Classic Medan to Padang tour incl. Jungle trekking in Ketambe

Today you arrive in Medan, you're welcomed by our guide with a paging sign with your name on it. If desired you can do a short city. You will visit the Maimun palace built in 1888 belonging to sultan of Deli. Visit the grand mosque Almashum built in the same period of the Maimun palace, located at the opposite of the palace. Last visit is the colorful Chinese temple, vihara Gunung Timur. After City tour bring to your hotel.

After breakfast, you drive on about 2.5 hours to Berastagi (1300m). This cool and picturesque hill town is flanked by two active volcanoes Sinabung (2417m) and Sibayak (2172m). It is the homeland of the Batak Karo, one of the six Batak tribes that inhabit the province of North Sumatra. Stop and wander around local fruit market. Transfer to hotel.

Our destination today is Ketambe (also called Gurah), a tiny, quiet and remote village in the middle of the jungle. It is still part of Gunung Leuser National Park but administratively situated in Aceh province. For many years Ketambe is the starting point for short and long trekking’s for researchers, wildlife photographers, adventurers and travelers hoping to catch a glimpse of Sumatran wildlife in its natural setting. Your afternoon is free to relax and chat with other/returning trekkers. Enjoy the exciting buzz in this town there is an adventure a head of you and you can feel it in the air.

We still enjoy breakfast at the lodge but then head out. First you walk along the main road, then we turn and head into the jungle. The game starts. You walk narrow and sometimes muddy trails to search for wild animals in their natural habitat. Usually Orangutan, Gibbon, Siamang, Thomas leaf monkeys, Macaques, reptiles, small mammals, many kind of birds (Eagles, Hornbills, Kingfisher etc), huge trees along with myriad of insects can be seen frequently. A wild orang utan might also cross your path. Your guide will explain you many things about the rainforest. And he will show you many different kinds of plants and flowers. Your meals are arranged for and you will camp for the night on the river banks in a real jungle camp!

The next morning you wake up at first light with the magical sounds of a jungle. It’s an incredible experience. You can ask to help prepare breakfast and break up camp or just sit and enjoy this moment. After breakfast, we walk further and have another day of jungle discovery ahead of us. Slowly head back to the hotel and have the rest of the late afternoon to relax at the lodge in Ketambe.

Scenic drive from the mainland Sumatr to Samosir, a volcanic island in the middle of lake Toba. This 640 sq km island is actually linked to the mainland Sumatra on its western part by a narrow land connecting town Pangururan on Samosir and Tele on the mainland. The lake Toba is one of the deepest and largest crater lake in the world with 100 km long and 30 km wide. The views along the journey are dotted with jungle, rivers, deep ravines, villages and breathtaking views of lake Toba. The journey ends up in Tuktuk, a peninsula on the eastern coast of Samosir island. It is the main tourist village and the concentration of accommodations, from simple guest house to upmarket resorts.

After breakfast, we head to central Samosir to a village at higher altitude and start a 3-4 hour downhill walk through bush, over rice field paths and paved road. Along route we meet people working their fields. Enjoy the great views of lake Toba during the walk! Your walk is softly interrupted with a stop at a traditional Batak village where we have tea/coffee with a local family. A picnic lunch is provided at a cool spot overlooking the lake. After your walk, we drive you back to the hotel for a leisure afternoon at the lakes’ shore.

Back in Parapat we drive to Sipirok. It is a beautiful route through the marching mountains Bukit Barisan. The views are dotted with scenic landscape of terraced paddy fields, deep ravines, jungle, villages and local market set close to the main road. The first part of the drive follows the other side of lake Toba so you can make another picture of breathtaking views across the lake. Visit the typical Toba Batak village Jangga Dolok. Also visit a small pineapple field, colourful market in Balige and sulphur hotspring in Sipoholon.

The journey today is rather long but worthwhile to exhibits the inner part of Sumatra. The scenery of mountains, rivers, valleys and traditional villages will relieve you from weariness. Stop at Sijornih waterfall and Sihepeng’s mini botanical garden to learn about herbs and spices of the tropical place. Here you may witness the use of pig-tailed macaques trained to harvest coconuts. Next stop at huge moslem school Purbabaru with hundreds of tiny huts. Finally late in the afternoon, celebrate crossing the equator in Bonjol village. From here it takes another 1.5 hours to reach the higland town of Bukittinggi, the cultural capital of the Minang realm and home to Minangkabau people. The specialty of this area is its distinctive architecture, spicy hot cuisine, wonderfull friendly people and matriarchal traditions.

A day trip to Harau valley, a nature and wildlife reserve surrounded by rock cliffs towering 100-200 meters high like a giant wall and covered with green forests. In the bottom of cliffs stretches vast paddy fields and green forests. Very scenic landscape! Enroute stop and walk around local market to search for and buy ingredients for your cooking lesson. Continue drive to the entrance of Harau from where you are taken by motorized becak to the place of your cooking course. It is a local family home. Here you will see the real life of Minangkabau people with its hospitality and friendliness. Then cookings begin. You will learn how to cook and experience an authentic meals so called Padang food. After cookings, lunch for what you cooked. Followed by a light walk around the valley. You will walk through the paddy field paths, village and some paved roads between giant cliffs as background. The atmosphere is quiet, unpolluted, and beauty as far as eyes could see. During the walk you would hear the calling of the black Siamang and gibbon. The walk ends at waterfall with swimming pool beneath. Take a quick dip to cool off before returning to Bukittinggi.

It is a scenic route on about 4 hours, through deep ravines, terraced rice fields and dense forest. Visit Koto Gadang, a small village famous as producer of silver work. Stop at Embun Pagi for viewing the spectacular views of the blue lake Maninjau. View waterfalls of Anai valley located very close to the main road. Arrive in Padang, short city tour to see Padang beach and Kampung Cina “China town” where old colonial buildings still line along the street.

We drive you to the airport in Padang for your flight to your next destination.