Bukit Lawang
Located
86 km from Medan, the third largest city in Indonesia and the biggest
city in island of Sumatra, Bukit Lawang is name of a village located on
the edge of the Gunung Leuser National Park. “Gunung” means “mountain”,
“Bukit” means “hill” and “Lawang” means “door”, therefore, Bukit Lawang
means The hill which is the gateway to the mountain. Bukit Lawang is one
of the entrance to Gunung Leuser National Park, the last sanctuary of
the Sumatran Orangutan. Bukit Lawang, from 1972-2001, was the site of an
orangutan rehabilitation project, with 229 ex-captive orangutans
rescued from the pet trade having passed through the program. Nowadays,
Bukit Lawang is considered one of the best gateways unto experiencing
the many marvels of the Gunung Leuser National Park. Although no longer a
center for active rehabilitation and release, the forests surrounding
Bukit Lawang still offer many opportunities to observe orangutans and
many other amazing species of fauna and flora.
Notes : Orangutan Information Centre
Uphill
is the orangutan resort, a feeding center for semi wild Sumatran
Orangutan. It’s about half hour climb from the hostel. The resort is
open to visitors twice a day, at 8 o’clock in the morning and at 3
o’clock in the afternoon. The boatman or keeper used to bring you over
the river in a small canoe.
How to go to Bukit Lawang
There
are tourist buses leaving from most towns in North Sumatra to Bukit
Lawang. In Medan you have the option of catching a local bus, very
large, slow and crowded but very cheap, 10,000Rp. It will take 3.5 to 4
hours in the local bus as it also stops many times along the way to
drop and pick up locals. You will need to get a becak or taxi to the
bus depot in Medan - Pinang Baris. It will cost around 35,000Rp for a
becak. A taxi will cost aroun 70,000 - 80,000Rp from the centre of
Medan to get to Pinang Baris Bus Terminal.
You
can also take a mini-bus from Pinang Baris for 20,000Rp. The
mini-buses take around 3 hours to get to Bukit Lawang as they do not
stop as many times along the way. The mini-buses do not leave from the
main bus terminal. Travel down the road that runs past the bus terminal
a few hundred meters and your will find the mini-buses outside the
large pastry store (you can't miss it).
Private Transport from Medan to Bukit Lawang
If
you would like a car to collect you from your hotel in Medan or from
the airport and be taken to Bukit Lawang click here to contact us. Price
is 600,000Rp (around 49 Euros) for up to 4 people. This is a quicker,
safer trip of under 3 hours from your hotel or the airport. The vehicle
used is a new air-conditioned "AVANZA"
Read the comments from people who have used this service
Contact us if you have a larger group and a price can be quoted for a larger vehicle.
