Kaliurang hills and the Ullen Sentalu museum

A cool old hill town on the volcano’s flank, pine-scented trails, and a mysterious museum of Javanese princesses hidden in a stone labyrinth.

Area

Merapi & the north

Start from

Yogyakarta

Distance

about 25 km north

Time needed

1 day

Best season

All year; a good escape from the heat, also on rainy days

Difficulty

Easy

Transport

Ride-hailing car or hired car

Tickets & rules

Museum ticket with compulsory guided tour; no photography inside the galleries

Why go

When the heat in the city gets too much, Jogja’s families drive up to Kaliurang. At around 900 metres on the slopes of Merapi, the air is fresh, the forest is green, and there’s a pleasantly faded charm to its old colonial villas, simple restaurants and weekend crowds eating jadah tempe, sticky rice cakes with sweet tempeh.

The main reason I come back is Ullen Sentalu. This private museum, built of grey volcanic stone and moss, follows corridors, courtyards and underground galleries into the world of the royal courts of Yogyakarta and Surakarta. Guides lead you in small groups, telling stories of princesses, their love letters, poems, batik and their relationships with colonial powers.

It’s an unusual museum, intimate and theatrical. You can’t photograph inside, which makes you look harder and remember more. Afterwards, walk among the pines in the nearby forest park or sit with a cup of ginger tea while the clouds roll in over the mountain.

The story

Kaliurang developed as a mountain retreat in the colonial period, when Dutch residents built villas to escape the heat of the plain. It later played a part in Indonesian history: in 1948 the Kaliurang negotiations, under international mediation, were held here during the conflict over Indonesian independence. Today it is above all a weekend place for local families.

Ullen Sentalu opened in 1997, created by a Yogyakarta family with links to the court. The name is an acronym of a Javanese phrase about the light that guides people through life. The museum is known for its collection of portraits and personal objects of royal women, and for its rooms dedicated to batik and the differences between the court styles of Jogja and Solo.

One of the most touching sections tells the story of a princess of the Solo court and the letters written to her by friends and relatives in the 1930s and 1940s, full of advice, affection and gossip. Another room presents the gamelan and court dance. The design, with its maze of stone walls, moss, water and dim light, makes it feel like walking through a memory.

Above Kaliurang, the slopes of Merapi are a national park. Short walks lead through forest to viewpoints, and on clear mornings you can see the summit up close. The area was affected by the 2010 eruption and access depends on the volcano’s alert level.

Getting there

Kaliurang is about 45 minutes to an hour from central Jogja by car, along Jalan Kaliurang, the long road that runs north past the university. Ride-hailing cars go up, but for the way back it can be harder to find one; consider hiring a car for the day.

The museum is just below the town centre. Tours run regularly throughout the day and last around an hour; arrive early at weekends.

A suggested plan

1. 9:00Drive up from Jogja, with a stop for breakfast on Jalan Kaliurang.
2. 10:00Guided tour of Ullen Sentalu.
3. 11:30Walk in the pine forest of the national park above the town.
4. 13:00Lunch in Kaliurang, with jadah tempe for dessert.
5. 15:00Return to Jogja, or combine with a Merapi jeep tour the next morning.

Where to stay

Kaliurang has small hotels and villas, many a little old-fashioned. It’s a good place for a quiet night before a Merapi jeep tour at dawn.

Good to know

• Bring a light jacket; it can be surprisingly cool, especially in the afternoon rain.
• Tours of Ullen Sentalu are available in English; ask at the ticket office.
• Weekdays are much calmer than weekends.