Paradise awaits honeymooners on Matahari, Pantara islands

Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Matahari island

Newly wed couples should consider spending their honeymoon at Matahari (Sun) island or the nearby Pantara islands off the north coast of Jakarta.

Both resorts offer amazing panoramas, starting with beautiful sunsets, white sand beaches or the view from the deck of a speed boat on the calm seas of Kepulauan Seribu (the Thousand Islands).

They can also enjoy the sound of the waves while sitting on deckchairs on the balcony of the palm leaf-roofed cottages facing the beach.

Matahari island, which celebrated its ninth anniversary on Sept. 27, has 83 cottages -- similar to the Pantara islands, and all of them face the beach.

Juliana Pandji, director of the island's management, PT Pantara Wisata Jaya, said honeymooners preferred to stay at the Pantara islands (10.6 hectares in area) than at Matahari island (6.4 hectares).

"Being larger, the Pantara islands are quieter than Matahari. Honeymooners usually prefer a quiet place," Juliana told The Jakarta Post recently.

The cottages in the Pantara islands are not equipped with a television set or telephone, so they have a more secluded feel to them.

The only television set is located in the lobby of the resort. Visitors who want to make a call must ask the front office for assistance.

Dinner in the islands' restaurants, whose capacity reaches 150 seats, will satisfy the guests as they provide both Indonesian and international dishes and also delicious, grilled fresh fish.

One of the restaurants is the Kura-Kura Japanese at West Pantara island. It is the only Japanese restaurant in the resorts at the Thousand Islands. This restaurant allows its visitors to cook the food themselves, as each table is equipped with a stove.

As visitors enjoy their food, they can also witness the darkness of the sea enlightened by lanterns on fishermen's boats or the beauty of the full moon.

Those wishing to stay up late can amuse themselves at Bamboo bar (in Matahari island) or Laba-Laba discotheque and karaoke (in East Pantara). They can dance and sing -- the karaoke provides hundreds of songs in English, Indonesian and Chinese -- until morning!

Some couple were spotted dancing during the night while others enjoyed their drinks in a corner of the discotheque.

Although it was already past midnight, some couples were seen walking around the islands or just sitting in their cottage balconies to feel the wind and hear the crashing of the waves.

However, the islands not only aim to please honeymooners but also families as they are equipped with children's playgrounds.

Water sport lovers can spend their time windsurfing, scuba diving, water pedalling, snorkling, jet skiing, boating or fishing.

The resorts' guests can observe colorful tropical fish and coral in the clear water, which has a visibility of between 10 meters and 15 meters.

Tennis courts, swimming polls and a jogging track are also available in the islands to maintain guests' fitness.

So, how much does one have to pay for all this pleasure? Matahari island charges between Rp 600,000 (US$63) and Rp 800,000 per person for a weekend package, while the Pantara island resort costs about Rp 1 million per person for a weekend package.

The package includes transportation by high-speed cruiser from Marina pier in Ancol, North Jakarta, to the islands.

Guests are not only locals but also foreign tourists from, among other places, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, the Netherlands and Canada.

The journey from Ancol to Matahari island, which takes nearly two hours, can be tiring, especially for those who are not used to a high-speed cruiser.

The journey between the islands takes only 10 minutes by high- speed cruiser.

Those who are not used to the buffeting from the waves can sit at the back and view the islands that form part of the Thousand Islands group. One cruise officer advised passengers to take a deep breath once they felt nauseous to avoid being seasick due to the rocking motion of the boat.

All feelings of tiredness generally disappear when passengers reach the islands.

If one compares this with the journey by road to the beach resort of Anyer, Banten, a three-hour drive via the Jakarta-Merak toll road, the trip to the islands is the better choice.