Rondreis 21 dagen Molukken - Ambon, Saparua, Seram en Banda

Garuda Indonesia flies non-stop from Amsterdam to Jakarta with her new Boeing 777-300 ER. Experience the hospitality of the Indonesian culture on board of Garuda Indonesia, the national flight company of Indonesia. The direct flight to Jakarta takes you in 13 and a half hour from Amsterdam to Jakarta. Departure Amsterdam around noon, arrival Jakarta early in the morning the following day. Your connecting flight leaves about 2 hours later and is a 3,5 hou -flight. Garuda staff is helping you to get you quickly on the Ambon flight.

Upon arrival at the airport, your driver will be waiting for you at the exit with a name sign. He will take you to your hotel. Your room may not be ready yet at an early check-in. But you can already use the other facilities of the hotel of course.

Before sunrise transfer to the airport for your 07:00 SAM Air flight to Banda. The small island can be discovered by foot... You will be picked up by your guide from the airport, check-in at the hotel and start with a visit to the fish market. You then visit the restored fort Belgica with a beautiful view over the Bay of Banda and then the remains of Fort Nassau. The Hatta house is decorated as a small museum. During the colonial period, the co-founders of the Republic of Indonesia, Hatta and Sharir were banned from the Netherlands to Banda. Hatta spent his time here teaching the local youth. The VOC or Jan Pieterszoon Coenmuseum shows in all simplicity how Coen raged among the people of the Banda islands. The old church is still used and is in good condition. 4 nights at Banda.

The Banda Islands shelter dozens of beautiful snorkelling and diving locations with colourful coral and many different fish. A wonderful day of snorkelilng and relaxing on a white beach is an absolute must. With fresh fish from the fire, lunch is not to be sneezed at! Diving is also possible, at an additional cost.

You can go to the island of Pulau Lontar, better known as Banda Besar, in a half hour by longboat. This island is mainly known for the planters who grow their nutmeg and mace here. Among other things, we pay a visit to the former beds of the Van den Broeke family. We continue our walk through Fort Hollandia to the tomb stone of Nona Lantsuese.

Nothing has been planned for this day. You can book an excursion to one of the islands at your hotel or guesthouse. When you visit the Banda islands in April or October, you’ve got a big chance to see (the preparations for) the kora-kora matches. The impressive rowing boats are then rowed by about twenty muscular men.

Flight with SAM Air early afternoon on Monday and Friday.

In the morning we make a city tour through Ambon. Then we go to the village of Soya Atas, here we visit the old Raja house; the house of the king / leader of the village. We also visit the church opposite the house. After Soya Atas we continue to the Siwalima Museum in Taman Makmur. In this museum you can see a large maritime, ethnographic, ecological and historical collection. Besides this museum we also visit the Maritime Museum where crocodiles can be seen and a complete whale skeleton. After the museums we continue to the village of Amahusu. Here you can see how the sago production works. From baking to eating, you can also taste the sago that just comes from the traditional oven. For our lunch we make a short stop at Pintu Kota beach. We have lunch on Namalatu beach in Latuhalat. Here you have a free afternoon to relax and swim. End of the afternoon we return to the hotel.

There is nothing on the program today. You can do some shopping in Ambon city or relax at the pool.

In the morning we drive to Hurnala to board the boat from 09.00 to Haria on the island of Saparua. You will be transferred to the Perdana Hotel in Saparua by minibus. Then we make a tour to the Duurstede Fort and adjacent museum (if open, since 2013 the museum seems to be closed to the public). You can enjoy your lunch on the beach of Duurstede. Then we go for a walk through Saparua.

Today we first take a walk around the busy market. After this we drive to the pottery village Ouw, here we get a demonstration of traditional pottery. After lunch we continue to the village of Mahu. There we walk through the sago forests. Sago is a starch product that comes from the pith of different plant / tree species. You’ll see the whole process. We end the day with two other villages, Itawaka and Noloth. Here you can quietly look around by yourself and discover the culture. Late in the afternoon we return to the hotel in Saparua.

After an early and meagre breakfast you will be taken to the port by minibus. Then we sail back with the fastboat to the Hurnala shipyard in Tulehu and return to the hotel.

The whole day we are traveling, but there is so much to see along the road and on the water that it is certainly far from boring. From your hotel you will be picked up and taken to the port of Tulehu. Here you get on the boat where you are in the luxury VIP class. After two hours of sailing you arrive in Amahai. From there we continue by car. A beautiful three-hour drive through nature and villages takes us to the village of Soleman. The last part of the route starts here. With a small motor boat you will be transferred to your hotel. The evening is free, you can recover from the long journey.

Today we make a long boat trip to the fishing village of Sawai. We visit several small islands and sail on the Samahai river. On the river you can spot beautiful exotic birds and butterflies. If you are lucky, a freshwater crocodile will show up. End of the afternoon we return to the hotel.

This is a quiet day. The program includes snorkelling and a trip to the freshwater source Air Belanda. Snorkelling is a special experience in the surroundings of these islands, discover the colourful underwater world with its exotic corals and fish. Later we go to the freshwater source. The rest of the day is free.

Op deze laatste dag keert u terug naar Ambon. Bij de haven van Tulehu staat uw chauffeur gereed voor de transfer naar uw hotel. 3 overnachtingen in Natsepa.

Na het ontbijt brengt de chauffeur u de bergen in, naar het dorpje Soya di Atas. Hier bezoekt u het oude Raja's huis; het huis van de koning/leider van het dorp. Ook bezoekt u de kerk tegenover het huis en voor diegenen die graag jong willen blijven, een klim omhoog naar het heilige bronwater... Vervolgens door naar de hotsprings bij Tulehu, waar u warm kunt pootje baden... Ten slotte rijden we verder naar het Hunimua strand. Terwijl we wachten op de lunch is er alle tijd om te zwemmen en te ontspannen. Voordat we terugkeren naar het hotel in Ambon, maken we en stop bij het Natsepa strand voor de heerlijke Roedjak Natsepa... Aan het einde van de middag keren we terug naar het hotel.

There is nothing on the program today. You can relax at the pool or take a walk to the bay of Natsepa.

At the agreed time, your driver will pick you up for your transfer to the airport or the port.

Flight with Garuda Indonesia Ambon-Amsterdam with transfer in Jakarta. Departure from Ambon in the afternoon, arrival late afternoon in Jakarta. The connecting flight leaves Jakarta around midnight. Arrival Amsterdam in the morning.

In the morning arrival at Schiphol. The end of a beautiful trip...