Evening in Bukit Lawang
I had a very short flight from Penang, Malaysia to Medan, Indonesia and I made it to Bukit Lawang from Medan on a shared shuttle to go jungle trekking. Bukit Lawang is a small town that is about a 3.5-hour car ride from Medan, and many people go there to see wildlife. There are 4D3N (4 Days 3 Nights), 3D2N, 2D1N, and one-day trekking options from Medan or Bukit Lawang. Hiring a local guide or joining a group tour is a must for trekking and most of the tours offer transportation to Bukit Lawang from Medan or the airport.
It was my first time in North Sumatra to check out wild orangutans and monkeys in Indonesia so I decided to go on an overnight (2D1N) jungle trekking tour to see the wildlife.
Itinerary
Day 0
1:30pm: Arrived at the airport in Medan at 1pm from Penang, got picked up from my guide at the airport.
3pm: arrived at the Medan City to pick up another person in my tour. I booked shared shuttle to make it cost-friendly.
7:30pm: made multiple stops throughout our ride to Bukit Lawang (fruit shopping, late lunch, ATM stops etc.) and arrived in Bukit Lawang.
8pm: got dropped off at my homestay, had dinner and went to bed
Day 1
8:30am: got picked up from the guide via motorbike at my homestay to get to the meeting point for the hike.
9:30am: all my group members came to meeting point and we started trekking.
3pm: arrived at the basecamp after all the trekking and wildlife watching. (Lunch was served and we had numerous fruit breaks) Trekking was VERY EASY & FAMILY-FRIENDLY.
3pm-6pm: free time. Some people went swimming in the river which was right in front of the campsite.
6:30pm: Dinner served. We did campfire, played games after dinner.
10pm: Bed at 10. I usually go to bed early when camping, but I didn’t feel tired at all from the trekking we did+ I met a friend who we chatted for a bit even after everyone went to bed.
Day 2
6:30am: woke up, got dressed, journaling + meditating before brekkie
8am-9am time for breakfast, packed up for another day of trekking
9:30am: started trekking.
Noon: we had lunch and those who signed up for overnight camping started walking back down around 1:30pm. (My group was consisted of people who were trekking for 2D1N, 3D2N and 4D3N so we ended up splitting on the second day.
3pm: arrived at the river to prep for tubing down.
3:30pm: arrived in Bukit Lawang after 30min of tubing
10pm: arrived at my homestay, had dinner, made phone calls, caught up with texts etc., and went to bed
Last Day in Medan
8am: shared shuttle pick up to head back to Medan
11am: arrived in Medan, hostel check-in in Medan & explored Medan city
Trekking
As mentioned, trekking was extremely easy and family-friendly. We saw Thomas leaf monkeys, orangutans, stick insects (that actually look like sticks), and much more along the way. I love wildlife, but seeing monkeys for 2days was enough for me so the overnight camping trip worked out very well. The guides carried tons of fruits and food for us to snack on and we had fruit breaks every 2 hours.
*Did You Know??*
The word, "Orangutan" is Indonesian. Orang means person/human and (h)utan means forest/wood. Orangutan literally means a person living in the forest.
(1) Female orangutan, (2) exploring in the forest, (3) male orangutan
Camping
A blanket and a pillow were already prepared for us when we arrived at the campsite after trekking. We didn’t sleep inside a tent; we stayed under a hut with mosquito nets. Every person had a very thin mattress to sleep on, so we didn’t have a sleeping bag. Plus, it wasn’t cold at night since we were sleeping under a hut. I don’t think this is „camping“ but people called it „camping“ so I will call it that way too. Dinner together with the group, the campfire and the games we played were nice, and it was great to wind down at the end of the day.
(1) our campsite, (2) dinner together by the river (3) the river where people went swimming
Tubing
I loved tubing down after all the trekking. It was group tubing (the guides tied the black donut tubes together so we are together at all times.) It was great to cool off at the end of the trip! We didn’t had to worry about trekking back down!
Tubing was the highlight of the second day of jungle trekking!
I would recommend to visit Bukit Lawang when traveling North Sumatra. Although it’s located in the remote area, it’s a perfect place for wildlife lovers to see orangutans/monkeys and enjoy time outside camping. Even Medan city was a great place to explore for 1day since there were not many travelers there and the moment I stepped out of my hostel, everyone was local. My first trip in Indonesia was very successful!
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