If you haven’t had a chance to visit Karimunjawa, you need to go – especially if you’re looking for a city break in Indonesia away from the dreadful traffic and throngs of people. This post is going to tell you everything we think you need to know about the Karimunjawa ferry and the stuff you need to consider before using the ferry to visit these amazing islands.
Where is Karimunjawa anyway?
Karimunjawa is a group of islands that lies about 80 kilometers north of Jepara in Central Java. The main attraction here is Taman Nasional Karimunjawa (Karimunjawa National Park). It’s the reason we visited in the first place.
Karimunjawa National Park is a marine conservation area that rivals some of the best in Indonesia. Coral reefs, mangrove forests, beautiful beaches, and island-hopping are the main draws in this small archipelago.
Is the Karimunjawa Ferry Reliable?
You might be thinking, “This sounds great! I’d love to take the ferry to Karimunjawa and cross the Java Sea! Totally up for that!” And that makes sense because it’s kind of a nice crossing, especially on a day with good weather.
And that’s the key – weather.
If the weather is bad and the seas are rough, the ferry may not leave. Or, it may leave earlier. Or later. You won’t know.
Because let’s be honest, no one really seems to know.
Getting accurate information
The most frustrating thing about this ferry is that not only does no one seem to know – they won’t admit that they don’t know and they’ll make a guess to avoid admitting they don’t know. When we crossed, we asked three or four people who should have known what the ferry schedule was. None of them admitted they didn’t know.
Instead, they gave us an answer. They actually each gave us different answers. Every one of them – the guy who drove us to Jepara, the guy working at the Jepara ferry terminal restaurant, and the man selling tickets gave us completely different answers.
The trip back from Karimunjawa to Jepara was even worse. We actually met a guy from the Coast Guard – the guy who actually decides whether or not the ferry leaves – and he couldn’t give us a straight answer. Except to say that the Karimunjawa Ferry would definitely leave on Sunday because it had to.
And then, at the end of the conversation, he threw in, “most likely, if the weather is fine.” That little adendum would have been comical if we didn’t have concrete travel arrangements on the other side of the Java Sea!
And that’s the thing – it’s hard to get accurate information. The ferry has a schedule, but it goes when it goes and there’s not much anyone can do about it. I’m not trying to scare you. You’ll eventually get the correct answer. You just have to realize that it takes some work.
It’s important to remember this: No matter what anyone tells you about when the ferry will leave, you can only be 100% sure it’s leaving when you’re on it and it’s moving.
Getting to Karimunjawa on the ferry
If you’re on a super-tight budget or just want to be out there on the water, the Karimunjawa ferry from Jepara is still your best option, despite the issues above. There’s just something about cruising between the Indonesian islands that seems to make sense. It just feels right to do it.
Now that you’ve decided to do it, you have to decide which one you want to use.
There are two Karimunjawa ferries
There are two ferries that operate between Jepara and Karimunjawa: the slow ferry and the fast ferry. Most tourists take the fast ferry operated by Bahari Express.
We took the slow ferry (below) because it’s the one the locals take and we wanted to experience it how they did – not on some fast boat that only privileged tourists can afford.
You can book tickets for the fast ferry at the Bahari Express Web site. However, if you want to ride the slow boat, you have to buy tickets at the terminal. There is no web site to purchase tickets directly.
Jepara – Karimunjawa route
The slow ferry: The slow ferry between Karimunjawa and Jepara seems to be the most popular – especially with locals – because it’s also the cheapest. From Jepara, the slow ferry takes about 4-6 hours – give or take 30 minutes depending on the weather.
The fast ferry: The fast boat between Jepara and Karimunjawa is pretty popular with tourists. It costs more but will get you to the island in about 2 hours.
Karimunjawa ferry schedule
Here is the published ferry schedule on the Karimunjawa – Jepara route. Keep in mind that published does not mean actual (see the section on reliability above). This schedule is a general guide to when the Karimunjawa ferry is supposed to go.
Monday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 9:00 am
Monday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Fast boat: 12:00 noon
Tuesday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Fast boat: 9:00 am
Tuesday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 11:00 am
Wednesday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 9:00 am
Wednesday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Slow boat: 12:00 noon
Fast boat: 11:00 am
Thursday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 12:00 noon
Thursday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Slow boat: 12:00 noon
Fast boat: 9:00 am
Friday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 9:00 am and 1:30 pm
Friday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Slow boat: 12:00 pm
Fast boat: 9:00 am
Saturday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 10:00 am
Saturday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Fast boat: 7:00 am
Sunday – Jepara to Karimunjawa
Fast boat: 12:00 noon
Sunday – Karimunjawa to Jepara
Slow boat: 6:30 am
Fast boat: 9:00 am and 11:00 am
Important note: The Karimunjawa ferry will depart when it’s full. Be at the dock one hour before the ferry leaves. If you wait until a few minutes before the scheduled time, you might get to the dock and see the ferry off in the distance.
Karimunjawa Ferry ticket prices
There is a range of prices for each of the ferries and the range depends on the class of service and what boat you’re on.
Slow boat one-way ticket prices
Regular ticket: Rp. 72,000
VIP ticket: Rp. 100,000
National Park fee: Rp. 25,000
Smoking on the slow boat: Technically, you’re not supposed to smoke in the seating areas of the slow boat. You’re supposed to go to the open top deck. But people smoke in the passenger area anyway. A lot of them. If you want a non-smoking room buy the VIP ticket. It’s air-conditioned and smoke-free.
Fast boat one-way ticket prices
Executive ticket: 162,000
VIP ticket: Rp. 192,000
National Park fee: Rp. 25,000
Smoking on the fast boat: We’re told that the non-smoking policy seems to be strictly enforced on the interior decks of the fast boat due to it being an entirely enclosed environment.
Food on the Karimunjawa slow ferry
There were limited options for food on the Karimunjawa slow boat. However, we did get a cup of Indomie Pop Mie noodles. Indomie makes the tastiest packaged noodles by the way, so it’s all good. You can purchase various small snacks and drinks as well.
Don’t expect a proper meal though. Your best bet is to buy a meal at a food stall in Jepara or Karimunjawa and take it with you on the boat. We wish we did that, but we completely forgot. I have no idea what we must have been thinking!
I expect the food options are the same or better on the fast boat. I can’t be sure.
Should you fly to Karimunjawa?
That’s a good question. Although this post is about the Karimunjawa ferry, I thought I should mention that you can fly. It’s definitely easy. But it’s also not the cheapest way to get to Karimunjawa.
All flights to Karimunjawa go through Semarang, so you need to get to Semarang by air, bus, or train and go from there. Flights only operate on Friday, Sunday, and Monday and the cost is roughly $30 US each way plus baggage fees. Expect those baggage fees to be anywhere from Rp. 250,000 per segment to Rp. 500,000 or more, depending on how much luggage you have.
Excess Baggage on Lion Air: If you’ve flown discount airlines before, it’s hit or miss whether or not you can get away with a little extra baggage. On Lion Air, they’ll weigh everything. That includes carry-on and checked baggage.
Once you arrive at Karimunjawa airport, expect to pay at least Rp. 300,000 one-way for transportation into town. Yes, that’s expensive, especially considering it’s only a 20-minute ride. But you’re a captive audience and there are few people who operate vehicles like this here.
Don’t worry though. The costly ride into town is pretty much the only time you’ll get gouged here. We spent 5 days in Karimunjawa and everything else is pretty cheap.
As you can see, the round-trip flight from Semarang to Karimunjawa, in addition to all of the additional expenses, could cost in excess of $250 per person.
Our Karimunjawa ferry experience
On the way over to Karimunjawa, we really didn’t know anything about the ferry schedule. We just assumed it reliably sailed every day. Sadly, we failed in our research, which is surprising, because we’re usually better at this kind of stuff. Our plan was to go to Jepara on Monday, spend the night there, and take the ferry Tuesday morning.
Getting to Karimunjawa
What actually happened? We spent the night in Jepara only to find that the Karimunjawa ferry was canceled the next morning, so we’d have to stay an extra night. That worked out for us because we got to see a few things in Jepara we otherwise wouldn’t have.
Because of the weather, we didn’t know for sure it would even go on Wednesday. But it did and we made it to Karimunjawa. And we enjoyed the ride over!
Getting back to Jepara on the ferry
On the way back, it was a different story altogether. We planned on leaving Sunday to go back to Jepara, drive to Semarang, stay overnight, and catch a pre-booked train to Bandung Sunday morning. That was important because we had a flight to Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia on March 3 from Jakarta. We needed a bit of breathing room.
The problem was that the ferry on Saturday was canceled and no one could tell us anything about the ferry on Sunday (except that “it will absolutely, definitely go because it has no choice. Well, if the weather worked out.“)
In the end, we couldn’t take that chance. We booked a flight out of Karimunjawa and flew to Bandung. It cost us an extra $200, but taking a chance on a ferry we couldn’t trust wasn’t an option.
Would we do it again?
We took the ferry in the wet season, which means the weather doesn’t always cooperate. Knowing what we know now, we would have booked a flight round trip.
If you’re taking the Karimunjawa ferry in the dry season, you should be fine. In the wet season though, you really need to have some flexibility in your schedule. If you don’t, you might be in for a surprise.
Or two. Or three.
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Michael is originally from Canada but now resides in Atlanta, GA with his husband, Halef, who also writes here. He is a Couchsurfing expert. Michael has traveled to over 50 countries learning how to experience more for less as he travels.
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