[Cool Runnings]

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JAKARTA APRIL 2017

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[size=13pt]ABOUT ME[/size]

Korean-American. From California. Mid-to-late twenties. 5'11". 170 pounds. Athletic build.

Earlier I wrote a data sheet about the secondary cities of Indonesia's Java Island. But since Jakarta is a beast of its own, it deserves its own data sheet. I know there's loads of information about Jakarta but it's good to keep its information updated. Enjoy!


[size=13pt]DURATION OF STAY[/size]

28 days


[size=13pt]EXISTING INFORMATION[/size]

http://www.jakarta100bars.com/: This website has been referenced many times on this forum. For good reason too. This guy made an entire website that is 95% dedicated for everything about Jakarta and other parts of Indonesia. I say 95% because the website also has a little information about other countries (Philippines, Vietnam etc...). To be honest, you can get away with just using this website alone. Without even needing the information on this forum. But the more information the better.

Due to the ever-changing nature of cities around the world (especially Jakarta). It's important to keep information up to date. But it's also important to give credit to those who have spent the time to provide intel. You will notice in my last datasheet (secondary cities of Indonesia) I provided a hyperlink of all existing threads pertaining to the topic at hand. The same will be provided for this datasheet as well. If I miss a thread I apologize in advance. Now even though some of the information on the below listed threads are a few years old. It's still important to reference them as an important source of information, because other users have posted comments regarding useful updated intel.

The hyperlinks below will be listed under chronological order based on the OP's first post.

2017

thread-62924...ht=Jakarta: This has mixed info with Komodo island and Bali

thread-62354.html: This is my last datasheet about the secondary cities of Java island. I am mentioning it here because some users posted comments about intel regarding Jakarta.

2015

thread-48787.html: Mixed info with Manila

thread-44922...ht=Jakarta: Mixed info with Philippines and Bangkok

thread-44613...ht=Jakarta

2014

thread-43578...ht=Jakarta

thread-40116...ht=Jakarta: Great read. One of the first Jakarta datasheets I read.

thread-38289...ht=Jakarta

thread-33020...ht=Jakarta: Mixed info with Taipei

2013

thread-25766...ht=Jakarta

thread-22595...ht=Jakarta

2010

thread-2781....ht=Jakarta: Mixed info with Kuala Lumpur and Bali

Hopefully you didn't burn your eyes reading through all those posts. Now lets continue on...


[size=13pt]ACCOMMODATION[/size]

Apartamen Tamansarri Semanggi: This apartment complex is in between Central Jakarta and South Jakarta. I rented out a studio via Airbnb. The only good thing about this place is its location, as its close to all the South Jakarta nightlife venues. But the traffic is terrible in this location (but where in Jakarta is traffic not bad?). The building itself was built 8 years ago and it looks like it was never renovated ever since. Lots of ex-pats live there as well. I wouldn't stay here again due to the lack of maintenance, overall lack of care for the facilities and the occasional cockroach problem in my room.


[size=13pt]TRANSPORTATION[/size]

Grab, Uber, Go-Jek


[size=13pt]ONLINE GAME[/size]

Tinder


[size=13pt]DAY GAME[/size]

Any mall in this concrete jungle will suffice. Jakarta has over 100 malls. Take your pick. One of my favorite malls is Kota Kasablanca. The locals call it Kokas




[size=13pt]NIGHT GAME[/size]

Lets be honest, the main reason most of us go to this city is it's night life and girls. I will comment on the clubs and bars that I've been to. Enjoy!

CLUBS:

Dragonfly: This is the place to be on Wednesday nights. It was renovated a few years back. Medium size club. 200,000 IDR cover charge with no drink voucher. Starts to get crowded around 1am. I don't know how this place is like on weekends because I would be at other clubs. Upscale older crowd. They have a small dance floor. I searched high and low for the best club on Wednesday nights and this yielded the best result.

Blowfish/Puro: I don't know if this is true or not, but I heard they also have ladies night on Wednesday's. But when I went there at 1am it was closed. I guess they discontinued it? Anyways, Blowfish and Puro are brother and sister clubs that are connected to each other. Separate rooms but you can walk to each one by a connecting hallway. Both places gets packed on weekends. I think it's a 100,000 IDR cover charge but that gives you access to both clubs. I forgot if you get a drink voucher or not. Both clubs are medium size with small dance floors

O2 Club: One of the newest clubs in town. This place was packed on a Thursday night. I don't know how it's like on the weekends since I've only been there on a Thursday. It offers a great view of the city since its on the 59th floor. Mixed crowd of students, tourists, locals, ex-pats... No cover charge. Medium sized dance floor which is nice to see in a Indonesian club.




Equinox (2nd floor of X2): Located inside Plaza Senayan. Gets packed on the weekends. Went there once on a Wednesday and it was dead. But on the weekends there's lots of ex-pats here, they make up about half of the club's population. The other half being a mix of ex-pat hunters, locals and maybe a few tourists. I think 100,000 IDR cover charge that includes a drink voucher.

LOLA - Espiritu y Libacion: No this is not a salsa club. Actually its a "speak easy" hip-hop club. I say "speak easy" because there is no sign outside their building. They only have a big black door. But once you open it you will hear music and people. This place is cool but there are 2 things that I do not like. 1 is that its tiny, you can barely move. 2 is that its too dark inside, you have to be point blank at the girls face to determine if she's cute or not. But for all you hip-hop fans out there (me included) you would like the music. If this place was bigger and brighter I would go there every weekend. No cover charge. Mix of locals, tourists and ex-pats.




The Pallas: Also one of the new clubs in town. In the same building as "Fable" and "Lucy In The Sky" in SCBD (Sudirman Central Business District). If memory serves, paying the cover charge for "The Pallas" also gives you access to "Fable". I forgot how much the cover charge was, maybe 100,000 IDR? Anyways, this club is big and upscale. Has that luxurious type of club vibe. Gets packed on weekends.




Fable: Very young crowd. As in some 16 year old's go there to spend their parents money. But its not like the entire club is filled with high school students. I met plenty of other people in their early to mid-twenties. But be careful of those 16 year old's because they are there. **Disclaimer** According to my google search, the legal age of consent for a Indonesian female is 16 years old. But even then, that's just wayyy to young for me. **End Disclaimer**. Back on topic. Fable is a medium sized club and it does get crowded on weekends.

Empirica: In SCBD. Big club. Upscale and luxurious. This is the place to go if you want to party with Indo-Chinese people. Practically the entire club clientele are Indo-Chinese. Also they have one of the longest bars in Asia. The thing is like an anaconda stretching from one side to the other. I forgot how much cover charge was, 100,000 IDR? I think that comes with a drink voucher, not sure. As usual the place is packed on weekends. Wouldn't be surprised if there were pro's here, lots of rich Indo-Chinese buying tables and bottles here.




BARS:

Por Que No: Spanish restaurant with a cool roof top bar. They have a DJ playing on the roof top and the view of the city is good. Great place for dates. Cheap beer




Social House: Inside Plaza Indonesia. They have another location somewhere in Jakarta. Modern chill bar. Good place for dates.




SKYE Bar & Restaurant: Also inside Plaza Indonesia. Really nice sky bar that offers a great view of central Jakarta. This place is not cheap. Good date spot.




Pantai Indah Kapuk Street (PIK): PIK is located near CGK airport. It's basically a street filled with bars and restaurants. Mall PIK Avenue is also there. Marina Indah is a street right next to PIK and it too is filled with bars and restaurants. These 2 streets and the Mall PIK Avenue basically comprises Pantai Indah Kapuk District (PIK for short). Only issue is that it's far from the rest of Jakarta. If your accommodation is in South or Central Jakarta it will be about a 25-minute drive with no traffic. Good news is that you can take the toll road which avoids the traffic for the most part (sometimes the toll road gets clogged up). The toll fare is cheap, 9,000 IDR. There are no big clubs here, but this place is more for dates and casual nights out.




[size=13pt]SIGHT SEEING[/size]

Monumen Nasional (MONAS): The locals call it Monas. Its a pretty cool sight. You can go to the very top of the tower and you get a cool view of Jakarta. I recommend going early in the morning. I believe they open at 8am. The line gets long and standing outside in the heat is no fun. Avoid going on weekends and national holidays as tourists and locals all flock there. Early morning weekdays are the best.




[size=13pt]MY EXPERIENCE[/size]

I have a love/hate relationship with Jakarta. I love it because of the night life, girls and the cost of living for a major Asian capital city is fairly cheap. But I hate it because of the traffic, pollution, not much to do and incompetent Grab, Uber, Go-Jek drivers who get lost half the time. During the rainy season the traffic is even worse because the rain makes everything move slower. When it rains, all the Grab, Uber and Go-Jek drivers go offline because they don't want to drive in the traffic. So if you need to go somewhere, then good luck trying to get a driver. You can still get a blue bird taxi but you will pay more because the meter will be running when you're stuck in traffic. Even with all that being said I still had a good time. The first half of my trip I went through the tinder and night game gauntlet, bringing back different girls here and there. Eventually I met this cute college girl and I chilled with her for the remainder of my time there. For those of you on the fence about visiting Jakarta. Man I would say do it! Just try to avoid coming here during Ramadan. As many places will be closed. But even then, you can still use tinder and day game.


[size=13pt]CONCLUSION[/size]

Jakarta isn't for everyone. I can understand how one can be intimidated by all the obstacles Jakarta can throw at them. But the juice is worth the squeeze. If you can just soldier through the chaotic maze of the concrete jungle that is Jakarta. You will see why members here go to this city. For me, I felt like I stayed too long. Thankfully, I had my college girl to keep me company and show me around Jakarta. I'm glad I stayed for almost a month because I didn't have to rush anything. I was able to follow up on my tinder leads, set up day 2's and hang out with my local friends. But next time maybe a 3 day weekend trip will be just fine. I hope this datasheet helps you guys out. I understand that the information that I have referenced and provided to you may not reach your 100% expectations. But that's the beauty of being human, were not perfect. You have to take the information that's available to you and go out and experience it yourself. If you choose to come back and share your story with us here, great! If not, hey no worries. As long as you gained something from it. For good or for worse, think of it as being a learning experience. I'm super grateful of the intel the members on this forum have provided. It helped me out a lot during my travels. So it's an honor for me to return the favor and contribute as much as I can. Until next time.

Peace.

[wolfpack]

also... I recommend Jakarta Hard Rock Cafe (BEST HRC in the world in my opinion <--super friendly staff, generous portion, and is cheaper than states or Korea) <---awesome place to take a date to.

Tamansari? Hah thats where I stayed when I visited JKT 2 year ago. In my opinion its the "center" location in terms of logistics.

Keep us posted man ^^

[the-dream]

Great datasheet! I'll be visiting in a couple of weeks and will definitely be using your advice

Does anybody have any experience of what happens to the nightlife and girls' DTFness during Ramadan? It didn't even cross my mind until after I'd booked my ticket!

[Putin Closes]

Seems like multiple girls in pipeline are out of Jakarta. The super hot ones are in Bali / abroad until Ramadan is over. But still many 6.5ish are bunkered down in the city.

Bring alcohol cause apparently alcohol banned except in hotels at Western prices. Gonna have visit twice to compare during and after ramadan.

[worldtraveler3]

Are the clubs open?

[Shimmy]

Great datasheet. Did you try to get any girls to meet you at Kota? I was going to book an airbnb there inside the mall but I waited too long and it wasn't available. I ended up booking one at Kuningan City mall and everything was perfect except the mall was complete shit and no where good to meet inside.

[jspill]

Know if Mille's is still open? I heard it closed for drugs, but may have reopened, it has before.

[Irish]

(06-01-2017 06:42 PM)jspill Wrote:  

Know if Mille's is still open? I heard it closed for drugs, but may have reopened, it has before.

Closed

Illegals also had a massive raid recently, so be careful

[the-dream]

What's the best hotel or airbnb to stay at later this week during ramadam? Somewhere in walking distance of a nice date spot that girls won't mind travelling to and near enough to a good nightclub.


Is Thamrin still the best? Or somewhere near SCBD or Mega Kuningan? I've never been and these just stand out from what I've read.

[Vicious]

Why go to any Muslim country during Ramadan?

[Cool Runnings]

Vicious Wrote:

Why go to any Muslim country during Ramadan?

I second that. I would highly recommend avoiding Indonesia during Ramadan. But if your schedule forces your hand then check out the link below.

the-dream Wrote:

What's the best hotel or airbnb to stay at later this week during ramadam? Somewhere in walking distance of a nice date spot that girls won't mind travelling to and near enough to a good nightclub.

http://www.jakarta100bars.com/2008/07/ja...which.html

This is a list of night venues that could be a hit or miss during Ramadan. You might want to consider finding Accommodation near these venues.

http://www.jakarta100bars.com/2016/07/be...karta.html: This a quote from this link, also something to consider

"Ramadan happens approximately every 11 months in Indonesia (and the rest of the Muslim world). In 2017, it will be in May and in 2018 in May-June.

It is possible to visit Jakarta during that time. You are allowed to eat during the day, even in public, and all shops and museums are normally open. If you are not familiar with the city, you might not notice the change.

Still, unless you are particularly interested with the religious aspect of Indonesia, I think it is best to come at another time. There is clearly less energy around and people are more tired. Personally, I'm also embarrassed to eat outside by myself. Nightclubs and bars become very quiet and you may need to hide if you want a beer.

Another issue with ramadan is that you may get stuck in the "mudik" migration. Just before Idul Fitri, the last day of fasting, millions of Indonesians go back to their villages so the traffic on the roads is terrible. In 2016, there was a 3 days traffic jam in which 12 people died. There is also a surge in price for train and plane tickets. Things get back to normal around 10 days after the end of ramadan."

[Freddy_1]

Why go to any Muslim country during Ramadan?

Because it's Jakarta and there is always an endless supplies of girls willing to meet.


I've been here 5 nights and 2 of the 4 girls I've banged were solid 7s who lived alone so I stayed at there place during the weekend so I haven't had a chance to go out yet to see how much nightlife is affected but I have had girls invite me out to Basque, Cloud,Immigrant etc etc so even though the places probably won't be as busy and quality not as good the city doesn't shut down completely as one would think. Also scheduling to meet girls from tinder won't be an issue, so if nightlife isn't your thing you probably won't see much of a difference during Ramadan, however there is a big difference between the quality of girls on tinder and ones you meet out at night.

Most girls will fast from 4:30am to 6pm but are more than happy to meet and bang after 6pm but you can definetley meet some during these hours as well.

The biggest difference I have noticed is traffic is 5x worse than in my previous visits not during Ramadan.

[Freddy_1]

Delete

[Heart Break Kid]

Anyone got any feed back on how Indo's react to day game?

(major) Malls feel almost like a different world than the rest of the city. Are indonesian chicks too shy to talk to get picked up at malls, or it's the same shit as anywhere else?

I just went through a major mall and talked to a chick who had a boyfriend and she seemed cool - but just wanted to get y'all feed back since I have no real sample size to draw from yet. I feel like the (relative) reserved reputation of Indonesian woman outside of clubs might be a bit over blown.

[Heart Break Kid]

quick update on an afternoon sample size... mall game is just fine here

[AsiaBaller]

You know when the west is doomed when people are considering going to muslim hellholes like Indonesia. Polluted, crazy traffic congestion, all there is to do is sub par malls and hooker infested nightlife, the locals are dumb and impoverished, the only somewhat westernized people are Chinese Indonesians who despise the locals that already tried to genocide them before and the Indonesian girls are ugly as fuck for the most part.

This documentary pretty much sums up what a sad joke this place is. If some upper class local girl goes #metoo on you then you might be the next Neil Bantleman.

[Heart Break Kid]

(03-27-2018 03:19 AM)AsiaBaller Wrote:  

You know when the west is doomed when people are considering going to muslim hellholes like Indonesia. Polluted, crazy traffic congestion, all there is to do is sub par malls and hooker infested nightlife, the locals are dumb and impoverished, the only somewhat westernized people are Chinese Indonesians who despise the locals that already tried to genocide them before and the Indonesian girls are ugly as fuck for the most part.

This documentary pretty much sums up what a sad joke this place is. If some upper class local girl goes #metoo on you then you might be the next Neil Bantleman.

The nightlife is not red light oriented at all...it's not Manila.

There are plenty of westernized people and certainly not exclusive to Chindos - got no clue where you're making this stuff up. Seems like you just lazily read some forum post on city data and regurgitated it here.

[KYT88]

(03-30-2018 01:43 AM)Heart Break Kid Wrote:  

The nightlife is not red light oriented at all...it's not Manila.

Have you been to Jakarta?
Daan Magot, Harum Waruk, Penjay, Mangga Besar. That's over 100 clubs right there that are "red light oriented".

[Heart Break Kid]

(03-30-2018 08:51 AM)KYT88 Wrote:  

(03-30-2018 01:43 AM)Heart Break Kid Wrote:  

The nightlife is not red light oriented at all...it's not Manila.

Have you been to Jakarta?
Daan Magot, Harum Waruk, Penjay, Mangga Besar. That's over 100 clubs right there that are "red light oriented".

I'm here now, so yes - I've been to Jakarta.

Maybe after coming from Manila my standard for "whore polluted" cities is high - because there are cities if you can actually go to plenty of venues and clubs that aren't filled to the brim with semis, I wouldn't call that a red light oriented society. Maybe the women I have talked too were semis, but if they're acting like normal girls, then who cares?

[King of the Bongo]

Can anyone recommend another place to stay than Thamrin Residence and Cosmo Terrace?

Would be nice to find a place near another big and nice mall than Grand Indonesia with an affordable food court with plenty of dishes to choose from for daily meals and a mall where girls are willing to meet.

Would also be cool to meet like minded guys in Jakarta. I'm less "radical" about all the red pill stuff, are more introverted and prefer relaxed atmosphere and positive vibes.I will be there at the end of December. I'm at the northern part of Bali right now.

[Shimmy]

(11-29-2018 01:15 AM)King of the Bongo Wrote:  

Can anyone recommend another place to stay than Thamrin Residence and Cosmo Terrace?

Would be nice to find a place near another big and nice mall than Grand Indonesia with an affordable food court with plenty of dishes to choose from for daily meals and a mall where girls are willing to meet.

Would also be cool to meet like minded guys in Jakarta. I'm less "radical" about all the red pill stuff, are more introverted and prefer relaxed atmosphere and positive vibes.I will be there at the end of December. I'm at the northern part of Bali right now.

There are actual apartments inside both Kota Kasablanka and Kunigan City. Not nearly as good of malls but good locations.

[Irish]

(11-29-2018 01:15 AM)King of the Bongo Wrote:  

Can anyone recommend another place to stay than Thamrin Residence and Cosmo Terrace?

Would be nice to find a place near another big and nice mall than Grand Indonesia with an affordable food court with plenty of dishes to choose from for daily meals and a mall where girls are willing to meet.

Would also be cool to meet like minded guys in Jakarta. I'm less "radical" about all the red pill stuff, are more introverted and prefer relaxed atmosphere and positive vibes.I will be there at the end of December. I'm at the northern part of Bali right now.

No, RVFers are only authorised to stay at thamrin residence or Cosmo in Jakarta. Its in the RVF user guidelines, staying in any other accomodation is an instant 7 day posting ban.

In addition you are only allowed to meet girls via tinder, you need to ensure every day you sit in your apartment and swipe no less than 6 hours a day. Your budget should not exceed $28 a day and you are only allowed to go out at night once to go to basque on a non weekend night (so to ensure that it's stone dead) so you can inform the forum that all the girls there are ugly and nothing compared to what you can get on tinder and indeed declare nightlife in Jakarta is not worth it. Please also ensure to detail how much every drink you bought cost and compare it to Thailand and Philippines, where you also have all drinks prices memorised.

Given the fact you're inevitably terrified of cold approaching, ensure you arrange to meet a tinder date there to avoid any extreme social anxiety. That way you can also proclaim that she was the hottest girl when you were there at 8pm on a Tuesday, all girls who ever went to a bar in Jakarta ever is an std riddled slut and nothing compared to all the virgin unicorn 9s you're banging off tinder

[King of the Bongo]

@Irish
Your sarcastic post perfectly summed up what's going on with all the complaining members.

This is also the reason why I had the urge to write that I'm less radical with the redpill. That's because I don't want to meet one of them. Many of the red pill theories are legit in my opinion, but unfortunately a big part of the community concentrates too much on what they think they can't influence or can't achieve.

And yeah, I'm far from being the biggest alpha or being good at approaching. My subconsciousness still gives too much fucks about what others might think in general. My biggest sticking point.

@Shimmy
Thanks Shimmy for the information.

[achillesamz]

My 3 expat friends aged 46,46, 36years old are going jakarta april 26th to have a bachelor party. They are not going bali. What do you guys advise for a bachelor party in jkt?
I advised them to 1) On friday night, go basque open a bottle and they may try to invite girls to your table and later go dragonfly.
2) For saturday noon 27th, create a CS event for a saturday noon pool party with booze in a apartment full of expats.
or 3) go to north jakarta day clubs to spend time with paid girls.

One of the guys successfully using indonesiacupid and couchsurfing to get girls.

What is your another suggestion? Irish and other jakarta experts, throw some light here.