We just spent a week on Bangka, an island off the beaten path in Sumatra. If you’ve heard of Belitung island, Bangka is its neighbor and bigger brother, and they both share some of the same scenery.
Bangka is more than two times the size of Bali or Belitung, and it has lots of nice beaches with white sand, granite boulders, and no tourists. We didn’t see a single foreign tourist the whole time we were there.
You can also do excursions by boat to several sandbars and smaller islands in the area, and even though we saw a fair amount of trash on some of the beaches, which was sad, I’d say with better conservation they could be world class.
This travel guide for Bangka will explain how to get there, where to stay, and everything else you need to know before you go!
Siangau Beach
How To Get To Bangka
Bangka island is located off the coast of south Sumatra.
The main ways to get there are by flying to the city of Pangkal Pinang (PGK) from Jakarta, or taking a ferry from Belitung or Palembang, on mainland Sumatra.
Flights from Jakarta (CGK) take a little over 1 hour and they’re offered by multiple airlines with reasonable prices. There are also 40 minute flights from Tanjung Pandan (TJQ) in Belitung, although they’re not as common.
If you’re flying from Bali, you’ll need to transit in either Jakarta or Tanjung Pandan on the way to Bangka. You can shop for flights at Skyscanner.
The other option is the ferry from Belitung or Palembang, which is offered by Bahari Express. It’s cheaper than flying.
The ferry from Tanjung Pandan (Belitung) to Pangkal Pinang takes about 4.5 hours, while the one from Palembang (mainland Sumatra) to Mentok (northwest Bangka) takes about 3 hours, plus about 3 hours of driving.
Siangau Beach
A seashell I saw at Gusung Asem sandbar
How To Get Around
The main challenge in Bangka is getting around, because the island is just so long and spread out. It’s double the size of Bali or Belitung.
The good news is that the driving here is relatively easy, since there’s not much traffic outside of town, and the roads are mostly in good shape.
As with other places in Indonesia, you can get around in Bangka by renting a car or motorbike and driving yourself, or hiring a driver with a car. Prices are reasonable.
I’ll share some contacts for drivers and tour guides later in the article.
For hotel transfers, there are always plenty of taxis available at the airport when you arrive in Pangkal Pinang, and the Grab and GoJek apps can also be used for short trips in the city.
Where To Stay In Bangka
Boulders & turquoise water
Best Things To Do In Bangka
• Ketawai Island Trip
This island hopping trip is one of the main activities for tourists in Bangka.
They use a small speedboat and the trip normally includes three places: Ketawai island, Pulau Panjang sandbar, and Gusung Asem sandbar.
Private trips or open trips are available, and you can start from Pasir Padi beach (near town), Kurau village, or other areas along the coast.
I joined a shared trip from Pasir Padi since that was the cheapest and easiest option. I’ll share the price and contact details later in the article.
Group selfie on the boat to Ketawai
Local kids playing at Ketawai island
Our tour group for Ketawai had about 15 people, and I was the only foreigner in the group, so that was a fun experience. All the locals were super friendly and I got lots of photo requests.
Our first stop was Pulau Panjang, which was less than 30 minutes by boat from our starting point at Pasir Padi.
The name means ‘long island’ in Indonesian, and it’s a very pretty sandbar with clean white sand. We spent about 45 minutes here before moving on.
Drone pic of Pulau Panjang sandbar
A little shack on the sandbar
The second stop was Gusung Asem, an even longer sandbar that took another 45 minutes to reach by boat.
Again, I spent about 45 minutes on the island walking around, flying my drone, and wading in the water.
Next, we spent about an hour snorkeling at a nearby reef. The coral seemed to be in good condition, although it wasn’t as impressive as the snorkeling we did at Belitung.
Drone pic of Gusung Asem sandbar
Starfish at the sandbar
Our last stop of the day was at Ketawai, a small, palm-covered island circled by a white sand beach.
There were lots of locals camping at the island, and sadly I saw heaps of trash inside the tree line as well.
That was disappointing, but the island itself was beautiful.
Ketawai island
Drone pic of Ketawai island
Overall, this open tour was well worth the very reasonable price I paid. I just hope they get more serious about keeping the islands clean.
To be fair, our tour guide did give clear instructions to our group not to throw any trash, and everyone seemed to follow the rules, so that was good to see.
Still, it’s hard to police this for everyone when there are lots of local tour groups coming and going every day, like there are here.
• Turun Aban Beach
This is a nice beach on mainland Bangka island that’s scattered with boulders, and it’s located near the Parai Beach Resort & Spa.
It’s about a 1 hour drive from Pangkal Pinang town.
Turun Aban beach
Drone pic of Turun Aban beach
• Batu Tunggal Beach
This is a long, white sand beach that’s popular with the locals. On a sunny day, the sand is so white it’s almost blinding.
You won’t escape the crowds here, but it’s a pretty easy place to reach.
Batu Tunggal beach
Batu Tunggal beach
• Siangau Beach
This is one of the most scenic beaches in Bangka, but it’s also one of the most remote. The drive takes about 2.5 to 3 hours from Pangkal Pinang.
Siangau is a long white sand beach with stacks of boulders you can climb for views of the coast. It really looks like a place from Seychelles.
We saw a local couple when we were there, but aside from that it was basically deserted.
Siangau Beach
Drone photo of Siangau Beach
• Batu Belimbing
This is a giant granite boulder in north Bangka that’s very interesting to see.
There are actually two different rock places in Bangka called Batu Belimbing, but the one on the northern side of the island, in Kelabat, is bigger and more impressive than the one in the south.
Drone pic of the Batu Belimbing rocks in Kelabat
The side of the huge rock at Batu Belimbing. It’s giant!
This place reminded me of Batu Baginda in Belitung, except not quite as grand, and the access still needs to be improved.
At one time, not too long ago, there was a makeshift path to the top of the main rock using bamboo ladders, but it was broken when I was there.
We searched for an alternate path to the top, and even tried climbing some tree steep roots, but it got too dangerous and we had to climb back down.
Hopefully they fix the ladders soon, because the view on top of the rock would be very cool.
Tree roots on the side of the rock
My driver standing by another very big rock
• Kaolin Lake
This is a bright blue lake at a former mining site in central Bangka.
There’s actually a lake with the same name in Belitung, but this one in Bangka has a deeper and brighter blue color.
It looks tempting to swim here, but as far as I know, it’s probably not healthy or safe to swim in because of the acidity and metals in the water.
There’s not much else to do here except walk around the lake and take pictures.
Kaolin Lake
Swing at the lake
• Traditional Market
The morning market in Pangkal Pinang is really interesting to see. It’s full of life.
They sell all kinds of fruit, vegetables, fish, and other oddities like squids, prawns, and more. The vendors were all very friendly and happy to let me take photos too.
Traditional market in Pangkal Pinang
• Other Beaches In Bangka
If you have extra time, there are lots of other beaches in Bangka that might be worth checking out.
We planned to go to some of these, but ran out of time before we could:
- Butun Daru Beach — Hidden sandy beach not far from town.
- Penyusuk Beach — Remote beach in north Bangka with traditional boats you can use to visit little islands near the coast. It’s 2.5 hours from town.
- Romodong Beach & Batu Dinding — Two secluded beaches in north Bangka with giant boulders. You could combine these with a visit to Penyusuk beach.
- Cape Berikat — A cape with beaches and a lighthouse on one of the eastern corners of Bangka island. It’s a 2.5 hour drive from town.
Siangau Beach in Bangka
Map Of Sights In Bangka
Here’s an interactive map of the sights and landmarks on Bangka island. You can use this to plan your trip.
The blue icons on the map are things you can see by driving, and the purple icons are islands to see by boat.
Pangkal Pinang town is located near the middle of the island.
Driver & Guide Contacts For Bangka
Here are some useful contacts for your trip to Bangka. I can recommend all of these people from my own personal experience:
- Golden Rent Car — Car rental service in Bangka that can also provide drivers. Their vehicles are clean and nice, and prices are reasonable. You can contact them by WhatsApp at ☎ +62 821-7651-5122.
- Abdul — Driver based in Pangkal Pinang who took us to places all over the island. He’s kind and safe on the road. You can contact him by WhatsApp at ☎ +62 821-8496-9272. However, he works in coordination with Golden Rent Car, so it’s better to use them as the first point of contact. We found him through them and used their vehicle.
- Kurniawan Open Trips — Tour guide that has open trips for Ketawai island and the sandbars. I paid only 250k rupiah to join the boat trip for the whole day, and there wasn’t any extra charge for being a foreigner. You can contact him by WhatsApp at ☎ +62 813-2601-1988.
Drone pic of the Pulau Panjang sandbar
Other Tips For Bangka Island
- Credit Cards — Most bigger hotels will accept cards, but you’ll want cash for other things.
- ATM — There are plenty of ATMs in Pangkal Pinang with good withdrawal limits. We used one inside a BNI bank, and had no issues.
- WiFi — The bigger hotels in Pangkal Pinang have good, fast WiFi.
- Cell Service — Local SIM providers like Telkomsel have good reception all across the island. I was even able to send texts while island hopping at Ketawai.
- Apps — Grab and GoJek are both available in Pangkal Pinang. You can use these for short rides or even food delivery to your hotel, which we did sometimes.
- Malaria — According to this Lancet study from 2018, malaria has been mostly eliminated in Bangka island, which is great. We didn’t take Malaria pills there.
Palm tree path at Ketawai island
Walking back to our boat
Best Time To Visit Bangka
The best time to visit Bangka is during the dry season in Indonesia, especially from May to October.
We went in late March, and the weather wasn’t really ideal. The waves were rough, the tide was low, and the water wasn’t so clear.
If we went back, we’d go when the sea is calmer and nicer for swimming. July or August should be perfect.
The coast at Turun Aban beach
How Long To Stay
I’d say 3 to 5 days is plenty of time to spend in Bangka.
We stayed a week and that felt too long, although it might have made more sense if the water conditions were better.
My final verdict on Bangka is that it has some wonderful scenery and places to see, but the trash kind of spoiled it for us at times. With better conservation, it could be a truly amazing island.
Another pic of the sandbar at Gusung Asem
Bangka Hotels
More Indonesia Travel Guides
Thanks for looking! I hope you enjoyed this guide for visiting Bangka island in Sumatra.
Don’t forget to check out my other travel guides for Indonesia before you go!
