What to See in Jakarta - Top Sights and Attractions

Shopping mall in Central Jakarta, Indonesia. Senayan City is a mixed-use development located in Senayan area, Central Jakarta, Indonesia. The complex comprises a seven-floor high end shopping mall, two boutique office towers and an apartment tower. During construction, premium hotel chain Sofitel had planned to open in Senayan City with an estimated opening for 2007, which was ultimately scrapped. Senayan City is built on a land area of 48,000 m2 owned by the Bung Karno Stadium Authority. It is built and managed by Manggala Gelora Perkasa, a subsidiary of Agung Podomoro Group, under the BOT contract for 50 years which starts in 2005. They used Pulau Intan as their main contractor, Structure and mechanical engineering contractor. The development was designed by DP Architects.

The shopping mall, soft opened on 23 June 2006 and grand opened on 21 September 2006.^[3]

National history museum opened in 1868. The National Museum of Indonesia, is an archeological, historical, ethnological, and geographical museum located in Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat, Central Jakarta, right on the west side of Merdeka Square. Popularly known as the Elephant Museum after the elephant statue in its forecourt. Its broad collections cover all of Indonesia's territory and almost all of its history. The museum has endeavoured to preserve Indonesia's heritage for two centuries.

The museum is regarded as one of the most complete and the best in Indonesia, as well as one of the finest museum in Southeast Asia. The museum has preserved about 141,000 objects, ranged from prehistoric artifacts, to archeology, numismatics, ceramics, ethnography, history and geography collections. It has comprehensive collections of stone statues of classical Hindu-Buddhist period of ancient Java and Sumatra, as well as quite extensive collections of Asian ceramics.^[4]

Museum in East Jakarta, Indonesia. Taman Mini "Indonesia Indah" is a culture-based recreational area located in East Jakarta, Indonesia. Since July 2021, it is operated by the Government of Indonesia through the PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan, dan Ratu Boko; it was formerly operated by Yayasan Harapan Kita, a foundation established by Siti Hartinah, the first lady during most of the New Order and wife of Suharto, and still run by Suharto's descendants since his death. It has an area of about 100 hectares.

The park is a synopsis of Indonesian culture, with virtually all aspects of daily life in Indonesia's 26 (in 1975) provinces encapsulated in separate pavilions with the collections of rumah adat as the example of Indonesian vernacular architecture, clothing, dances and traditions are all depicted impeccably. Apart from that, there is a lake with a miniature of the archipelago in the middle of it, cable cars, museums, Keong Emas IMAX cinema (Indonesia's only IMAX cinema until the 2010s), a theater called the Theatre of My Homeland (Theater Tanah Airku) and other recreational facilities which make TMII one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city.

Since 2007 Taman Mini Indonesia Indah launched new logo with branding slogan Pesona Indonesia (Indonesian Charm).

On December 31, 2014, World Peace Committee decided TMII as International Civilization Park and World Peace Theme Park.^[5]

Iconic homage to Indonesian independence. The National Monument is a 132 m obelisk in the centre of Merdeka Square, Central Jakarta, symbolizing the fight for Indonesia. It is the national monument of the Republic of Indonesia, built to commemorate the struggle for Indonesian independence.

Construction began in 1961 under the direction of President Sukarno. Monas was opened to the public in 1975. It is topped by a flame covered with gold foil.

The monument and the museum are open daily from 08.00 until 16.00 Western Indonesia Time (UTC+7) throughout the week except for the Mondays when the monument is closed. Since April 2016, the monument also opens during night time, from 19.00 until 22.00 on Tuesday to Friday, and from 19.00 until 00.00 on Saturday and Sunday.^[6]

Large zoo in a rainforest setting. Ragunan Zoo is a zoo located in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta, Indonesia. The zoo has an area of 140-hectare. The zoo has an aviary and a primate centre, and employs over 450 people. Many of the animals in the zoo are endangered and threatened from all parts of Indonesia and the rest of the world. There are a total of 2,288 animals inside the zoo. Laid out in a lush tropical habitat, rare animals such as crocodile, gorilla, orangutan, tapir, anoa, sumatran tiger, babirusa and peacocks are given ample room. The zoo is located in South Jakarta and is easily accessible through the Jakarta Outer Ring Road and TransJakarta Corridor 6 bus.

Ragunan Zoo originally opened on 1864. Therefore, the zoo is 156 years old. It is the oldest zoo in Indonesia.^[7]

Pluit Village is a shopping center located on Jl. Pluit Indah Raya, Pluit, Penjaringan, North Jakarta, Indonesia.

Built on an area of 21 hectares (52 acres) with lakeside view, Pluit village is a shopping center which was previously known as Mega Mall Pluit. Then in 2008, PT. Lippo Karawaci Tbk entered as a new manager and this mall was renamed Pluit Village. Some of the famous tenants in this mall include Matahari department Store, Carrefour, Best Denki, Timezone, Amazone, Playtopia,Cinépolis, Anytime Fitness, and MR. DIY.

The Mall is located on Jl. Pluit Indah Raya and has a strategic location as it is close to arterial road and toll gate. Pluit Village has a large parking area that can accommodate 2300 cars and 2150 motorcycles.^[8]

The Youth Pledge Museum is a historic museum of the independence struggle of the Republic of Indonesia. It is located in Jalan Kramat Raya No.106, Central Jakarta and managed by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. This museum is open for public, every Tuesday until Friday from 08.00 until 15.00, every Saturday and Sunday from 08.00-14.00 Western Indonesian Time, and every Monday and national holiday, this museum is closed for public.

This museum has a collection of photos and objects related to the history of 1928 Youth Pledge, as well as the activities in the movement of the national youth of Indonesia. The Youth Pledge Museum was established based on the governor decree of the Special Administrative Region of Jakarta in 1972 and has become a national heritage object.^[11]

Palace in Central Jakarta, Indonesia. The Merdeka Palace, is one of six presidential palaces in Indonesia. It is located on the north side of the Merdeka Square in Central Jakarta, Indonesia and is used as the official residence of the President of the Republic of Indonesia.

The palace was a residence for the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies during the colonial era. In 1949, the palace was renamed Merdeka Palace, "(ke)merdeka(an)" meaning "freedom" or "independence".

The Merdeka Palace is part of the 6.8 hectares (17 acres) Jakarta Presidential Palace Complex, which also includes the Negara Palace, Wisma Negara (state guest house), Sekretariat Negara (State Secretariat), and the Bina Graha building. It is the center of the Indonesian executive authority.^[12]

Convention center in Jakarta, Indonesia. Jakarta International Expo, or JIExpo, is a convention, exhibition and entertainment complex located at Pademangan in north Jakarta, Indonesia. Opened in 2010, it was developed by the Central Cipta Murdaya group. Built in the area of the former Kemayoran Airport. JIExpo recently underwent an expansion from 2016 to 2019, adding an international theatre and convention center.

JIExpo covers approximately 44 hectares, with a 2,500-seat theatre and concert hall, 100,000 square meters of exhibition and convention space, and supporting operations. The facility has five exhibition halls, two ballrooms, 14 meeting rooms, and a professional international theatre. There is also a Holiday Inn Express on the grounds.^[14]

Iconic place with historical buildings. Merdeka Square is a large square located in the center of Jakarta, Indonesia. Merdeka is the Indonesian word for freedom or independence. Measuring approximately one square kilometer in area, if the surrounding fields within the Merdeka Square are included, it is considered one of the largest squares in the world. At 75 hectares, it is over five times the size of Tiananmen Square, and 12 times the size of Place de la Concorde.

At its center stands the National Monument, often called Monas (Monumen Nasional). The paved plaza surrounds the monument often host national events such as military and float parades, as well as civic demonstrations. Surrounding the Monument is now a park with a musical fountain in western side, and a deer enclosure where deer roam among the shady trees in the southeast corner. The square is a popular destination for Jakartans for sports and recreation especially on weekends.

It is surrounded by important government buildings such as the Merdeka Palace, the National Museum, the National Library, Jakarta City Hall, Istiqlal Mosque, the Supreme Court and various governmental ministries. During the colonial Dutch East Indies era the square was called Koningsplein (King's square).^[16]

Shopping centre in South Jakarta, Indonesia. Ciputra World Jakarta is a mixed development complex, which is built by PT. Ciputra Development Tbk, located on Jalan Prof. Dr. Satrio, Mega Kuningan, South Jakarta, Indonesia. With a total land area of 15 hectares, Ciputra World Jakarta planned to have 15 towers. It is divided in three separate but adjacent land blocks.

Ciputra World 1 Jakarta, with a land area of 5.5 hectares, three towers; Raffles Hotel and Raffles Residences Jakarta; My Home Apartments & Ascott Service Apartment; and DBS Bank Tower. Ciputra Artpreneur Center and a shopping centre also part of the development. This is one of the largest buildings in the world by floor area.

Ciputra World 2 Jakarta has a land area of 4.5 hectares. The development has six towers used for office space; W Hotels Jakarta and the Hotel Apartment, the Office Satrio, the Orchard Condominium, the Residence and Fraser Suites Serviced Apartment, and The Newton 1, 2 apartment towers. The office building houses Tokopedia, which is one of Indonesia’s biggest online marketplace. The project is also equipped with a green area of about 60% of the land area.

Ciputra World 3 Jakarta is planned to have conference & exhibition centre with large capacity.^[17]

Stadium in Central Jakarta, Indonesia. Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium, formerly Senayan Main Stadium and Gelora Senayan Main Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium located at the center of the Gelora Bung Karno Sports Complex in Central Jakarta, Indonesia. It is mostly used for football matches. The stadium is named after Sukarno, the then-president of Indonesia, who sparked the idea of building the sports complex.

When first opened prior to the 1962 Asian Games, the stadium had a seating capacity of 110,000. It has been reduced twice during renovations: first to 88,306 in 2006 for the 2007 AFC Asian Cup and then to 77,193 single seats as part of renovations for the 2018 Asian Games and Asian Para Games, where it hosted the ceremonies and athletics competitions. The capacity of 88,083 makes it 7th largest association football stadium in the world. Due to the most recent renovation which saw all remaining bleachers replaced by single seats, it is the 28th largest association football stadium in the world and the 8th largest association football stadium in Asia.^[19]

Aquarium. Jakarta Aquarium and Safari is a marine and freshwater aquarium located within a retail and leisure complex Neo Soho in Jakarta, Indonesia. The aquarium is home to hundreds of mammal, reptile, insect and various types of Indonesian marine fish, is to introduce to the next generation the biodiversity of the archipelago starting from islands, forests, and mangroves.

Other than Indonesian endemic animals, there are also animals from Africa and South America. The aquarium is a subsidiary of Taman Safari of Indonesia in collaboration with Aquaria KLCC of Malaysia. The Aquarium has received the accolade of Trip Advisor's Certificate of Excellence Destination 2018 and Indonesia Travel Tourism Awards (ITTA).

In 2019, Jakarta Aquarium introduces several new species to their collection, such as the giant Pacific octopus, giant isopod, and weedy and leafy seadragon.

In 2021, Jakarta Aquarium displayed a pair of spotted wobbegong, the first public aquarium in Indonesia to keep wobbegongs.^[26]

Displays on Indonesia's nautical culture. The Maritime Museum is located in the old Sunda Kelapa harbor area in Penjaringan Administrative Village, Penjaringan Subdistrict, Jakarta, Indonesia. The museum was inaugurated inside the former Dutch East India Company warehouses. The museum focuses on the maritime history of Indonesia and the importance of the sea to the economy of present-day Indonesia.

The museum displays models of fishing boats and other maritime objects from different parts of Indonesia. The museum also exhibits the celebrated Pinisi schooners of the Bugis people of South Sulawesi, which at present make up one of the last sea-going sailing fleets in the world. In January 2018, much of the museum was destroyed by a fire. The goods inside the burnt museum was evacuated later than from the fire. The cause of the fire was caused by the due to electric short circuit.^[30]