North Sulawesi Travel Tips & Insights

25/02/2025

The religious and mystical traditions of the Minahasan people of North Sulawesi are rich and complex, displaying both indigenous beliefs and the influence of later religions.

The traditional Minahasa Malesung beliefs revolve around the veneration of ancestral spirits. These spirits are believed to play an active role in the lives of the living, influence events, and require respect.

And stones, or Watu, hold significant cultural and spiritual significance. Stones are seen as enduring and powerful. In Minahasa they often serve as markers for important events, ancestral sites, places of spiritual significance, and can be seen as having a connection to the ancestral spirits.

The Watu Pinabetengan is a particularly central element. In essence, it is more than just a stone; it's a living monument to Minahasa history, tradition, and ancestral wisdom.

The video was made with permission of the people in the ceremony. Since the ceremony involved to***co and alcohol I tried to blur the consumption of both.

We were fortunate, to be able to witness this traditional religious ceremony. Would you like to join us at Watu Pinabetengan, the heart of the Minahasa culture, some time?

31/01/2025

The Lembeh Strait is legendary among divers. But the island itself is also a perfect destination for an excursion. We spent a whole day exploring the beautiful island by motorbike. As we drove along winding roads through a beautiful green and rolling landscape, we caught glimpses of the Lembeh Strait. You could see the Tangkoko Nature Reserve across the water. And everywhere we went, we were greeted by the friendliest people. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed every minute of it. Want to take a tour of Lembeh too? It's a great day trip!

24/01/2025

7 delicious local foods you need to try when visiting North-Sulawesi.

Indonesian food is delicious and is reason enough by itself to visit the country. Here are 7 delicious dishes you should try when visiting North Sulawesi.

1. Grilled Tuna Jaw - Rahang Tuna
This delectable local dish is made of a tuna jaw marinated with a blend of spices, lemon and chilis and grilled over an open fire. This famous dish is a must-try for all grilled fish lovers.

2. Manadonese hearty vegetable soup - Tinutuan
Tinutuan or Bubur Manado is a delicious hearty vegetable soup made of rice, corn, and pumpkin, topped with green vegetables and served with sambal roa, a type of spicy chili sauce made with smoked roa fish as a condiment. Tinutuan is a great vegetarian/vegan dish if you leave out the sambal roa.

3. Smoked skipjack - Cakalang Fufu
Cakalang Fufu is a traditional North Sulawesi dish featuring smoked bonito or skipjack tuna. The fish is marinated with a blend of spices, then smoked until it develops a rich, savory flavor and a firm texture. It's often served with rice or noodles, making it a delicious and satisfying meal.

4. Bamboo sticky rice - Nasi Jaha
This is a dish typically served during celebrations, made from glutinous rice mixed with coconut milk and spices, cooked inside bamboo tubes lined with banana leaves over an open fire. This gives the rice a unique, aromatic flavor and a slightly smoky taste. It’s delicious and a real must try. Also for vegetarians and vegans.

5. Squid in dark sauce - Cumi Tinta
Cumi Tinta is traditional dish made from squid cooked in its own ink, resulting in a rich, dark, and flavorful sauce. The squid is typically sautéed with garlic, shallots, chili, and other spices, creating a savory and slightly spicy dish that is both unique and delicious. Watch out, it is spicy and will stain your fingers!

6. Manadonese fish curry - Ikan Woku
This vibrant and aromatic fish curry is made with a blend of spices including turmeric, ginger, lemongrass, and chili. The dish is known for its rich, spicy, and tangy flavors, often enhanced with the addition of tomatoes, lime leaves, and basil, making it a flavorful and satisfying meal.

7. Spicy chicken - Ayam Bumbu RW
This traditional dish, made with chicken cooked in a rich and spicy sauce, is perhaps the spiciest Indonesian dish you can find anywhere in the country. The dish is flavored with a blend of spices, including chili, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass, creating an aromatic dish for all spicy-food addicts.

The cuisine of North-Sulawesi is spicy even by Indonesian standards. Chilis of the tiny a fiery kind are used in most dishes. And sambal, of which there are many kinds, is always served as a condiment. Do you love spicy food. Then you must try the Manadonese food. Do you like your food more mild, tell the waiter. Have you ever eaten Manadonese food? What is your favorite dish?

16/01/2025

10 Great Excursions to Do During Your Stay in North Sulawesi

Want to know what to see and do? Here are some ideas for unforgettable excursions to do in North Sulawesi.

1. Meet the tarsiers of the Tangkoko Nature Reserve.
2. Enjoy a delicious lunch at the immense Tondano Lake.
3. Be amazed by the beautiful panoramas of Tetetana.
4. Take a dip under the 70-meter high Tunan waterfall.
5. Climb to the crater of the Lokon and Empung twin volcanoes.
6. Take a refreshing walk around the Mahawu crater.
7. Stroll through the famous market of the flower city of Tomohon.
8. Explore the colorful temples of Manado's Chinese district.
9. Discover the Waruga graves in Sawangan and learn more about the fascinating Minahasa culture.
10. Enjoy the warm water and go for a swim in a natural hot spring.

Combine your favorite excursions into a fantastic day trip and an unforgettable travel experience. The list of fun, interesting and adventurous excursion options is far from complete. What is your favorite excursion?

13/01/2025

After our post about 10 fantastic camping and hiking tours in North Sulawesi, we would like to give you a taste of what a great experience such a tour is. In this video you can see how on our way to Anak Soputan, we first walk through dense forests towards the campsite where we spend the night. From there we hiked through a rugged landscape to the top of Anak Soputan the next morning. The adverse weather on the day we climbed to the top only added to the adventure and the feeling of being at one with nature. Will you join us soon?

Watch the video and get inspired! For more information check at www.insulindetoursmanado.com

12/01/2025

4 incredible trips through the north of Sulawesi

North Sulawesi is one of Indonesia's most stunningly beautiful and diverse areas. It is the travel destination for anyone who loves imposing volcanic landscapes, unspoiled nature like you won't find anywhere else and a wealth of exceptional cultures. Here are four breathtaking journeys through North Sulawesi. What is your favourite trip through this, for many undiscovered, part of Indonesia?

1. Tangkoko, Tomohon & Bunaken
This trip offers the perfect combination of nature, culture and relaxation. Trek through the jungle of Tangkoko. Explore the flower town of Tomohon with its illustrious market. Climb the Lokon and Empung twin volcanoes. Take a drive around the immense Lake Tondano. And end your trip with a few wonderfully relaxing days on Bunaken Island in the Manado Bay.

2. Visit the paradise islands of the Celebes Sea
Discover the truly paradisiacal islands of the Celebes Sea. Travel to beautiful Sangihe with its fragrant nutmeg gardens, unspoiled nature, white beaches, beautiful waterfalls and a culture with traditions that go back centuries. Explore magical Siau and enjoy the sunrise on the slopes of the mighty Karangetang volcano. And end your trip with a few days of diving, snorkelling, and enjoying the beach at Bunaken.

3. Travel through Bolaang Mongondow and Gorontalo
Bolaang Mongondow in the west of North Sulawesi and Gorontalo are visited by few travellers and that is really a missed opportunity! Take a trip from Manado to Gorontalo and explore the Minahasa highlands with its impressive landscapes full of volcanoes. Enjoy beautiful vistas in Bolaang Mongondow. Discover the overwhelming nature of the huge Bogani Nani Wartabone national park. And stroll through Gorontalo-city, a town full of old houses and the friendliest people.

4. Discover the unprecedented nature of Sulawesi
The nature of Sulawesi is truly unique in the world, and you will encounter a wealth of animal species that you will not find anywhere else. Visit the most beautiful nature areas of the north of Sulawesi under the guidance of specialized guides. Discover the most intriguing animal species, such as the babirusa deer-pig with its huge tusks, the anoa dwarf forest buffalo, the three species of macaques that live here, the at least four species of tarsiers, the marsupial dwarf and bear cuscuses and an incredible number of bird species such as hornbills, kingfishers and owls.

What would be your favourite trip?

Get inspired and come with us to the north of Sulawesi! For more information go to www.insulindetoursmanado.com

09/01/2025

7 fantastic camping and hiking destinations in North Sulawesi.

Hiking through the most pristine and impressive areas of North Sulawesi together with a team of experienced guides is a truly fantastic experience. Especially if you combine the trip with a night of camping in the great outdoors. Here are 7 of North Sulawesi's most beautiful camping and hiking tours. Would you like to hike here too?

1. Walk around the crater of the Mahawu volcano
2. Hike to the crater of the Lokon & Empung twin volcanoes
3. Trek to the beautiful Tampusu Lake
4. Hike to the panorama point of the Soputan volcano
5. Climb to the top of Anak Soputan
6. Ascend to the top of the Lokon volcano
7. Klabat the roof of North Sulawesi

The tours vary in difficulty, but there is always a tour that is suitable for you, whether you are a novice, an experienced hiker, or real adventurer. Come along and enjoy the breathtaking North Sulawesi.

07/01/2025

Our completely renewed website is online!
Of course, you will find day trips & excursions with which you will get to know the unprecedented unique nature of North Sulawesi, you can enjoy spectacular views, beautiful waterfalls and impressive volcanoes and you will discover a wealth of special cultures. You will also find 10 camping & hiking tours that will take you to the most pristine and impressive areas with dense tropical forests, imposing volcanoes and breathtaking landscapes. And you will find 10 different multi-day trips and tours that will take you to all parts of this, for many undiscovered part of Indonesia.
We specialize in personalized and tailor-made trips. So, combine the different excursions, tours and trips, add new elements and create your own trip. Everything is possible!
Get inspired and book your dream trip on on

Welkom bij Insulinde Tours Manado. Wij bieden dagtrips, kamperen en meerdaagse reizen in en om Manado in Noord-Sulawesi, Indonesië.

24/11/2024

🌋 BANUA WUHU UNDERWATER VOLCANO, SANGIHE ISLANDS , NORTH SULAWESI , INDONESIA 🤿
Looking for an exceptional underwater adventure? Explore the beauty of Banua Wuhu, an active underwater volcano. 🌋 Dive through crystal-clear waters and witness amazing underwater scenery.
Dive down to 5 meters and be amazed by the sight of bubbling hydrothermal vents, dive a bit deeper and enjoy lush coral formations, and a variety of fish species, including pelagic visitors. 🦈
📩 For more information about diving in Sangihe Islands please drop a comment or contact Hattarua Guesthouse:
Email: [email protected]
WhatsApp: +62 822 9640 5123

09/11/2024

A beautiful day on Sangihe Island, North Sulawesi, Indonesia 🏝️🌋🌊

30/09/2024

Conquering Lokon; a nighttime hike to the summit of the Lokon volcano.

This weekend we went hiking around Lokon in the Minahasa Highlands near Tomohon. Usually we hike to the active crater of the Lokon and Empung twin volcano system, which is a relatively easy hike of less than an hour from the head of the trail to the crater's edge. But this time we decided to hike to the summit of Lokon (thank you Jade and Alfi for taking us).

Starting at 01:30h in the morning we hiked to the top at 1.580m above sea level in three and a half hours, overcoming 625m in height difference and a distance of 3,4km. Although we walked in the dark, the first part of the hike was on familiar terrain; passing the farm lands at the start of the trail, through the dry riverbed and over the rocky slopes towards the active crater in the saddle between Lokon and Empung. From there we continued our hiked along the edge of the crater, ever higher up the slope of Lokon itself towards the top. For the first hour, the track of the main ascent led us through a terrain strewn with gravel and small rocks. This was tiring due to the steep incline, but it was still fairly easy going. The second part was much more difficult. Here the track cuts through the dense elephant grass that covers the highest parts of Lokon. It is muddy and very steep and some sections we were only able to pass with great difficulty by pulling ourselves up using the stems of the sharp grass.

Exhausted but with a great sense of achievement we finally reached the top. Just in time to see a beautiful sunrise together with several local youths, many of whom incredibly managed to reach the peak on their slippers and flipflops! Although it was cloudy, we had some magnificent views of the surrounding landscapes, making the challenging and exhausting hike well worth our while.

Hiking to the top of Lokon is certainly not suitable for everyone. I would give it a three and a half, or perhaps four out of five star difficulty level. But if you are up to it, you'll have an unbelievable adventure hiking through difficult terrain with incredible views, a night sky filled with a million stars and an unforgettable sunrise. You will love it!
Have you ever been to the top of Lokon? Share your experiences in the comments.

If you are interested in joining us on a similar adventure to Lokon or one of the many other volcanoes in North Sulawesi, don't hesitate to reach out.

28/09/2024

Sunrise from the Lokon volcano at 1580m. Certainly not an easy ascent, it took us three and a half hours of nighttime hiking to overcome 950 altitude meters, but well worth the effort.

27/07/2024

Camping in the great outdoors far from the hustle and bustle of cities and towns, hiking through pristine forests and climbing the slopes of Anak Soputan, or little Soputan, is an amazing adventure. 🏕️🥾🌋
Hiking up the volcano is great during nice weather, but the cold weather, clouds and wind we experienced this time did not detract from our adventure but made it more epic, added to the mystery and made the achievement of climbing all the way to the top that much greater.
If you like to join Insulinde Tours Manado on a hiking and camping trip to the Soputan volcano don't hesitate to send us a message. It is a great way to experience the natural wonders of North Sulawesi and we're sure you'll love it!

22/07/2024

Photo impression of the camping trip with our guests at the Soputan volcano. The first day started with the trip to the camping site; A 4 km climb where you have to overcome a height difference of 300 m. After setting up camp and having a well-deserved cup of coffee and tea, we walked further to the viewpoint from where you can see the Soputan volcano. That was another four kilometer walk, but unfortunately it was cloudy and we were unable to see the volcano. The next morning we climbed to the top of Little Soputan. A strenuous hike of over seven kilometers where we eventually climbed to a height of almost 1,580 meters. The hike to the top of the small Soputan is already difficult in good weather, but the cold weather with strong wind and lots of rain made it extra difficult this time. After returning we broke down camp and walked back to the starting point where the car was waiting for us. It was a few great days in nature far away from civilization and well worth the effort. Contact Insulinde Tours Manado if you are interested in hiking and camping around the Soputan volcano as well. If you like being outdoors you will love it.