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 :)