Uhamboo.com: Bandung

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Bandung Indonesia

Bandung is the capital of West Java province in Indonesia and Greater Bandung is made up of 2 municipalities and 38 districts, making it Indonesia's 2nd largest metropolitan area with 8,199,892 inhabitants according to the 2014 Badan Pusat Statistik data.[1] It is the nation's fourth largest city (by land area),[2][3] and the third largest city by population (within the city proper), with over 2.4 million people. Located 768 metres (2,520 feet) above sea level, approximately 140 kilometres (87 miles) southeast of Jakarta, Bandung has cooler temperatures year-round than most other Indonesian cities. The city is situated on a river basin surrounded by volcanic mountains. This topography provides a natural defence system, which was the primary reason for the Dutch East Indies government's plan to move the colony capital from Batavia (modern-day Jakarta) to Bandung. The Dutch colonials first established tea plantations around the mountains in the eighteenth century, and a road was built to connect the plantation area to the colonial capital Batavia (180 kilometres (112 miles) to the northwest). The Dutch inhabitants of Bandung demanded the establishment of a municipality (gemeente), which was granted in 1906, and Bandung gradually developed into a resort city for plantation owners. Luxurious hotels, restaurants, cafés and European boutiques were opened, hence the city was nicknamed Parijs van Java (Dutch: "The Paris of Java"). After Indonesia declared independence in 1945, the city experienced rapid development and urbanisation, transforming Bandung from an idyllic town into a dense 16,500 people/km2 (per square kilometre) metropolitan area, a living space for over 8.2 million people. Natural resources have been heavily exploited, particularly by conversion of protected upland area into highland villas and real estate and, although the city has encountered many problems (ranging from waste disposal and floods to a complicated traffic system and lack of road infrastructure), Bandung still attracts large numbers of tourists, weekend sightseers and migrants from other parts of Indonesia.

Recommended airport

Jakarta (JKT)

Points of interest

Bandung Convention Centre

Nearby destinations

Bandung, Indonesia

Bandung Indonesia