How to get to Banjarmasin

Posted on August 2nd, 2008 in tips for travelling how to get arround banjarmasin, how to get to banjarmasin

If you are planning to go to Banjarmasin, there are several ways available for you to get there. Here are some suggestion for you :

1. By plane

Banjarmasin’s airport is Syamsuddin Noor (BDJ), half an hour drive from the city. To go to the city, you can take a taxi (with fixed rate) or better yet, tell your hotel to pick you up. There are daily flights from many Indonesian cities including Jakarta and Surabaya. The airport is 26km from Banjarmasin.

2. By car

The roads of Trans-Kalimantan are in bad condition, but if you’re patient and adventurous you can try to reach Banjarmasin from the neighboring provinces of Central Kalimantan and East Kalimantan by car.

3. By ship

Another alternative to get to Banjarmasin is by ship from various places in Indonesia to Banjarmasin’s main harbour, Trisakti. Be forewarned that the condition of ship transportation in Indonesia is poor, and you might want to consider that before spending the night (at least 1 night if you come from Java). You best bet is Express Ferry where it’s available, only 8 hours from Java.

4.By boat

Alternatively, if you are coming from the neighboring provinces of East Kalimantan and Central Kalimantan, there are a lot of boat transportations through the rivers of Kalimantan. This could be an adventurous or boring ride depending on your taste. A range of boats are available, from slow moving boats to speedboats. It’s a great choice if you are extremely adaptable with the locals’ way of life.

After you get into Banjarmasin, you will need some information about how to get arround in this city. Well, you can use the metered taxi. You can insist the driver to use the meter if you have to. Alternatively, you can use “angkot” or “bamikro”, which interesting enough are also called “taxi” too by the locals. But make sure you don’t miss taking the “kelotok” or gondola to enjoy the city through the rivers and of course to shop at the floating market. Good luck.