Medan - Lake Toba

Day 1 and 2: Singapore → Medan → Swiss-Belinn Medan → Parapat → Samosir Island (Tuk Tuk) → Toba Village Inn

Day 3 : Carolina Hotel → Jenny's Restaurant → Tele Tower View Point → Pusuk Buhit Hot Spring → Tuk Tuk Pizzaria Restaurant

Day 4 and 5 : Sipiso piso Waterfall → Warung Ikan Bakar Galbers Cafe → Simarjarunjung Hill → Berastagi → Nachelle Homestay → Mount Sibayak Crater → Singapore

Flight from Singapore to Medan took us 2.5 hours

Landed at Kuala Namu Airport

Cabbed to Hotel cost us IDR200k (~SGD19)

Checked in @ Swiss-Belinn Medan and went for supper

It was almost 10pm when we arrived at Indonesia

Getting to Lake Toba
The easiest way would be to fly to Medan’s Kuala Namu International Airport and then travel by car to the town of Parapat.

A) 4 hours by car from Medan
B) 4–6 hours by public bus

Since we only had a small window of opportunity to explore Lake Toba, we decided not to waste any time; hence, we rented a car for the entire trip. We requested for car rental from Yoga Car Rental and for the driver to pick us up at our hotel in Medan and then directly to Lake Toba. We customised our routes and was quoted IDR2.7 million (~SGD260).

If you opt for public bus:
Medan Airport → Amplas Terminal → Parapat → Samosir Island

From Medan’s Kualanamu Airport, take a public bus to Amplas bus terminal.

Ticket cost: IDR 15,000/ pax
Duration: approx. 30 minutes

From Amplas terminal, get on a public bus that heads to Parapat. Once at Parapat, take a ferry to Samosir Island which is that small island in the middle of Lake Toba.

Ticket cost for bus to Parapat: IDR 40,000/ pax
Ticket cost for ferry to Samosir Island: IDR 15,000/ pax

At 8.30am, he picked us up at Swiss-Belinn Medan
Drove us to Parapat, Tigaraja Jetty

 On our way, we came across these sceneries

Our car didn't manage to join the ferry queue
Therefore we went on our own with our luggages
The driver picked us up at our hotel the very next day
We took ferry across to Pulau Samosir

Pulau Samosir is very unique on it's own

"Lake Toba is a large natural lake occupying the caldera of a supervolcano. The lake is about 100 kilometres long, 30 kilometres wide, and up to 505 metres deep."

We came across this very unique gas kiosk
It seemed like we travelled back to 1960s

This is one of the cemetery along the road

We walked into someone else wedding ceremony
It involved almost the entire village on Samosir Island

 A view at the waterfront from Pulau Samosir
 Sunset view @ Hotel Tuk Tuk Timbul

 We walked in a restaurant and dine in the dark @ Hot Chili Restaurant
 Mosquitoes were everywhere and they are bigger than those in Singapore
 Remember to bring mosquito repellent with you all time

 Breakfast from our hotel, Toba Village Inn

 View from Toba Village Inn in the morning

 Recee for our dinner, we spotted crayfishes
 Fresh from Lake Toba itself

You can rent car, bike or motorbike in Tuk Tuk too
Or you can flag them down like cab in Singapore

"Check out the view from Tele: Just across the narrow strip of land connecting Samosir Island with the mainland is Tele – a tiny town with the best views of Lake Toba and Pulau Samosir. You can climb up the Tele Tower View Point to get incomparable views of the lake and surrounding landscapes."

The accessibility is quite good to be honest

However, it takes a little too much concentration during the trip

The street is a little bit meandered

Therefore, hiring a driver becomes a good idea

The view was awesome 

We proceeded to Pusuk Buhit for some hot spring experience

Located near Pangururan, it was a great choice after visiting Tele

It costs IDR$2,000 to enter the area with access to the pools

Don’t try swimming around in it, or soaking your whole body into it at one go – chances are, you’ll end up hopping back out again

It was HOT~

View from top of the mountain at Tuk Tuk

 So, we had our dinner at Tuk Tuk Pizzaria Restaurant
 With lotsa crayfishes and nice tilapia grill fish
A sumptuous meal at Tuk Tuk for 4 will cost you around IDR400k (~SGD40)

 We had to leave before sunrise so our hotel packed us some breakfast

 It was a cool morning with lower temperature compared to Singapore
 We took a ferry back to the mainland and bid Pulau Samosir goodbye

 En route we stopped at Simarjarunjung Hill
 It offers beautiful views of Lake Toba from a different angle
This place is pretty new and the locals are still working on it

 We reached our favourite destination of all
 Hike up a stunning waterfall – Sipiso-piso waterfall
 Located at Merek with the height of 120m
 That hike was not easy as it was super duper steep

 View along the hike from the top

 Some shops and eateries along near the carpark

 So, boy and I made it to the base of the waterfall
 It was magnificent but damp so you might want to wear a poncho

 Our driver recommended lunch at Warung Ikan Bakar Galbers Cafe
 Their seafood was fresh and lunch was pleasant by the lake

 This is our guide for Mount Sibayak Crater at Berastagi
 He works with The National Geographics as photographer
 We paid him small token to bring us up to the summit

 Berastagi is a little town flanked by two volcanos
 Gunung Sinabung to the west and Gunung Sibayak to the north
 We were here to hike to the summit of Gunung Sibayak
 The volcano is active and still hissing fumes
 In total, we took 40 minutes to reach the summit

We were very fortunate to be able to hike this mountain

It rained whole night the day before and Berastagi town was flooded

However, it stopped and we managed to hike at last

It was cold at night and our accommodation Nachelle Homestay has warm water for shower only until 10pm daily. All houses at Medan are equipped with boilers to provide hot showers. Make sure you checked with your host before making bookings.

We spent less than SGD500 for this trip and the breakdown is as follows:

Item	/Pax (IDR)	/Pax (SGD)
Flight Tickets		$138.50
Travel Insurance		$18.90
Mobile Data, 2GB	Rp55,000	$5.66
Swiss-Belinn Medan	Rp267,750
Toba Village Inn, 2 nights, Breakfast Included (Sep 2-3)		$73.34
Nachelle Homestay, 1 night (Berastagi)	Rp225,000	$23.17
	Rp492,750	$253.91
Transport Breakdown	/Pax (IDR)	/Pax (SGD)
Medan to Parapat	Rp300,000	$30.90
Parapat to Berastagi	Rp150,000	$15.45
Berastagi to Airport	Rp150,000	$15.45
Yoga Rental Car	Rp675,000	$69.52
	Rp675,000	$69.52
Additional Fees	/Pax (IDR)	/Pax (SGD)
Entrance fees to Sipiso piso Waterfall	Rp20,000	$2.06
Ferry from Parapat to Tuk Tuk (2-way)	Rp30,000	$3.09
Tour Package to Pusuk Buhit and Tele View	Rp175,000	$18.02
Tour Package to Gunung Sibayak	Rp100,000	$10.30
Expenditure per day (4 full days)	Rp1,165,200	$120.00
	Rp1,215,200	$153.47
Calculation	/Pax (IDR)	/Pax (SGD)
Estimated Total Per Pax IDR	Rp2,382,950	$245.41
Estimated Total Per Pax SGD		$230.74
Estimated Total for the Trip		$476.15