According to The World Factbook, with its 17,508 islands, Indonesia has the second longest coastline in the world after Canada. More importantly, Indonesia is a tropical country on the equator, so the sun shines all year round and the water is always warm. The result? Amazing beaches. As someone who loves beaches and swimming in the sea (as opposed to snorkelling or diving), I am not easy to please when it comes to picking the best. The problem is, there are so many of them in Indonesia. To get my list down to nine I had to create some strict criteria.
They have to be quiet, clean, open to the public for free, wide and sandy, free of coral, and have crystal clear waters. They should not be too shallow, nor have strong currents or high waves, and they should, if possible, have something unique about them. These are the best beaches in Indonesia for swimming, listed in order of distance from Jakarta, starting with the furthest away.
1. Jam Island, Misool District, Raja Ampat, West Papua
If you are looking for the region of Indonesia with the greatest number of fantastic beaches, the answer is easy Raja Ampat. The area is still completely unspoilt so all the beaches here look good. But beware: Raja Ampat is the size of East Java. Fuel is expensive in Papua and available only in limited quantities, so it is not cheap getting there and renting a boat will cost you an arm and a leg.
From the hundreds of spectacular beaches here, which includes the Wayag Islands and its spectacular scenery, if I had to pick just one, my choice would be Jam Island. This uninhabited island in the Misool District, far to the south of Raja Ampat, is extremely isolated. It is perfect for swimming with soft white sands, a wide, open beach and crystal clear water. If you swim out a bit you can enjoy healthy coral reefs full of colour and marine life. The view inland is of amazing karst hills and, after it rains, if you're lucky you'll get to see rainbows whose ends disappear into the sea!
2. Iboih Beach, Weh Island, Aceh
Although Aceh is the only province in Indonesia to follow sharia law, women (apart from the local people) are free to wear whatever swimwear they like on Weh Island. This it the most western point of Indonesia and the nearest city is actually Sabang in Malaysia The centre for dive operators in Aceh is on Iboih Island, and there are plenty of cheap and simple bungalows for rent. The beach is completely hidden and it is quite a walk up and down hills through thick forests to get there. The trees provide shade for part of the beach so it's a great place to relax and read a book in the sea breeze. It's also protected from the currents by Rubiah Island so the water here is as calm as a lake.
3. Ngurbloat Island, Kepulauan Kei, Maluku
The Kei Islands (also called Kai) are in the middle of the Province of Maluku. I found out about this location from the Lonely Planet Blue List which named it among the top ten beaches in the world. They even have the coolest airport code here LUV! Romantic, right?. There are a lot of pretty beaches in the Kei Islands, but the most spectacular is Ngurbloat Island, also known as Pantai Pasir Panjang.
This beach has bright white sand (not offwhite or beige) that is as soft as baby powder something similar to what you find in the Maldives. It is also so wide it is sometimes used as a football field by the locals. Lining the beach are thousands of palm trees and dozens of wooden huts you can rent to relax in. On the weekend the locals like to come for a picnic, but this beach is five kilometres long so you'll never have a problem finding a quiet spot.
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| Ngurbloat Island, Kepulauan Kei, Maluku |
Wakatobi, also known as the Tukang Besi Islands, is famous for its marine life. Here you can find 750 of the 850 species of coral known to man. However, even as a nondiver, the beaches here are excellent for swimming.
Pulau Nda'a is an uninhabited island with beaches that are wider than the vegetated areas at its centre. There is not much shade here so come prepared with plenty of sun block. It is so exposed the clouds seem like they are floating closer to the Earth. The beaches are sandy and wide making it is a great place for taking photos of the family messing around or just relaxing in the sand. The sea here is excellent for swimming; clear waters, not too deep, it is sandy underfoot and there are no waves.
5. Batu Putih Beach, Alor Island, Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT)
Alor is the biggest of the Alor Islands, located at the far eastern side of the Sunda Kecil Islands. These are the islands furthest to the east after Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa and Flores. Unlike most of the rest of the Province which is mostly dry savannah land, Alor is full of green hills and fertile soils.
The island is best known for its diving, but when you see the beaches you will be sorely tempted.
My favourite is Batu Putih Beach as it is surrounded by white karst cliffs. It is actually right next to a fishing village but is still quiet and clean, and the village people are friendly and welcoming. Underwater visibility in the Alor Sea can be up to 30 metres, so the water is incredibly clear and you can see plenty of underwater life from above the surface. Because local fishermen still employ traditional methods to catch their harvest, the amazing selection of marine life flourishing here remains completely undisturbed.
6. Ratenggaro Beach, West Sumba, NTT
Sumba is an island almost as large as Bali and forms part of Nusa Tenggara Timur. This island has never been promoted as a tourism destination and remains almost untouched. It is famous for its horses and woven cloths, but it is also an incredibly beautiful island. The beaches here are all clean and empty.
My choice is Ratenggaro Beach in the Kodi Regency, about an hour's drive from Waikabubak. Its white sandy beaches are ringed with low stone cliffs where you can also find megalithic tombstones. The unusual thing about this one is its location at the mouth of a river, which itself has blue water and a sandy bottom. This confluence of fresh water and sea water creates a stunning lagoon, set against a backdrop of traditional high roofed Sumba houses. Sometimes the locals come down to wash their horses which makes for a truly exotic scene.
7. Pink Beach, Komodo Island
If you are looking for pink sand you no longer need head for the Bahamas we have it right here in Indonesia on Komodo Island. The locals call it Pantai Merah (Red Beach), but it is better known around the world as Pink Beach. On this beach you will not find a single building to disturb your view, and it is located on an uninhabited island so you will most likely have it all to yourself.
Imagine yourself on a beach with a sea that disappears into the horizon in varying shades of blue, surrounded by green forested hills, clear blue skies, little white fluffy clouds... and then imagine the sand is bright pink! The colour comes from the combination of white and red corals that grow off the coast of this island. Swim a little out to sea and the reefs and marine life here are truly amazing, although you'd best take your diving gear if you want to really enjoy the underwater view.
8. Peucang Island, Banten
Peucang Island is part of Ujung Kulon National Park. Peucang means "deer" in the local dialect and they are a common site on the island. Unfortunately, there are also monkeys, so be careful leaving your stuff lying around on the beach!
Peucang Island is the closest beach to the island of Java in this list and offers soft white sands and gentle blue seas. There are places to stay here but the beach can be visited by anyone. It is more often used as a place to rest up after treks through the Ujung Kulon National Park. I guarantee when your boat comes in and you see how beautiful this beach is you will be itching to jump straight in!
9. Tanjung Tinggi Beach, Pulau Belitung
Belitung is famous in Indonesia because of the book and subsequent film, Laskar Pelangi. However, the island offers more than just the dilapidated school and coffee shops of the movie, and many of its amazing beaches are dotted with giant rocks. Most travelers use this place as a starting point for trips out to the islands, but the nearby beaches are mostly too shallow and too rocky for my taste. Perhaps the people visiting them are not such good swimmers and prefer to spend their time taking photographs!
My favourite beach here is Tanjung Tinggi, although not the section used in the shooting of Laskar Pelangi, the best part is right opposite Hotel Lor In. Because it is right on a busy road, there is hardly ever anyone brave enough to swim there except for westerners. In my opinion, this is the best beach that is reasonably easy to get to from Jakarta. The sand is soft and white, the water is clear, calm, deep and flatit's like swimming in a pool! Enjoy!
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