A plan for Bandung

History

On the banks of Cikapundung River and the shores of Bandung's Great Lake, there were numerous archeological early human remains found, including of "Java Man", estimated to be about a million years old.

The first written reference to the city of Bandung is from 1488, when it was established as part of the Sunda Kingdom.

In the 17th to 18th centuries, the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC) created small plantations in Bandung, with a road to Batavia (today's Jakarta) completed in 1786. In 1809, Louis Bonaparte, the ruler of the Netherlands and its colonies, ordered the Dutch Indies Governor H.W. Daendels to improve Java's defenses against the threat of the English, who occupied the nearby Malay peninsula. Daendels responded by building the Great Post Road (De Groote Postweg) that stretched about 1000 km between the west and the east coasts of Java. The road was diverted through Bandung along what is now Jalan Asia-Afrika because of the North Coast's impassable swamps and marshes at the time.

Daendels liked Bandung's strategic location so much that he ordered the capital to be moved there. Military barracks were built and Bupati Wiranatakusumah II, the chief administrator of that area, built his dalem (palace), Masjid Agung (The Grand Mosque) and pendopo (meeting place) in the classical Javan alun-alun (city square) near a pair of holy city wells (Sumur Bandung) and facing the mystical mountain of Tangkuban Perahu (near Lembang).

Powered by its cinchona (for malaria drug quinine), tea, and coffee plantations, Bandung prospered and developed into an exclusive European style resort with hotels, cafes, and shops. Many of Bandung landmarks, including the Preanger and Savoy Homann hotels, as well as the shopping street of Jalan Braga, are still available today. The Concordia Society building, now Gedung Merdeka, was built with a large ball room as a club for rich Europeans to spend their weekends.

Individual listings can be found in Bandung's district articles

Colonial architecture

With Bandung being one of the main cities of the Dutch East Indies, many colonial buildings were built in the city in the second half of the 19th century, and especially the first half of the 20th century. Most of the colonial buildings can be found in the city centre, as well as in the Dago area where extensive expansions of the city took place in the early 20th century.

A key architectural style used in the Dutch East Indies in the 19th century was the Indies Empire style. A key example of this style in Bandung is Gedung Pakuan in Central Bandung, built in the 1860s as the new residence of the resident of the residency of Parahyangan, as its capital was moved from Cianjur to Bandung. The most famous colonial buildings of Bandung are however not those with classical styles, but those with modernist architecture. The city has one of the world's largest number of buildings in Art Deco style. The key architects of this period (mainly 1920-1940) include C.P.W. (Wolff) Schoemaker, A.F. (Albert) Aalbers, and Henri Maclaine Pont. All of them were known for combining modernist European architecture (including Art Deco) with style elements from Indonesian cultures.

Individual listings can be found in Bandung's district articles

There are many activities that you can do in the city or outside the city. As Bandung highland is surrounded by a string of mountains, activities in the outskirts of the city are centred about the mountain resorts, adventure activities and outdoor sports. In the city, you can have savor the culinary diversity (see the Eat section), shop at the cheap outlets and distros (see the Buy section) or just hang around.

Every Sunday is Car-Free Day along Jalan Dago from Cikapayang to the north to Simpang-Siliwangi 06:00-10:00. Come as early as possible, because it can become hectic, as it is only a small street.

Every Sunday you can find a Sunday Market in Gasibu, which is located to the north of Gedung Sate. You can find a variety of food and handicrafts for an affordable price.

Ram Fighting. Villages around Bandung host ram fights on alternate Sundays. It's a big event for locals who turn out in their hundreds to watch 5-minute bouts between prize fighter male sheep. Tournaments are held in purpose-built rings in outlying villages. Best to hire a motorbike/guide in Bandung who knows when and where the next tournament is on. Ram fighting is not a blood sport but animal lovers may be upset at the sight of the fights, which are organized and refereed rather like boxing matches.

Outdoor activities

Puncrut-Lembang walking trail. Begins at Puncrut, Jl. Kiputih, North Bandung. For beginners or who save the stamina, it is better to go to Ledeng first and continue to Lembang by angkot and ask people to go down to Puncrut.

The Tangkuban Perahu volcano is about 20 km north of Bandung, near Lembang.

The Kawah Putih (White Crater) lake is about 40 km south of Bandung, near Ciwidey.

Ranca upas is a camping ground in a protected area where campers can interact with and observe deer from up close

Individual listings can be found in Bandung's district articles

Bandung is a heaven for food lovers who enjoy new experiences. There is a huge variety of places to eat, ranging from thousands of travelling hawkers and warung food stalls to high-end restaurants. Prices vary equally, but are generally lower than in Jakarta. A good meal from a warung or simple restaurant is likely to cost less than Rp30,000, but in high-end restaurants and in luxurious hotels you can easily spend 10 times this.

Budget eateries, including street food, are abundant throughout the city. Most of the higher-end restaurants can be found in the city centre and towards the north of the city, mainly in the Dago area. In addition, there is a huge range of restaurants (from cheap fast food to high-end international cuisine) in the shopping malls, with the Paris Van Java mall in Northwest Bandung and the Trans Studio Mall in South Bandung standing out.

Although vegetarian restaurants are not common, many Indonesian (and Sundanese) dishes are vegetarian. It is therefore relatively easy to find vegetarian food, such as lotek (spicy vegetable salad) and dishes with tahu (tofu) and tempe. Be aware, however, that many dishes are served with sambal (chili sauce) that may contain terasi (shrimp paste), or with krupuk udang (shrimp crackers).

Your culinary tour in Bandung does not end at the restaurants and cafés. There are plenty of bakeries in the city where exotic pastries entices you to bring one home — a legacy of the Dutch colonial time. Some of them have a high popularity, that you may have to be in a queue even before the shop opens!

Individual listings can be found in Bandung's district articles

Nightlife

Alcohol is usually not served in most restaurants and cafés. However, there are many upscale bars and restaurants that serve alcohol, as well as various nightclubs. Many bars also serve imported beers and spirits, but prices are high. The most popular nightlife areas among expats and tourists is the Dago area in North Bandung, but there are also various bars and lounge clubs in the city centre. Among the most popular nightlife venues are the Amnesia and Southbank clubs in Central Bandung, Golden Monkey in North Bandung, and Sobber's Bar in Northwest Bandung. Karaoke (KTV) venues are ubiquitous. Note that some karaoke bars (mainly in a few streets and alleys near the central Alun-alun square, and along Jalan Setiabudhi towards Lembang) are in fact brothels. Regular KTV venues can be recognised by being branded 'family karaoke'. The most well-known chains include NAV, Inul Vizta, and Happy Puppy.

Cafés and coffee houses

Similar in other big cities like Jakarta and Surabaya, coffee houses are a popular place to hang out and also are always packed after working hours or on the weekends. Most coffee places in Bandung are amping up their appearances as well to attract many more customers.

Travelling around in Bandung can be quite complex and frustrating, especially to newcomers, because there is no mass rapid transit system. Locals travel using small public minibuses, known as angkot from angkutan = transport and kota = city. Private vehicle ownership, whether cars or motorbikes/mopeds, is also very widespread; expect high traffic.

By angkot

This option has only origin and destination names on top, sometimes with a description of which street they pass if there is more than one angkot route for a certain origin-destination route.

Although there is an official price for angkot from Organda (the local regulator of these private city transport), it is usually based on how far you travel. It's better to ask the driver or kernet (driver assistance) about the price to go to a location. To ask for an angkot to stop and pick you up, just raise your hand. When you're inside and want to stop, just ask the kernet to stop or say 'kiri' (kee-ree) or simply 'stop'. It used to be easy to find a bell that you could press to stop, but not anymore. Most angkot fares usually about Rp3,000-5,000. For very short distances below 1½ km, Rp2,000 is enough, while for taking an angkot into the suburbs the price may be slightly higher.

The official angkot routes are listed on Bandung's City Government website. Using phone maps is sufficient, but the maps from Project Kiri has clearer explanation to get you to somewhere in Bandung i.e. which angkot you should take.

Some angkot have the same destination, but different routes, such as Angkot No. 01, which runs from Cicaheum to Kebon Kelapa via Trans Studio Mall, whereas Angkot No. 02 goes through Jalan Aceh.

The emergency phone number for police is 110, while the fire brigade can be reached via (022)113. There are numerous police stations in the city, with the largest ones being the provincial police headquarters (Polda) in East Bandung, and the city police headquarters (Polrestabes) in Central Bandung. There are 28 local police stations (Polsek) scattered throughout the city.