preparations, taste freshly fried tempeh and share a home-cooked lunch with Javanese hosts. The visit connects local food traditions with a community-led effort to create new opportunities through learning.

Visit Prambanan, Indonesia’s largest Hindu temple complex, near Yogyakarta. Admire its soaring stone towers and intricate carvings, including the 154ft (47m) central shrine dedicated to Shiva.

Built in the ninth century, this UNESCO World Heritage site honours Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. Its slender architecture contrasts with Borobudur’s broad Buddhist terraces, offering a vivid view of the different religious traditions that shaped ancient Java.

Explore Yogyakarta’s Kraton, the Sultan’s Palace, through its courtyards, pavilions and historic collections. Continue on foot to Taman Sari, the former royal gardens and bathing complex, where pools and gateways evoke a more private side of palace life.

Together, the two sites illuminate the enduring place of the court in Javanese culture. A cultural performance at the Kraton may be possible, depending on the programme during your visit.

Cook with a local host in a home in Kotagede, Yogyakarta’s historic district. Learn how herbs, spices and familiar kitchen techniques shape Indonesian dishes, preparing food together in a household setting.

Share the lunch you have made and hear about everyday life from your host. The hands-on class makes regional flavours more meaningful by connecting ingredients and methods to the people who use them at home.

Watch Yogyakarta artisans at work on batik and silver handicrafts. Observe the careful processes behind patterned textiles and worked metal, gaining an appreciation of the patience and precision each craft requires.

Batik is closely associated with Javanese cultural expression, while silverwork is a longstanding craft in the Yogyakarta area. Seeing the makers at work reveals the human skill behind objects often encountered only as finished pieces.

Visit Bajang Ratu and Candi Tikus in Trowulan, East Java. Examine an elaborately decorated gateway and a sunken bathing complex among the surviving remains associated with the Majapahit kingdom.

These contrasting structures offer a glimpse of a major Javanese civilisation through more than its temples alone. Their brickwork, ornament and differing purposes add another dimension to the island’s architectural heritage.

Explore a local market in Malang and walk through Kampung Warna Warni, the neighbourhood nicknamed Rainbow Village. Its brightly painted houses and lanes create a striking streetscape with space to observe the community at close range.

The colourful transformation was inspired in part by the favelas of Rio. Alongside the market’s everyday activity, the walk offers a view of contemporary urban life in East Java that differs from the region’s temple and volcanic landscapes.

Travel by 4×4 to the Penanjakan 2 viewpoint for dawn over Mount Bromo and the surrounding volcanic caldera. Descend across the Sea of Sand, approach Bromo on foot and climb towards its crater rim when local access permits.

Cold highland air and the changing light make this an especially vivid volcanic encounter. Your tour leader also explains Bromo’s significance to the Tengger people, whose communities live in the surrounding highlands.

Tour plantations around Kalibaru in East Java, finding coffee, cacao, pepper and rubber growing in the area. Learn about local cultivation and harvesting practices, including techniques passed through generations.

Finish with a coffee tasting that links what grows in the fields to the drink in your cup. The visit offers a grounded look at crops that have long shaped agricultural work and trade in Indonesia.

Visit a family home in Pinge, a village in Bali’s Tabanan highlands, where Mr Darmawan welcomes you to learn about local customs and daily life. Share lunch with your hosts and take time for conversation.

A blessing at the family temple, offered by Mr Darmawan’s father, brings a personal perspective to Balinese religious practice. The visit centres on hospitality and an exchange with the people who live in the village.

Visit Tegallalang’s rice terraces in the countryside near Ubud. Take in the sculpted slopes as stepped fields follow the contours of a steep valley, creating one of Bali’s most recognisable agricultural landscapes.

The terraces invite a closer look at how farming shapes the island’s hillsides, rather than serving only as a scenic backdrop. Their repeating green contours make the relationship between cultivated land and the natural terrain immediately visible.

Visit Rangreng Waterfall during an outing through the countryside around Ubud. Experience a different side of Bali’s landscape, where moving water and tropical vegetation provide a contrast to the region’s carefully cultivated rice terraces.

The stop brings you close to one of the area’s natural features without making the day a strenuous hike. It is a chance to pause, listen to the falls and appreciate the varied scenery beyond Ubud’s town centre.

Attend a Ramayana Ballet performance at Purawisata in Yogyakarta, if available during your stay. Watch dancers bring episodes from the Ramayana to the stage through expressive movement, costume and music.

The performance offers a theatrical introduction to a story with deep roots across Southeast Asia and a distinctive place in Javanese arts. This is an optional experience at additional cost; ask your tour leader about availability and booking on tour.

Join a shared boat excursion to Menjangan Island in West Bali National Park. Snorkel above coral reefs in the waters off Bali’s northwest coast and take a short walk on the island, where deer may be spotted.

The outing combines marine life with a quieter view of the national park; a packed lunch is included. This is an optional experience at additional cost, paid locally and bookable on tour through your tour leader.

Cycle through villages near Pemuteran on a proposed route lasting approximately three and a half to four hours. Planned stops include a market, village temple and salt production, with an introduction to arak, a locally produced spirit.

It is an active way to encounter West Bali’s daily routines, with agricultural activities varying by season. This is an optional experience at additional cost, paid locally and bookable on tour through your tour leader.

Bathe at Banjar Hot Spring in northern Bali, where warm mineral water feeds pools set among tropical gardens. Choose this slower-paced outing from Pemuteran for time in the water and a change of scenery from the coast.

The garden setting gives the springs a sheltered, distinctly Balinese atmosphere. This is an optional experience at additional cost, paid locally and bookable on tour through your tour leader.

Explore Begawan’s conservation and farming projects near Ubud on a guided visit to its fields and gardens. Learn about efforts to protect the endangered Bali starling and discover regenerative rice farming alongside subak, Bali’s community irrigation tradition.

Lunch at Begawan Biji brings produce from the farm to the table. This is an optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour through your tour leader.

Climb Mount Batur with a guide, setting out in darkness for sunrise views across Bali’s volcanic landscape. The early start and uphill trek make this an additional challenge for travellers who want to experience the highlands on foot.

Watch daylight reveal the crater and surrounding terrain, with a simple breakfast included. This is an optional experience at additional cost, bookable on tour through your tour leader.

Watch a Balinese dance performance during your time in Ubud. Expressive gestures, elaborate costumes and carefully controlled movement bring traditional stories to the stage.

Dance remains an important part of Bali’s artistic and ceremonial culture, making a live performance a way to encounter storytelling beyond the island’s landscapes and temples. This is an optional experience at additional cost; ask your tour leader about availability and booking on tour.