Imagine yourself in the mountains with 7 volcanoes surrounding you. You are sitting on a private balcony overlooking a lake. There is a quiet stillness around you. You are at peace with everything and in the distance the sound of Sundanese Gamelan music lulls you into a relaxed state of mind. This enchanting experience awaits you every day at Kampung Sampireun. It is a total hideaway in nature and offers you resort living with a real difference.
The journey to get to Kampung Sampireun, if you are coming from Jakarta, starts with a train journey – “one of the most spectacular train journeys in all of Asia”, according to Lonely Planet.
I can highly recommend the train. Of course, you can easily drive from Jakarta to the resort if you wish, but the train journey is an interesting way of getting there. After you arrive at Bandung train station it is a 2 hour drive to your final destination – a small town just out of Garut.
Train Journey Jakarta to Bandung
The executive train, called the Argogede, departs promptly from Jakarta at 10.00am. The train is clean, with modern facilities, (even a western style toilet) and a good food selection on board served by very friendly railway staff.
The first one hour is mainly flat as you make your way through the outer suburbs of Jakarta. About 1 ½ hours into the journey the mountains come into view and the Argogede begins its ascent. The vegetation changes and becomes more lush and green. You catch glimpses of banana plantations, cassava crops and beautifully sculptured rice terraces as the train curves and winds around the mountain. The most spectacular part of the journey is where it crosses a series of railway bridges with stunning views as you pass over gorges and valleys. As the train clatters over the high railway bridges you look down on the thundering river hundreds of meters below.
You can enjoy all this for the very reasonable price of 75,000 rph (US$9). What a bargain!
Hotel Tirtagangga
Once you have arrived at Bandung Train Station the next part of the journey is a drive of 2 ½ hrs to Cipanas township. Cipanas is one of the small towns around the Garut area, which was a popular place for the Dutch colonists last century. Seeking escape from the heat they would come up to this mountain area for the cool weather, the dramatic volcanic setting and the natural hot springs.
A very worthwhile stop is the very popular Hotel Tirtagangga, which pipes pure (hot) water from its own natural spring into the swimming pool for hotel guests and day visitors alike. You can take a rest and enjoy a soak in the natural healing waters in the hotel’s aqua medi pool which is surrounded by beautiful tropical plants and flowers.
This hotel has an interesting history in itself. It has been a family owned hotel since 1964. Mr Arief’s family purchased the natural spring when the Dutch left Indonesia in 1945. The family then began to work on their dream to build a natural spring hotel. Hotel Tirtagangga was fully renovated 2 years ago and now has 40 rooms, all with natural (hot) spring water piped directly into each bathroom.
Mr. Arief told me they get “many clients from the embassies and oil companies”. Their foreign guests tend to come from the Netherlands and Germany, “Most of them come here on business, stay on afterwards and somehow get to hear about our hotel. They usually stay a couple of days”.
The other appeal of this Garut area is the opportunity to trek or bike in the mountains, take a 4wd adventure into the back country or for the real adventurous, take advantage of the local river rafting trip which , according to Mr Arief , “is the cleanest water in all of Java”.
Kampung Sampireun
After our hot springs stop, we continued on another 11 kms to our final destination – Kampung Sampireun. It is here that nature meets and blends with this unique idyllic natural retreat.
If you can plan to arrive at night, you will be in for a magical experience. First, you enter through a kampung and on arrival at reception, you are graciously greeted by the staff in traditional sundanese dress and given a special welcome drink called “bandrek”, made from a traditional recipe. The lobby opens out onto a small wooden jetty. When you step onto the jetty you are treated to a spectacle of color and lights which surround the lake edge and adjoining forest. Dotted around the lake are cottages which sit on stilts in the water. All 13 cottages are softly lit up to create a charming atmosphere. On the other side of the lake a small fairy lit path leads to the restaurant. Your bags are quietly whisked away and you are then taken by canoe to your cottage.
From now on everything is by water. Room service is by canoe. A restaurant booking involves a canoe arriving at your waterfront cottage to take you across the lake to dine.
For honeymooners, a dinner by candlelight can be organized on a floating bamboo raft, which sits out in the middle of the lake. Even if you are not on honeymoon, and you fancy a unique dining experience, Pak Rudi, the manager will organize this for you. You can even order your dinner in advance, so when you are rowed out into the middle of the lake, your food awaits you. You are then served discreetly and left alone floating on your candlelit raft for what can only be described as an unforgettable dining experience.
Around sunset, a traditional sundanese orchestra, called a ‘Calung’, floats around the lake serenading those who are relaxing on their balcony. Dressed in traditional style, wearing the ‘barangbang semplak’, it is quite a sight to behold, and no matter where you are at sunset, the music carries softly across the water and can be heard from any area of the resort. The orchestra appears later in the restaurant and entertains you for the entire evening. It is a delightful, subtle kind of music that is very soothing and really adds to the ambience of the resort.
For a treat in total luxury, you can try one of the treatments on offer at the Taman Sari Royal Heritage Spa. This is set in the tropical landscaped gardens of the resort and features a never ending pool for those who like to unwind at the poolside.
The resort was designed by Mr Djembar Nugrah, a local Garut architect. He was inspired by a photograph of the 1940 Hotel Radium, which no longer exists. Together with Mr Arief, they have created a beautiful resort, which they have blended with tradition, culture and kampung life.
All the materials used at the resort are sourced locally. The cottages are made out of bamboo with coconut roofs. The interior décor is also natural and beautifully furnished, with a nice touch of fresh flower petals spread across the 4 poster canopy bed.
Mr. Arief has owned this private lake for some time and developed it into a resort in 1999. The lake is surrounded by a naturally wooded forest. It also happens to be located in the middle of a kampung, hence the name.
Kampung life and life at the resort blend into one allowing for a totally cultural experience when you visit. The kampung rice fields are right behind the back fence, water buffalo can be seen ploughing the fields, and standing as a backdrop to this is a magnificent volcano. Kampung trekking is offered to guests who wish to gain some insight into local village life and other activities, including a kids fun program.
What is special about the resort is the unique blend of local traditional Sundanese culture and the beautiful idyllic setting. Discover a new experience and take a trip to this relaxing, tranquil place and allow yourself to unwind in a beautiful Javanese setting.
Fact File
Jakarta to Cipanas (by car) – 5 hours
Jakarta to Bandung (by express train) – 2 ½ hrs then another 2 ½ hrs to Cipanas
Hotel Tirtagangga – Jl Raya Cipanas No 130, Garut, West Java
Phone: (0262) 232549, 233700
www.hoteltirtagangga.gitamaya.com
Kampung Sampireun – Jl Raya Samarang – Kamojang, Ciparay Garut, West Java
Phone: (0262) 542393
www.kampungsampireun.com
