5 Best Things to Do in Kupang, Indonesia [West Timor Travel Guide]
The capital of East Nusa Tenggara, Kupang is a frequent stopover for people traveling onwards to Rote Island and an interesting city to visit in its own right.
Due to the incompatibility of the flights coming in from Bali with the timing of the ferries onward to Rote, we ended up having to spend two nights in Kupang, giving us two half-days to explore the surrounding areas.
Prior to planning a trip to Rote Island I hadn’t known much about West Timor, but after a bit of research, I was pleasantly surprised by how much there was to do in the area around Kupang.
Here are my favorite things to do in Kupang, which you can easily do in a day or even a half-day if you are strategic with your timing.
| Not sure where to stay in Kupang? I stayed at Hotel on the Rock, which I definitely recommend! You can also browse through mid-range hotels on Agoda (has most choices in Asia) or Booking.com (what I typically use, as I’m a Genius member) |
Best Things to Do in Kupang, Indonesia
Take a dip in the natural pool of Crystal Cave.
One of the best things to do in Kupang is visit Crystal Cave, listed as Goa Kristal Bolok on Google Maps. It’s about 30 minutes from Kupang. We rented a scooter for the day from our hotel, which cost 100,000 IDR (about $7 USD). If you need to hire a driver, expect to pay at least 200,000 IDR (about $13 USD).
Give yourself at least an hour to enjoy the caves and swim in the natural pool inside the cave, with its refreshingly cold freshwater. You have to walk about 10 minutes from the parking area over a rather rocky path, so watch your step. You can easily trip and stumble over the sharp rock, especially if you’re wearing sandals, so look down and take care.
Once you reach the cave entrance, you’ll need to descend about 20 meters / 70 feet into the cave, including a bit of scrambling on rocks on the way down. I didn’t find it particularly difficult or claustrophobic but if you have mobility concerns or fears of caves or the dark, it might not be your cup of tea.
Locals take really good care of the caves, leading you there for a small fee. We paid 20,000 IDR per person, a little over a dollar; however, looking back at the Google reviews, I see everything from 5,000 to 50,000 IDR being charged, so it seems like they sort of make up an entry fee.
Their guidance is definitely worth it, though; they stayed with us the whole time and helped us step in the right places on the way down to the pool, as the rocks are a bit slick and slippery. Plus, they had a super bright light so that we could actually see the water’s beautiful hue. We had a lot of fun jumping into the water with the local kids and it was a definite highlight of my time in Kupang!
Hike and swim the tiers of Oenesu Waterfall.
One of the most scenic places near Kupang is the stunning multi-tiered Air Terjun Oenesu (aka Oenesu Waterfall), a gorgeous cascade about a 30-minute drive from downtown Kupang.
It has three main pool areas, two of which are easy to access and swim in. While there was clearly once some infrastructure around the waterfall, the area is now in disrepair. As a result, the steps down to the waterfall aren’t well-maintained, so watch your step.
We didn’t see anyone at the entrance, but a local spotted us later on and asked for a maintenance fee; we paid about 10,000 IDR per person. Have some small bills on you just in case.
We spent a little over an hour hiking around the various pools of the waterfall. It’s pretty easy to walk to the middle and top tiers and swim in the cold, refreshing rush of the water—it feels so fresh and clean!
Have a delicious seafood feast.
There are a number of excellent seafood restaurants in Kupang as fishing is a huge part of the city’s economy.
We had an absolutely spectacular meal at Taman Taut Handayani, right next to Hotel on the Rock. This place has spectacular sunset views, especially if you sit outdoors on the second floor level.
It’s a little pricier than your standard warung in Indonesia, but it’s 100% worth it and still an excellent value.
Our favorite dishes were the honey-grilled shrimp, the crispy fried morning glory (such thin and crispy batter!), and the rica rica grilled fish with chili. But everything was so delicious!
The only negative I would say is that the music is incredibly loud here, so if you are noise sensitive, I highly recommend wearing earplugs.
Take a sunset walk on the beach.
If you want to see a lovely sunset, it’s nice to join the locals for a stroll along Pantai Panjang Kupang. There’s a small road that goes in front of the beach, and you can also walk on the sand and see the boats and rocks jutting out from the ocean.
The beach here isn’t particularly breathtaking during the day, but at night, you get gorgeous views and colors. It’s a super-central location, right next to where we stayed and where we went for dinner, so it’s an easy addition to your Kupang itinerary.
Take a swim overlooking the ocean.
Even better than a sunset walk? A sunset swim in a pool overlooking the ocean.
We stayed at Hotel on the Rock in the downtown area both of our stays in Kupang on the way to and from Rote Island.
The hotel pool overlooks the ocean and is great for a swim at sundown. The rooms here are also rather nice and perfectly suitable for a short stay.
See the beautiful beaches.
We started to head to Tablolong Beach, but the roads were a bit rough and we didn’t have a ton of time so we ended up going to Baliana Beach instead.
The water here was absolutely stunning, so many different shades of blue. The area was clean and there were a lot of friendly locals enjoying the beach.
One thing to note about West Timor is that there is a chance of saltwater crocodiles, which can and do attack humans. I did see people swimming and wading in the water, but I would stay in the clear, shallow areas to be safe.
Visit the nearby islands of Semau or Rote.
The whole reason I was in Kupang was to get to Rote Island, about a 2-hour ferry away. If you have a few days to dedicate to visiting Rote, it’s completely worth it — I have a complete guide to Rote Island coming soon.
However, Rote isn’t suitable for a day trip because the main area with the best beaches and Nirvana Lake is about 2-3 hours from the harbor area. And anyway, there’s only one ferry per day between Kupang and Rote anyway, so you’ll need to stay overnight at a bare minimum.
If you only have time for a day trip but still want to experience a beautiful island with white sand beaches, head to Semau Island. I didn’t visit Semau Island, but instead, dedicated that time to Rote Island. The boats to Semau depart from a different place from Rote, so ask your hotel to help you arrange transport to the harbor where the boats leave for Semau.
Allison Green is a former teacher who has been travel blogging since 2016. She has a Masters in Teaching and a B.A. in English and Creative Writing. Her blog posts merge her background as an educator with her experience traveling to 70+ countries to encourage ethical, meaningful travel. She has been a speaker at the World Travel Writers Conference and her writing, photography, and podcasting work has appeared in National Geographic, CNN Arabic, CBC Canada, and Forbes, amongst others. Now a full-time traveler, she has lived in Prague, Sofia, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area.
