Things to do in Ambon
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Ambon
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best overall window, settled seas and the best diving, with the Ambon Bay Festival in the September to October shoulder in past editions.
Second good window peaking in March and April for diving, though January can still bring rough sea days for Banda crossings.
Pattimura Day on 15 May is the city's great civic commemoration, but the wet south east monsoon begins to build through the month.
Worst window, the wettest months with the roughest Banda Sea, irregular fast ferries and the least lovely beaches.
What's on
- Pattimura Day 15 May
Commemoration of Kapitan Pattimura's 1817 rising, centred on Pattimura Park and official ceremonies in the city.
- Hari Ulang Tahun Kota Ambon 7 September
Ambon's city anniversary, celebrated as the seas begin to settle at the turn of the best season.
- Festival Teluk Ambon September to October, dates vary by year
Ambon Bay festival of boat races, fishing competitions, cultural performance and food stalls in past editions.
- Amboina International Music Festival Late October, dates vary by year
Music programming around the 31 October anniversary of Ambon's 2019 UNESCO City of Music designation.
- Cuci Negeri Soya December
Traditional cleansing ceremony of Soya village above the city, an adat rite to attend only as a respectful guest.
Best things to do in Ambon
Pantai Liang
A kilometre of white sand and calm turquoise water with a long jetty, the beach Ambonese families name first.
Pintu Kota
A sea cliff pierced by a natural arch above a rocky Banda Sea bay, Ambon's icon and its best sunset viewpoint.
Fort Amsterdam
A compact Dutch spice trade fort right on the beach at Hila, with strait views that explain why empires fought here.
Wapauwe Old Mosque
A mosque dated to 1414 near Fort Amsterdam, among the oldest in Indonesia and built in traditional style without nails.
Museum Siwalima Provinsi Maluku
Maluku's provincial museum above the bay, three buildings of island dress, artefacts and a marine hall with a whale skeleton.
Sacred Eels of Waai
Huge sacred freshwater eels in a clear spring pool at Waai, coaxed out by a local caller who feeds them raw eggs.
Ambon War Cemetery
An immaculate Commonwealth cemetery of over 2,000 graves, mostly Australian prisoners of war, and the city's most moving place.
Martha Christina Tiahahu Monument
A hilltop monument to a teenage resistance hero, with the definitive panorama over Ambon Bay and the bridge at sunset.
Where to stay in Ambon
Central Ambon
first trip, food and city sights
Walkable to Sibu Sibu, the Peace Gong, Pattimura Park and the widest choice of restaurants, with transport everywhere.
Natsepa and Suli
beach base and families
The resort sits above Natsepa Beach for morning swims, closer to Liang, Waai and Morella, but evenings need a taxi into town.
Laha and airport side
divers only
Closest to the Laha muck sites and the airport, but across the bay from the city with little to walk to at night.
Think twice about
- Laha and airport side as a general base
Not a safety issue. Every dinner, sight and departure except your flight sits across Ambon Bay, so non divers feel isolated there.
Best restaurants in Ambon
Moluccas Restaurant
The most polished dining room in Ambon, at the Natsepa resort with bay views and Indonesian and international menus.
Dapor Kole Kole
The city's favourite modern Indonesian restaurant, specialising in local tuna and cakalang in an airy central room.
Rumah Makan Sari Gurih
A long running family style seafood house for grilled fish and yellow soup fish in generous shared portions.
Rumah Makan New Ratu Gurih
A lively local seafood house built on ikan bakar grilled to order, with rich sambals and a big Indonesian Chinese menu.
Imperial Restaurant
The classic Chinese Indonesian seafood house, also serving papeda with yellow soup fish and kenari, all halal.
Istana Berkat
A dependable Diponegoro road seafood restaurant for grilled fish and Indonesian standards, popular for family lunches.
Lateri Beach Resto
Fresh seafood and ikan bakar at tables by the water at Lateri, the relaxed lunch stop on the way to Natsepa.
Rumah Kopi Sibu Sibu
Ambon's living room coffee house, serving kopi rarobang with ginger and kenari amid photographs of Maluku musicians.
Outdoor things to do in Ambon
Twilight Zone
The famous Laha muck slope in Ambon Bay, dense with frogfish, rhinopias, rare octopus and flamboyant cuttlefish.
Pantai Hukurila
A south coast village beach above the Hukurila Cave dive site, an underwater cavern of arches, sponges and soft corals.
Lubang Buaya Morella
The best shore snorkelling near the city, a sheltered inlet where stilt cafes overlook a shelved reef dropping to a wall.
Pantai Namalatu
A quiet coconut lined beach beyond Pintu Kota with coral shallows for snorkelling close in from the sand.
Pulau Pombo
An uninhabited protected island of white sand and clear reef, reached by chartered boat from Tulehu for a day of snorkelling.
Gunung Salahutu
Ambon's highest peak at 1,038 metres, a steep guided jungle climb to views over the bay and across to Seram.
Saparua Island
An overnight island of Fort Duurstede, baileo houses, pottery villages and quiet snorkelling beaches, two hours from Tulehu.
Banda Islands
The original nutmeg islands reached from Ambon by ferry or liveaboard, with Fort Belgica, a volcano and pristine walls.
Best hotels in Ambon
Swiss-Belhotel Ambon
The closest thing Ambon has to a flagship hotel, central with bay view rooms and a rooftop sky bar with live music.
Hotel Santika Premiere Ambon
A 16 storey full service hotel with a pool and big breakfasts, the dependable top tier alternative in the city.
The Natsepa Resort & Conference Center
Ambon's one real beach resort, gardens and a pool on the headland above Natsepa Beach with ocean view balconies.
The City Hotel
A newer, clean and comfortable city centre hotel walkable to the waterfront eating streets, at mid range prices.
Amaris Hotel Ambon
The reliable budget chain option, small spotless rooms with air conditioning and breakfast in the city centre.
Manise Hotel
The classic family owned budget hotel in the centre, friendly and useful for arranging drivers, boats and early starts.
Is Ambon expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | IDR 450,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | IDR 950,000 a person |
| Splurge | IDR 2,200,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Twilight Zone: weeks ahead
- Pantai Hukurila: weeks ahead
- Pulau Pombo: a few days ahead
- Gunung Salahutu: a few days ahead
- Saparua Island: a few days ahead
- Banda Islands: weeks ahead
- Moluccas Restaurant: a few days ahead
- Book Laha muck diving and liveaboards well ahead for March to April and September to December.
- Book Ambon to Banda ferry seats and Banda guesthouses as early as possible and keep a spare night in Ambon at the end.
- Book Jakarta and Makassar flights to Ambon when you book the trip, especially around Indonesian holiday periods.
Is Ambon safe?
- Do not swim on the exposed south coast around Pintu Kota, and note there are no lifeguards at Ambon beaches.
- Watch for broken pavements, open drains and angkot that stop without warning, especially at night and in rain.
- In rough months, postpone small boat trips including Pombo charters rather than arguing with sea conditions.
- Carry insurance covering diving if you dive and medical evacuation either way, since serious care means Makassar or Jakarta.
Ambon travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Fort Victoria is inside an active military base and can only be seen from its gate, so do not let a driver sell it as a stop.
- Natsepa on a Sunday afternoon is crowded and littered, so go on a weekday or charter to Pombo for a pristine beach.
- No operator can promise the psychedelic frogfish, which is reported infrequently even at Laha, so book for the overall critter density.
- Buy nutmeg, cloves and kenari at Pasar Mardika or reputable city shops rather than at marked up spice tour stops.
Getting around Ambon: public transport and more
- Hire a car with driver through your hotel for sight days and agree route, hours, fuel and parking before setting off.
- Grab and Maxim operate in the city, but do not rely on apps at Liang, Morella or Hila, so have your driver wait.
- Pattimura Airport is at Laha, 35 to 38 km and 30 to 45 minutes from the centre, with a DAMRI bus to Lapangan Merdeka.
- Ferries to Saparua and the Bandas bend to sea conditions, so check schedules locally through your hotel the day before.
Who Ambon suits
| Solo travellers | Good |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Ambon your trip
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