Driver's License

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So that you can move around town independently, we recommend that you get an international drivers license before you leave your home country. Most vehicles in Indonesia are motorcycles and scooters. If you intend to ride a motorcycle, make sure that the use of a motorcycle is clearly stated on your international driver’s licence. A motorcycle certification will almost always include scooter use. Some states/countries include scooter use (50cc or less) in their regular car driver license. If you don’t have a motorcycle driver’s license, you cannot drive most motorbikes/scooters in Indonesia since most of them are more powerful than 50cc's. Your travel insurance and health insurance will not cover you if you are not wearing a helmet or if you do not have the proper license for the vehicle you are using.

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Indonesian driver’s licenses for motorbikes can be procured in Jakarta and in Denpesar, Bali, but it will take one or two days of your time.

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Indonesian Travel Visas

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If you plan to stay NOT longer than one month:

Purchase a Tourist visa on arrival for up to 30 (thirty) days. This costs US $25.00.

 

Note: 

• Your passport must be valid for a minimum of 6 (six) months from the date of entry into Indonesia.

• Visa on Arrival is usually not extendable and not convertible into other types of visas. (Visitors who overstay incur a penalty of US$20 per day for under 60 days over-stay. For more than a 60 day overstay you may incur a 5 (five) year prison sentence or a fine of IDR 25.000.000.)

 

If you plan to stay NOT longer than two months:

The Visa-on-Arrival is valid for up to 30 days at a cost of $35. You can extend a Visa-on-Arrival only ONCE for a maximum of 30 days by applying at an immigration office in Indonesia. The cost to extend a Visa-on-Arrival is $35. 

 

If you want to stay up to six months:

You need to apply for the Cultural Visa BEFORE you enter Indonesia (e.g., in your country or at an Indonesian embassy in other country you might visit first). The Cultural Visa is valid for 60 days and can be extended monthly up to a total stay of 6 months afterwards. In Singapore a Cultural Visa costs $170, and a monthly extension in Indonesia (Pati) costs 350.000 Rp. Sponsorship is required by an Indonesian citizen, who will be Nanik. An extension is only possible at the regency where your sponsor lives. Therefore, you have to go to the immigration office in Pati every month after the frist 60 days. With the Cultural Visa you are not allowed to do business in Indonesia or to take up employment.

 

For the Cultural Visa, Nanik will sponsor you and provide you with the following documents:

• Sponsorship letter

• Photocopy of sponsor's identity card

• Copy of sponsor's family register

• Copy of sponsor's bank account statements

You need to supply:

• A photocopy of your passport

• 2 (two) passport sized photographs

 

More information is available at: http://www.visabali.com/tourist-visas.php.

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How does the Cultural Visa extension work at the immigration office?

The first time, you fill in all applicable forms, and you will need to go through an interview. Bring two copies of your passport, including the Indonesian visa and a materei stemp, a letter from the village office and a copy of Nanik's ID card.

The second time they will take a picture and your finger prints.

About one week later, you can pay and pick up your passport.

You will need to provide these documents every time you extend your visa.

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How do I get to Pati?

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There are many options of how to get here. You can take the airplane from Jakarta to Semerang (a 1 hour flight). Then you can take the local bus (about two hours) to Pati. You can take the bus straight from Jakarta to Pati (about 12 hours). If you email us, we can send you detailed information about transportation options and prices for getting to Pati.

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Learning Bahasa Indonesia

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We encourage you to learn Indoensian, as language is the key to learning about people and culture. Most older people do not speak English, and learning Indonesian is much appreciated and will be rewarded with invitations, smiles, friendship, and a deeper insight into Indonesian culture. 

Indonesian is one of the easiest languages in the world (there is only one article, and verb tenses don't change). In order to learn the most important words and phrases we recommend the free app "50 languages" (choose your own language and the language you want to learn, Bahasa Indonesia. 
For learning the simple grammar rules downloead "A Student's Guide to Indonesian Grammar - John Curran" (link). 
Furthermore, Peace Place has three Language workbooks that you can use.