Yogyakarta: People, Culture and Wellness

5 days / 4 nights  |  Java, Indonesia  |  Private tour for 2 to 10 travellers

Java beyond the guidebook. Explore two of Asia’s great temples, Prambanan and Borobudur, step inside a working Sultan’s palace, and spend time with villagers and batik masters who keep Javanese traditions alive. In between, slow right down with sound healing, a royal spa ritual and a dinner served like a king’s feast, all from a five-star villa base.

This is an example itinerary. We can tailor the hotel, pace and inclusions to suit you.

From NZ$4,110 per person twin share, low season.

Enquire about this tour

Highlights

  • Sunset-hour visit to Borobudur, the world’s largest Buddhist monument
  • The soaring Hindu shrines of Prambanan
  • The Sultan’s Palace, still a royal residence
  • Village visit and home-cooked dinner at Karangrejek
  • Make your own batik with master artisans
  • Two-hour royal Javanese spa treatment and sound healing session
  • Four nights in a five-star villa

Day by Day

Your guide and driver meet you at Yogyakarta International Airport for the drive into the city (about 1.5 hours).

Locals call it Jogja. It is the cultural heart of Java, a city of artists, students and royalty, and one of the friendliest places in Indonesia.

After lunch, check in to your villa and ease into holiday mode with a 30-minute foot massage. In the early evening your guide takes you for a wander down Malioboro Street to see the city come alive after dark. Dinner is your own choice tonight.

Meals: Lunch
Note: hotel check-in is from 2 pm.

Leave around 9 am for Prambanan, a UNESCO World Heritage Hindu temple complex from the 9th century. Its tall, pointed shrines honour Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, and your guide will bring the stories and carvings to life.

Lunch is at a local restaurant looking out to the temple and Mount Merapi.

In the afternoon, head out to Karangrejek Village on the edge of Yogyakarta. Meet the locals whose community projects have lifted life in the village, stroll around, and try fried tempeh and jamu, the traditional herbal tonic Javanese drink daily. The villagers then cook a special dinner in your honour before you return to the hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

An early start at 6.30 am with a 75-minute sound healing session, using the vibrations of traditional instruments to relax and reset.

Then visit the Sultan’s Palace (Kraton), built between 1756 and 1790 and still home to the Sultan today. Depending on the day you may catch a puppet show or classical Javanese poetry.

Drive out to the countryside for lunch with views of Borobudur and the Menoreh Hills, then explore Borobudur itself in the soft late-afternoon light. This vast Buddhist monument, with its stone reliefs and bell-shaped stupas, is one of the great sights of Southeast Asia.

Back at the hotel, enjoy an intimate dinner for two.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Batik is recognised by UNESCO as a masterpiece of intangible heritage, and today you make your own. Visit the home workshop of two master artisans, learn the traditional techniques, then draw, wax and dye a piece of cloth to take home.

Lunch is a tasting of four surprise Javanese dishes at a local restaurant, introduced by the chef.

This afternoon is pure indulgence: a two-hour royal body treatment at a spa founded by five princesses of the Yogyakarta Palace, set in an 1890 royal residence. It includes a traditional Javanese massage with green coconut oil and your choice of natural body scrub.

Finish with Ladhosan Dhahar, a traditional dinner served as a feast fit for a king.

Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner

Enjoy breakfast and a relaxed morning at the hotel before your private transfer to Yogyakarta airport (about 1.5 hours). Fly home, or let us add a few days in Bali, East Java or beyond.

Meals: Breakfast

Where You Stay

Garrya Bianti Yogyakarta (5-star), Sunset View Villa, 4 nights.
Prefer something different? We can quote other hotels.

What’s Included

  • 4 nights’ accommodation as above
  • Private air-conditioned vehicle with driver for all transfers and touring
  • English-speaking local guide
  • Meals as listed: 4 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 3 dinners
  • Entrance fees for the visits mentioned
  • Foot massage, sound healing session, batik workshop and royal spa treatment
  • Drinking water while touring

Not included: international and domestic flights (we can quote these for you), travel insurance, meals not listed, camera or video fees at sights, early check-in or late check-out, and personal expenses such as laundry and phone calls.

Good to Know

  • From NZ$4,110 per person twin share, low season. Prices change with travel dates, hotel choice and exchange rates, so ask us for a current quote.
  • Minimum 2 travellers, maximum 10.
  • Idul Fitri falls on 9 to 10 March 2027. Roads, trains and flights across Java are extremely busy around the holiday and some guides and restaurants are unavailable, so we advise against overland travel between 2 and 17 March 2027.
  • Domestic flights are not included in the tour price (for example Bali or Jakarta to Yogyakarta, and onward). We quote these separately, along with your international flights. The tour starts and ends at Yogyakarta International Airport.

Interested in this tour? Use this form and I’ll be in touch.
Feel free to phone or email if you’d prefer.

Want to know how it works first? Read how I plan and book your trip.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA
Our Privacy Policy and Booking Terms and Conditions apply.