Tell him he should go down with the price... If you compare the prices dont forget to include the airfare from KL to BW for your ticket, because you will go on the same boat with your bike if you go with Izi...

A detailed quote will be funny I guess. When we wend it was not official at all, we had to give some people on the way, hmmmm, let´s say some presents to make it all happen.

A littele surprise was the unloading fee on the Indo site something like 100.000 as far as I remember...

Tanjung Balai was shocking though... :D but u will see....

Good luck from :freezing: Tasmania!

Thanks for this info. We are trying to go the other way with two bikes, from Indonesia to Malaysia.
I contacted Mr Lim and was told the next boat will be on the 7th May to Malaysia. I was hoping to go a little sooner if possible, mind you, we are waiting for a visa extension in Jakarta at present which I am told will be available tomorrow (we shall see).

I will try to contact Izainil to see what is possible from the Indonesian side.

For me Mr Lim said last week that the boat goes either on 3rd or 4th of May.
Seems like no-one has really accurate information when the boats are actually going, so need to keep on contacting them quite often to check the status.

Ok, so while everything seems to change at a rapid rate, when it comes to boats and options to get vehicles across the Straight of Malacca, I guess it´s sorta nice to see there is at least SOMETHING, that has not changed a bit in five years... nobody still has a friggin clue, when the boats are going :rofl: !!!

Just to let you know that I got a message today from Mr Lim that there are no boats going on during this week. Next week is still open.

Just a quick update.
There is one boat running from Penang to Belawan next week Thursday or Saturday (! :D

Interesting indeed!
I have no updates so I will still assume that the next Cakra boat will be on May 7th from Belawan to Penang. This is what we will most likely do although I am looking at options from Jakarta as well as we could get a bit tight for time if the May 7th Cakra boat gets cancelled.

I am struggling to get much information here in Jakarta though. I contacted Hellman last Monday but they do not know what paperwork is required. They stil don't know as of today so I figure they have no idea at all. Strange for an international shipping agency :confused1:

You should contact Mr Lim and get more information from him.
This Malaysia - Indonesia part seems to be quite tricky...

Short update, next boat is going on coming Saturday.
At least 3 bikes will be on that boat to Belawan.

Shipped my bike today with the help of Mr Lim.
Everything worked perfectly in Penang.
On Monday I will get my bike from the customs in Belawan, hopefully things go as smoothly over there as in Penang.

Totally 3 bikes were loaded today to this onion-boat.

Got my bike back in Belawan :D

Couple important information:
- GPS coordinates: N03º46.833' E098º41.112'
- Do not wear shorts! You cannot get in to the customs area if you wear shorts!
- Taxi from Medan will cost you around 100 - 110000Rupiis.
- Customs clearance will take 2-3 hours.

As I have some deadlines to meet and there were no boats from Sumatra scheduled until May 7 and I was unsure about the reliability of the boat from Balawan I decided to airfreight from Jakarta to KL.
This process appeared OK and timely but ended up being more and more drawn out and the price went up considerably from the original quotation.

The upshot is that I did manage to get over, albeit a little late and at greater cost than expected.

Now in Bangkok trying to arrange Chinese visas. It appears that there are some rule changes and added documentation is required despite having a tour company arrange all the necessary information for us.

Ah, the bureaucratic challenges of international bike travel eh?

Anyone up for beer in Bangkok?

Just out of interest, may I ask: what was the quote for Jakarta-KL by air, and how much did you end up paying?

(+which bike, which airline, and sent crated or uncrated)?

Hi,

I'm in Sumatra currently and making my way up to Belawan. I have briefly spoken to Cakra shipping and have sent them an email to get all the details.
I'm presuming that i do not go on the boat. So I'm wondering how everyone heading north goes about this. Do i take a plane from Medan or a passenger boat and more importantly, do i need a visa or can i get one on arrival?
Thanks. I've tried finding the answers in this thread and others but have had no luck.

Cheers
Kurt

Hi Kurt,

you most probably don't need a visa for Malaysia, Europe/US/Australia and many more will get a 90 day stamp on arrival. More important is that your Indonesian visa does not expire. They ship only once a week (Tuesday if that is still correct), and customs closes paperwork 5 hours before. So best if you can be in Belawan with your bike at least 1 day before. I was not told so and had to put the bike in a warehouse and leave Indonesia due to my visa expiring.
Have a look at the -->PDF<-- I attached starting from page 10 for some more details. I did the crossing in July 2012.

You can find inexpensive accommodation in near by Medan, not really any reason to stay in Belawan. There are minibuses going back and forth all day, which you can use once you dropped your bike. From Medan you can catch a cheap flight to Penang with Air Asia (maybe also JetStar or Tiger). It was around 40+ USD. Remember to put engine oil and such on the boat rather then trying to check them in on the plane.

There is also a passenger ferry from Belawan once or twice a week, which would be an even less expensive option. I did Port Klang to Sumatra on a boat, took about 5-6 hours, not something I would want to do again.

Good luck!

I did crossing some months ago and must highlight that the boat schedules can change quite fast.
Belawan is not a "nice" place to stay.
Cheap flights go several times a day between Medan and Penang.

Hi c4traz and Hemuli,

Thanks for your replies. Mr lim has emailed and said there are no boats for the first week in August, something to do with a holiday and so the next one is the 13th which is a bit of a bummer. I'm keen to get up into Malaysia. It looks like I'll be in Medan for a week.
I'll probably try to suss out a cheap flight. I'm a bit over ferries at the moment :) and that sounds good with the visa. Nothing to worry about then. Just got to make it up to Medan.

Cheers
Kurt

I thought the passenger ferry service between Belawan <~~> Penang was withdrawn some time ago? Ho-hum .. :confused1: .. I guess I must have been misinformed about that.

EDIT - I guess you mean the cargo boat, and not the passenger ferry. Sorry for my misinterpretation.

@ Kurt

I suggest you also take a look at Firefly, which is a low-cost subsidiary carrier of Malaysian Airlines. They operate daily scheduled flights from Medan to Penang. I flew that route with them back in July 2012.

http://keithooper.smugmug.com/Travel...042554-1-S.jpg

Incidentally, Medan (Polonia International) Airport is incredibly close to the city, therefore a taxi ride will get you there quick and cheaply from your Medan lodgings, if that’s where you end-up staying. And yes, I agree with c4traz & Hemuli, Belawan is a typically sh!tty little port town – not a nice place to stay.


All the best


Keith

Go to Lake Toba and stay there for a week or two, it´s only 180km... We liked it a lot. Just take care if sbdy offers you a mashroom omelette! :eek3:

Lake Toba is really nice place! Recommendation also from here :)

Lake Toba
 

Lake Toba - Samosir Island is one of my most favourite places in the whole wide world. I will definitely go back there again one day.

Gotta luv those mushrooms! :blink:

And try to visit the orangutans (at Bukit Lawang) if you can too. :thumbup1:
.

hi, how can I get an email of Mr Lim or another person who can ship the bike from Penang to Belawan? Thanks.

Alex

Cakra Enterprise
187, 2nd Floor
Lebuh Pantai
10300 Penang
Malaysia

Tel: 04-2625879
Mob-cell: 0124 709717
E-mail: cakrashipping@gmail.com

http://keithooper.smugmug.com/Travel...052565-6-S.jpg
Mr Lim

.

thanks for the replies and suggestions guys...
i did check out lake toba and the very beautiful bukit lawang. It was unreal to see semi wild orangutans.
I ended up dropping the bike with Mr Lim's Belawan contact who assured me my beloved DR would be secure in the shed at the wharf and i flew out to Singapore to make my way up to Penang after checking out Singapore for a couple of days. The bike should be in Penang this Wednesday i hope. I'm in KL now and will get up there on Tuesday.

Cheers
Kurt

Hi Kurt,

You can find Penang office from N05º24.855′ E100º20.284′

-Hemuli

great! thank you!

Contact details for the Belawan agent?
 

Hi Kurt,
I'll also be going from Indonesia to Malaysia, not sure of the actual route yet. Did you happen to keep the contact details for the Belawan shipping agent?

I guess its Lim as well... Like Keith posted above ^^

ah i didn't dude... i been a bit slack with this sort of stuff.

His name was Mr Anam (somehting like that). Email Mr Lim at cakrashipping.com and he will sort you out.

Sorry i couldn't help more.

Cheers

Thanks for the replies
 

Yeah, I have the contact details for Mr Lim but thanks anyway RTWbyBIKE. I just figured there must be an agent at the other end for those heading in the opposite direction. :scooter:

contact mt lim directly if you are heading from indo to malaysia - he organises everything his end and will then give you the address of the agent in belawan

Office in Belawan is quite difficult to find.
It is located in N03º46.833′ E098º41.112′

Hi guys,

I have been searching on forum but couldn't find proper answer.
Bikes which you have sent with mr. Lim or other options where bikes registered somewhere(Europe, Australia, etc).
What about crossing to Indonesia with a bike registered in Malaysia?
Can I as well enter other Indonesian islands(I plan Sumatra, Jawa, Bali) ?

Easy: email Mr Lim.

I don't foresee any problems crossing to other islands. They are just roro ferries.

Lake Toba:thumbup1:

I think its time to activate this thread again..... :D

I am in Malaysia for the moment, having a good time here. I have contacted Mr Lim and has got a shipping date that suits me well at the 17th of june.

I have a Carnet and it is properly stamped when I crossed the border from Thailand. Do I need to worry about other papers as have been mentioned earlier in this thread such as recomandation from Indonesian motor organisation and/or police authorities?

Insurance in Indonesia? Must have? Should have? Dont need? Where to buy insurance if needed?

Tourist visa 60 days - Several persons mention 60 day touristvisas to Indonesia are available. But such a thing is not mentioned in the Indonesian embassies and consular websites. Is this still something that one can get if one goes to an embassy or consulate or is it old information? If still available I would try to get it at the Indo consulate in Penang. What do I need? Airticket in and out? Others? How many days to get such a visa if possible?

Freight options from anywhere in Indo and Timor to anywhere in Oz. Are there any other options than the little dobious Dili to Darwin one? Bali, Djakarta, Surabaya etc. Anyone had any experiences lately or any suggestions?

Thanks in advance!

evey embassy is different. My advice is go to the embassy in Penang and ask what you need. We didnt need airticket. mostly they are ok with overlanders. we coild only get 30 days but as I said every embaasy seems to have its own rules

Indo info
 

Last time I was in Penang, I asked about an Indo visa service - The answer was, you needed to go to the embassy yourself.

The people who will tell you exactly what you need to take with you to the embassy are - Banana Guest house 1 in Lebu Chula, if you want to double check, Jims Guesthouse a few doors away. He is a star.

I'm thinking you might require a return ticket, or some kind proof of funds.

You will need passport photos with a red background, Banana can do that for you, but there are other photoshops on the way down the hill to little India, same side of the road as Jims.

ETS: At the embassy you get 60 days, if you do VOA then you only get 30 days. I spent so much time in Sumatra, just being invited to peoples houses for dinner, sleeping on floors and hanging out - I don't know your timescale, but it may be a long journey.

Stephridestheworld did Bali to Oz. check out her blog

BTW Dili to Darwin isnt dubious. It all works well.

Steph airfreighted her bike from Bali to Sydney wasnt it? I think so. Anyway - thats not what I had in mind.

There are many stories about the Dili - Darwin freight that have postponed and delayed endlessly. Thats what I want to avoid. Dont wanna be stuckedin Dili for months. Its expensive and its not the most interesting place in the world. Of course one could fly back to Lombok or Bali in the meantime or similar....

the delays are usuallyy weather related. we found them ok to deal with. public hols etc pop up but im not sure why they would be delayed for months on end. they will send you their shipping schedule and they keep you up to date via email if you establish contact with sandy from anl.

A little update on the situation getting a bike from Malaysia to Indonesia with Cakra Enterprise and Mr Lim. (or actually not an update...)

Boat sails from Butterworth on saturday and arrives Belawan sunday and bikes can be picked up on Monday. Same as mentioned before. But as mentioned before - they like to load the bike on wednesday.

60 day visa to Indonesia seems easily obtained in the Indo consulate at Jalan Burma 467. You need a copy of your index site in your passport, the passport, application, a passportphoto with red background and a airticket in and out of the country. Travel agencies downtown seem to easlily make a fake return ticket if you book a real one way ticket with them. Or you can of course book a cheap return flight yourself and just dont use it. I saw several tickets as low as 79 Ringit and thats a real ticket not a fake one as the agencies give you. The visa were processed in one day so it was to deliver the apply and other papers one day and pick up the passport. It costed 170 Ringit by the way.

Thanks to Recom273 for info about this. Couldnt find any Banana guesthouse downtown in G'Town but talked to Jim in Jims Guesthouse in Chulia street and he seems to know most of the things travellers ask for....

My bike is loaded into the ship today and I will fly over to Medan on sunday and hopefully pick up the bike on monday.

So theres really only one question thats left:

Indonesian insurance. Where and how? Anyone travelled with foreign bike in Indonesia - what did you do?

We skipped the insurance alltogether for Indonesia, most people told us that it is not worth the paper it´s written on. but this is up to everybody...

VOA was for us not an option, we prolonged our two month visa without problems (30 days you cant prolong). Check here on the HUBB for Lutson from HTML (Honda Tiger Mailing List) they can help with everything in Indonesia, Visa, tires, spareparts ... If you like you can check our Blog for Details about route, visa and how we got accross when the banana boat was not going ;) we found an alternative, which was probably not better or worth - but at the time the only way (Mr. Lim had to stop for some month due to the regulations on the Indo site...)

And do not forget: HATI HATI! :scooter:

(and dont get mad it really gets better 400km east of Jakarta (when u r there you know what I was talking about)) :oops2:

Thanks for comment and info RTWbyBIKE.com. Much appriciated. Have read through your TR a couple of times, interesting read.

I feel a little better if having a third party insurance when in a remote country although as you say in many cases its probably not worth the paper its written on. At least it shows that one tried to get some insurance and that one not are not of the "just dont give a f***" person.

About visa it looks like a 30 day VOA can be extended - although the process seem a little complicated with 3 times to the immigration office and an indonesian sponsor/contact.
Visa on Arrival | Indonesian Embassy
I dont know if a 60 day visa can be extended. Anyhow I hope that I am ok with 60 days in the country for this time. If I like it very much I will simply go back later...

60 day visa can be easily extendet, took 30 min and 120k, even 3 month was short for us... went all the way to Dili and then to Darwin with T(r)oll... but that´s a different story.

have a grat ride!