Which airport for visiting Yogyakarta (Java) and Bali?

Hi everyone (hope the forum becomes as active as it used to be),

We’re a group of 4 (2 adults and 2 kids aged 8–10) planning a trip to Indonesia. We’d like to visit (order doesn’t matter):

On Java: - Yogyakarta - Borobudur - Kawah Ijen

- Bali

- Lombok + the Gili Islands

But we’re wondering whether to fly in and out of Denpasar or take a flight to Jakarta and then leave from Denpasar. Unfortunately, we haven’t found any good flight options to Yogyakarta.

Thanks!

Hello,

I don’t know how much time you have, but it might be better to take a flight from Europe to Singapore or Kuala Lumpur, stay for 2 nights, then take a flight from Singapore or Kuala Lumpur to Yogyakarta via a low-cost airline.

Ideally, the ticket would be Europe – Yogyakarta/Lombok – Europe.

Europe – Surabaya or Solo/Denpasar – Europe.

A round-trip to DPS wouldn’t be so bad. (Domestic flight Yogyakarta–Lombok)

Thanks, we're planning to go for about 18 days

For an 18-day trip, it's better to take the round-trip option from Denpasar rather than trying to find a reasonable price for a Europe/Surabaya-Denpasar/Europe ticket.

From Surabaya, you can easily reach Bromo and then Yogya. A domestic flight will take you to Bali, and from eastern Bali, you can take an excursion to Kawa Ijen.

I’d skip Lombok, as it forces you into even longer transfers.

Thanks for the tips—so I need to plan a flight between Yogya and Bali... I thought we’d do everything by road.

I was thinking of going to the Gili Islands for some peace and quiet and to get away from it all, plus there’s snorkeling right from the beach.

Thanks

Doing everything by road is really long. And doing the same route twice....

To do everything by road, you’d need to land or depart from Yog.

I’m not sure the Gilis are a symbol of peace. Personally, I didn’t go there. South Lombok was quiet, but that was when I visited !

Thanks :)

According to the guidebook, Gili Meno island is quiet. But I get what you're saying. I'm looking for other flights.

Hello,

Back in 2012, we traveled through Java and Bali by road with our two 13-year-old kids. We spent 10 days in Java with the agency Java Exotic, then 18 days in Bali with a driver. During those 18 days in Bali, we did 7 days of diving. We arrived in Yogyakarta with a layover in Singapore and Jakarta. We left from Denpasar with a layover in Singapore.

hi there we’re just back from Indonesia. We flew Toulouse–Istanbul–Jakarta with Turkish Airlines—great airline, by the way. Then we spent two nights and a day in Jakarta before taking a Garuda or Batik flight to Yogyakarta and Denpasar (Bali). No complaints, baggage included. From Bali, we took a boat to Nusa Ceningan (the quietest island). Next, a boat to Gili Meno—the most peaceful of the three, the wildest. We booked two bungalows on the north side of the island, just 20 m from the beach where turtles come in the morning and late afternoon, about 1.5 m from the shore. Lots of fish and coral—no need for a tour. Then a 15-minute boat ride to Lombok, a Grab (Uber) car to Mataram, and a flight back to Jakarta. Everything went smoothly. Just be aware that traffic is heavy—e.g., in Bali, it can take at least 30 minutes to cover 10 km. This country is amazing. The people are lovely, respectful, polite, and welcoming. You can eat really well for cheap when it’s local food. European food costs a bit more, but it’s still reasonable.

Hi, If there isn’t a good deal for a round-trip to Singapore plus low-cost add-ons SGP-Jogja and Denpasar-SGP at the end, the simplest option will be an open-jaw ticket: Europe-JKT one way, then return from Denpasar. From JKT to Jogja, take a low-cost flight or the overnight train. For the rest of the itinerary, use the usual road and sea transport.

Don’t plan to return from the Gili Islands on the same day as your return flight.

Thanks for the info—seeing the turtles up close would be really awesome!

Thanks