Indonesien: ein Land mit vielen Vulkanen, Gebirgen und Inseln.

Indonesia

Travel Guide Indonesia

A paradise for marine biodiversity, breathtaking natural scenery, tropical natural wonders plus cultural and historical treasures: you'll find it all in Indonesia. The distant country in Southeast Asia, made up of thousands of volcanic islands, is home to biodiversity hotspots both on land and underwater. Indonesia is known for its jungles, home to elephants, orangutans and tigers. It is also home to the most biodiverse marine habitat - the Coral Triangle. Impressive temples and traditional puppet theatre, in the more densely populated regions, round off the cultural attractions. Find out more about this fascinating country in Southeast Asia in our Travel Guide Indonesia.

Our trips to Indonesia:

Adventure Travel Indonesia - Sailing Expedition

Volunteering Indonesia – Species Conservation Borneo

Highlights in Indonesia

Lorentz National Park (Indonesian: Taman Nasional Lorentz) in West New Guinea, Indonesia, is the largest nature reserve in Southeast Asia. It covers an area of 2.35 million hectares and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park contains an extraordinary diversity of ecosystems: Mountains, rainforest, peat and freshwater swamp forest (wetland) and tropical marine life.
Particularly fascinating is Mount Puncak Jaya, also known as Carstensz Pyramid, which is the highest mountain on any island in the world at 4,884 m and has year-round snow-bearing glaciers in the middle of tropical Indonesia.
In 2002, the Teluk Cenderawasih National Park was established in Cenderawasih Bay (Teluk Cenderawasih in Indonesian), in the north of the Indonesian region of West New Guinea. At about 14,535 km², it is the largest marine national park in Indonesia. The park is home to 150 species of coral, over 200 species of fish (including the true clownfish and sharks) and four species of sea turtles. In addition, marine mammals such as dugong, blue whales and dolphins inhabit the park.
Measuring 5.4 million square kilometres, the Coral Triangle in the Indo-Pacific is the most biodiverse marine habitat. This marine area is located between Indonesia, Australia and the Philippines. It is also called "the Amazon rainforest of the oceans" because of its enormous biodiversity. 600 coral species, more than 3000 fish species and six of the seven existing sea turtle species inhabit this marine environment.

Geography of Indonesia

Indonesia is the largest archipelago country in the world. The state extends over a land area of around 1.9 million km² and territorial waters covering approximately 3.3 million km². The national territory has an east-west extension of 5,120 km and a north-south extension of 1,760 km.

The country is spread over more than 17,500 islands. Several of these islands, such as New Guinea, Borneo, Kalimantan (Borneo) and Sumatra, are among the largest islands in the world. The waters of Indonesia are characterised by many narrow straits, shallow side seas, sea basins and waterways.

Located on both sides of the equator, Indonesia is located between the Malay Peninsula, the Philippines and Australia. Indonesia is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean to the east and the Indian Ocean to the west. The majority of Indonesia belongs to the Asian continent. However, one small part, the part of Indonesia on the island of New Guinea, belongs to the Australian continent.

Eine Bucht der Küstenregion von Indonesien ist von hohen, steilen Klippen umgeben.

Die tropischen Regenwälder von Indonesien gehören zu den wichtigsten Regenwaldgebieten der Erde.

Geomorphology/Geology

Originally, the modern island region as we know it today was connected to the Asian mainland. First after the ice age, the archipelago was formed. Indonesia is located at the borders of two continental plates (tectonic plates): The Eurasian plates and the Australian plates.

In Indonesia, the Pacific Ring of Fire (a volcanic belt that is responsible for 90% of the world's earthquakes) and the Alpine Mountain Belt (which was formed during the last global mountain-building phase in the Earth's history) meet. As a result, Indonesia is strongly volcanic and highly mountainous. Natural phenomena such as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis still occur today.

Especially in Java, the fertile soils are used for agriculture. Due to the tropical climate, this utilization can be intensified.

Bromo, ein Stratovulkan auf der indonesischen Insel Java, ist einer der aktivsten Vulkane auf Java. Er ist 2329 m hoch und liegt im Nationalpark Bromo-Tengger-Semeru.

Travel Tips and Trivia for Indonesia

Infrastructure in Indonesia has the potential to become more modern and climate-friendly. Persistent lacks of urban infrastructure, general traffic overload, excessive pressure on electricity and water supply, and improper wastewater treatment and waste disposal are present.

Environmentally relevant infrastructure projects are already being planned in Indonesia.
- Tap water in Indonesia is not drinking water quality. It is considered a health risk and can lead to bowel diseases, for example. It is recommended that you use alternative bottled water even when brushing your teeth.
- Use your right hand out of politeness in everyday situations. As the left hand is used when going to the toilet, it is considered unclean. Therefore, out of cultural respect, make sure that you use your right hand when greeting people, eating and handing over money.
- When choosing your clothes, follow the dress code of the locals. In conservative areas and when visiting temples, your clothes should reach above your knees and cover your shoulders.

Climate on Indonesia

Due to its geographical location on both sides of the equator, Indonesia has a distinctly tropical climate.

Borneo, Sumatra, West Java, Papua, the Moluccas and Sulawesi have an ever-humid tropical climate. There are no seasons as commonly known in Europe. Consistent daytime temperatures are characteristic here. The average daytime temperature is always between 25 °C and 27 °C throughout the year. In addition, there is a humidity of 95 %, which is also called tropical sultriness. The annual rainfall is between 2000 mm and 4000 mm.

The climate on Java, the Lesser Sunda Islands and the Aru Islands is characterised by two monsoon seasons. The dry season (called winter monsoon) is from June to September, the wet season from October to April. During the wet phases, there can be up to 50 mm of rainfall per day. This often leads to flooding. These areas also have consistently high daytime temperatures, but these can drop significantly overnight. This means that the temperature can fluctuate by up to 12 °C within 24 hours.

Due to the varying altitudes, there are regional differences. In the mountains above 5,000 m in New Guinea, there are even snowfalls.

Flora and Fauna of Indonesia

The megadiverse country is a biodiversity hotspot. Probably the best-known endemic animal group is the orangutan (pongo). A primate genus of the great apes with reddish-brown fur and a physique strongly adapted to the tree-dwelling way of life. All three species, the Bornean orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus), the Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii) and the Tapanuli orangutan (Pongo tapanuliensis) are critically endangered. The orangutans' habitats are mainly destroyed by logging, the establishment of agricultural land and palm oil production. Other endemic species in Indonesia face the same threats. Only a few Sumatran tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) and Java panther (Panthera pardus melas) individuals are left in the wild.

In Sumatra and Borneo, elephants occur in their natural habitat.

Ein Asiatischer Elefant in der Seitenansicht geht nach link. Er ist vom dichten Grün des indonesischen Dschungels umgeben.

Ein Orang-Uta Weibchen, beheimatet in den Regenwälder Borneos und Sumatras in Indonesien, säugt ihr Junges.

There are more than 1,500 different bird species in Indonesia. Exceptional species found in bird parks in the archipelago include birds-of-paradise, toucans, hornbills and cockatoos.

Indonesia has the largest rainforest areas in the world. Many rare plants such as orchids or rafflesias grow here. In the mountains, conifers grow, while the coasts are flanked by mangrove forests in many places.

Between the islands in Indonesia runs the so-called Wallace Line, named after its discoverer, the natural scientist Alfred Russel Wallace. It is the biogeographical dividing line that marks the transition zone between Asian and Australian fauna.

Indonesia also has a lot to offer in the marine world. Seahorses, puffer fish, rays, sharks, dolphins, eels, octopus, sea snails, sea snakes, sea turtles, crabs, starfish and corals present Indonesia's stunning underwater world.

Eine Grüne Meeresschildkröte (Chelonia mydas) im tropischen Meer in Indonesien.

Ein Fischschwarm Stachelmakrelen (Carangidae), in tropischen und subtropischen Zonen des Atlantiks und des Indopazifiks, hält sich in Küstennähe auf.

Social Geography of Indonesia

Between 1950 and 2020, Indonesia's population grew rapidly. The population density of the Indonesian islands varies greatly. Java is most densely populated. The Malay origin makes up the largest share of Indonesia's variously represented ethnic groups. According to a 2001 census, a total of almost 360 different peoples live in Indonesia. This diversity is also reflected in the languages spoken.
The majority of the Indonesian population professes Islam (about 87%). Other practised religions include Christianity (about 10%), Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism, and Confucianism. The island state requires all citizens to profess one of these five recognised world religions (as of 2022). This represents a severe restriction on religious freedom.
The most important export commodity for Indonesia is coal, closely followed by palm oil. Indonesia is considered the largest palm oil producer in the world (as of 2022). According to Statista, iron and steel rank third in this export ranking. China is one of the most important buyers.

Gold is also among the export products. This is probably not least due to the fact that the world's largest gold mine is operated in West New Guinea. This is also where most of the internationally traded tropical timber comes from, which is mainly illegally logged.

Tourism is another important source of income for the country.

Indonesia is taking on more and more economic responsibility in Southeast Asia. The island state is a partner country of the German Development Cooperation. https://www.bmz.de/de/laender/indonesien This German-Indonesian partnership focuses on climate protection, sustainable energy and forest conservation as well as on providing good professional training and increasing employment opportunities to reduce poverty.
Indonesia is a member of ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations), an economic, socio-cultural and security community.
Indonesia was once a Dutch colony. The Indonesian War of Independence from 1945 to 1949 ended with Indonesia's independence.

Since the 2004 elections, Indonesia has been recognised by the world public as a mostly stable democracy. Today, Indonesia is a presidential republic. This system of government is also called presidential democracy. Following the US model, in such a form of government the president assumes the functions of head of state, head of government and often also commander-in-chief of the armed forces. In Indonesia, the president is directly elected by the people every 5 years. Re-election is possible once.

Politically and administratively, the country is currently divided into 37 provinces, with Jakarta as the capital district.

You can find further up-to-date basic information at the German Foreign Office.