14 days in Indonesia: itinerary

Fourteen days is the first length at which Indonesia stops being a single-base holiday. You can cross Java and finish on Bali without spending the trip in transit, because the two islands are joined by a short ferry and the Java leg runs on trains and hired cars rather than flights.

The route below is the one the country page recommends for 14 days: three nights in Yogyakarta, one at Bromo, one at Ijen, five in Ubud, four on a Bali beach. It works in either direction, but flying into Yogyakarta and out of Denpasar usually gives the cheaper and shorter travel day.

If your two weeks are meant for reefs or orangutans, this is the wrong plan. Raja Ampat needs 5–7 nights on its own plus long connections, and Sumatra's Lake Toba and Bukit Lawang are a separate loop from Medan. Do one of those instead of Java, not as well as.

The line runs west to east across Java and then crosses to Bali: Yogyakarta → Probolinggo and Cemoro Lawang (Bromo) → Banyuwangi (Ijen) → Ketapang ferry → Gilimanuk → Ubud → south Bali. Every leg is overland; the only flight you need is the one home.

Distances are short on the map and long on the road. Java's toll roads help on the western stretches, but the mountain sections are two-lane and slow, and Bali's south is often congested. Build in a buffer on any day with a flight or a boat.

Days 1–3, Yogyakarta. Borobudur at opening, Prambanan in the late afternoon, and the Kraton and Taman Sari on the day in between. Borobudur's climb is quota-limited, so book online before you arrive. Yogyakarta is also the cheapest food city on the route.

Day 4, Bromo. Leave Yogyakarta early; the drive to Cemoro Lawang takes most of the day. Sleep early — the viewpoint jeeps leave around 3am. Bring a fleece and a buff: it is cold and ashy at 2,300 m.

Day 5, Ijen. Drive down to Banyuwangi, sleep, then start the Ijen crater walk around 1am to reach the blue-fire viewpoint before dawn. The descent to the crater floor is steep and the sulphur smoke shifts with the wind; a mask helps.

Days 6–10, Ubud. Cross to Bali by ferry and settle in for five nights. Temples at opening, rice terraces early, the Monkey Forest and a dance performance in the evening. Use Ubud as a base for day trips rather than moving hotels.

Days 11–14, Bali beach. Move to Sanur for calm water and easy airport access, or Uluwatu for surf and cliffs. Keep the last night close to DPS.

Java has the better public transport. Trains link Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Surabaya, and the Jakarta–Yogyakarta run takes about seven hours in executive class. East of Surabaya the rail network thins out, so the Bromo and Ijen legs are usually done with a hired car and driver, often booked as a two- or three-day package from Yogyakarta or Malang.

The Java–Bali crossing is the Ketapang–Gilimanuk ferry, a short hop that runs around the clock. Fast boats and flights also connect the islands, but for this route the ferry keeps you moving east without doubling back to an airport.

On Bali, a private driver for the day is the practical choice; ride-hailing apps work in the south but are restricted in some town centres. If you would rather not drive yourself, budget for a driver on every moving day.

Five bases in 14 days is the maximum most people enjoy. Yogyakarta rewards a central guesthouse near Jalan Malioboro. Cemoro Lawang and Banyuwangi are one-night stops — pick somewhere warm and close to the trailhead rather than somewhere nice. Ubud has the widest range, from hostels to rice-field villas, and a five-night stay is long enough to justify a slightly better room. On the coast, Sanur suits families and early flights; Uluwatu and the Bukit suit surfers.

Book Ubud and the Bali beach for the end of the trip, not the start: you want the relaxed half after the volcano mornings, and you want to be near DPS on the last night.

Mid-range, two people sharing, expect roughly US$900–1,700 per person for the two weeks on the ground, excluding international flights. That covers guesthouses and mid-range hotels, a driver on moving days, entry fees for Borobudur, Prambanan, Bromo and Ijen, and three meals a day at local and mid-range places.

The big variables are the private drivers across Java and how much you drink in Bali. Hostels and warung food can bring the total under US$700; villas and beach clubs push it past US$2,500. Domestic flights, if you swap a drive for one, are usually US$40–90 one way.

Swap Java for the Gilis. If you want water rather than volcanoes, run Ubud → Gili Air → south Bali instead. Fast boats cancel in swell, so keep the last night near DPS.

Add Lombok. Three nights on Lombok or the Gilis fits if you cut a night from Ubud and one from the beach.

Drop Ijen. Skipping Ijen gives you a spare night in Ubud and a gentler crossing to Bali; the Bromo sunrise alone is enough for many travellers.

Go east instead. Fourteen days also covers Komodo and Flores — fly to Labuan Bajo for a boat trip, then back to Bali — but that is a different trip, not an addition to this one.