National Museum of Indonesia

Getting a handle on the history, culture and traditions of a nation as vast and diverse as Indonesia means an inevitable stop at the National Museum in Jakarta. Established over 150 years ago, it’s one of the oldest museums of its kind in Southeast Asia. The monumental collection numbers more than 100,000 artifacts and spans prehistory, the Hindu and Buddhist Kingdoms, the Indonesian sultans, colonial times and WWII occupation. The museum showcases Indonesian artistic culture with comprehensive displays of traditional Batik garments, Dayak puppets, ancient gamelan-style instruments, and ceramics. Free English and foreign language tours are conducted several times a week.