Mentawai Tribe Adventure
6 days / 5 nights | Siberut Island, West Sumatra, Indonesia | Private tour
This is the real thing, not a show. Travel by fast boat and dugout canoe to Siberut, then trek into the jungle to live for three nights with a Mentawai family in their traditional uma. Hunt and fish with your hosts, make sago, bark cloth and arrow poison, and see how one of Indonesia’s last traditional tribal cultures lives in harmony with the forest.
This is an example itinerary. We can tailor the hotels, pace and inclusions to suit you.
From NZ$2,490 per person twin share, low season.
Domestic flights are not included in the tour price (for example Jakarta to Padang and return). We quote these separately, along with your international flights.
Highlights
- Three nights living with a Mentawai family in a traditional uma
- Jungle trek into the interior of Siberut Island
- Hunt and fish with your hosts and learn jungle survival skills
- Make sago, a bark-cloth loincloth and traditional arrow poison
- Fast boat and motorised canoe journey through the Mentawai Islands
Day by Day
Your guide meets you at Minangkabau International Airport in Padang and takes you to your hotel. The rest of the day is free to rest up before the adventure begins. Dinner is at the hotel.
Meals: Dinner
Domestic flight to Padang not included.
After an early breakfast, take the fast boat to Muara Siberut in the Mentawai Islands, where you register for your permit to stay in the tribal area. Continue by motorised canoe to Rorogot, then trek through the jungle (about 2.5 hours) to Bat Osap village.
You stay in a traditional uma, a Mentawai family longhouse, with no beds, no air conditioning and limited electricity. Dinner is cooked by your host family.
There are no toilets in the village. Your porter brings toilet paper and sets up a private area, and bathing is in the river.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Join in daily life: trek into the forest to hunt or fish with your hosts, help make sago (their staple food), and learn the jungle skills the Mentawai have relied on for centuries. Your guide is with you throughout to explain and keep things safe.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Another day of immersion. Learn to make a traditional loincloth from tree bark (and wear it if you are brave enough) and see how poison is prepared for hunting arrows.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
A final breakfast with your hosts, then say goodbye and trek back to the canoe. Return by canoe and fast boat to Padang, with lunch at a local restaurant and dinner at the hotel.
Meals: Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Free time until your guide takes you to the airport for your flight home.
Meals: Breakfast
Domestic flight not included.
Where You Stay
- Padang (2 nights): Truntum Hotel, 3-star, Deluxe Room
- Bat Osap, Siberut (3 nights): traditional uma (family longhouse), shared space with mattress, sleeping bag and mosquito net
What’s Included
- 5 nights’ accommodation as listed
- Meals as listed: 5 breakfasts, 4 lunches, 5 dinners (simple local meals in the village)
- English-speaking certified adventure guide, plus porters for equipment
- Shared fast boat Padang to Siberut return, and motorised canoe to Rorogot return
- Permits and entrance fees
- Sleeping bag, mattress and mosquito net in the village
- Drinking water on trekking days
Not included: domestic and international flights, visas, travel insurance (must include emergency evacuation), drinks other than water, meals not listed, tips, and personal expenses.
Good to Know
- From NZ$2,490 per person twin share, low season. Prices change with travel dates, hotel choice and exchange rates, so ask us for a current quote.
- Domestic flights are not included in the tour price (for example Jakarta to Padang and return). We quote these separately, along with your international flights.
- Conditions in the village are very basic: no beds, toilets or air conditioning, and you wash in the river. Best suited to fit, adventurous travellers.
- The tour must start on a Friday to match the fast boat schedule. Other days need a charter boat at extra cost.
- Bring a backpack rather than a suitcase, as you carry your own gear on the 2.5-hour jungle trek (a porter for luggage can be added at extra cost).
- Pack good trekking shoes, rain gear, a torch, repellent and swimwear for river bathing.
- Malaria is present. Talk to a travel doctor before you go, and travel insurance with emergency evacuation cover is essential.
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