Welcome to the Surabaya cruise port guide. Surabaya is a city of 2.4 million inhabitants. That makes it the 2nd largest city in Indonesia. You could basically say Surabaya is Indonesia in a nutshell. In the 8 centuries that Surabaya exists it has seen empires come and go and that makes it a cultural melting pot. Even today you can still find the traditional ethnic neighbourhoods like the Arab quarter, the Dutch old town and China town. In recent history Surabaya is often to the birth of Indonesia, because it was here that the battle for independence began. They often call Surabaya the city of heroes because of this. The truth is it is a big business driver city, a true example of Indonesia and a gem to explore. It is an easy town to navigate yourself, wether you are doing it by public transport, tuk-tuk, taxi, excursion or whatever you had in mind. Read the information underneath to be fully prepared.

This is the new cruise terminal of Surabaya where the cruise ships normally arrive.

In the terminal you will find all kind of facilities like currency exchange, postal service, tourist information, wi-fi and souvenir shops.

Cruise-Port-Surabaya-Tourist-Information

In the cruise terminal you will find one of the best hospitality projects of Indonesia. The tourist information has one goals: welcome you as good as they in Surabaya.

There are lots of facilities inside the terminal like these postal services.

Travel information Indonesia

Official currency – Indonesian Rupiah
Accepts Us dollars – yes
Creditcards – are not widely accepted

Drives on the – left
Timezone – UTC +7 – +9

About Indonesia

Inhabitants – 255 million
Official language – Indonesian
Capital city – Jakarta

Republic of Indonesia
Government – Unitary presidential constitutional republic

Indonesian language

Good day – Hari yang baik
How are you? – Apa kabar?
Thank you – Terima Kasih
Cruise ship – Kapal Pesiar
Port – Pelabuhan

Cruise Port Guide Surabaya – Indonesia: docked

Cruise ships dock at Surabaya’s Tanjung Perak. This brand new terminal in Surabaya sets a whole new standard for cruising in Southeast Asia. You will find a high end terminal with all the facilities you could wish for: tourist information, currency exchange, postal service, souvenirs shops and even a free tour desk. The cruise terminal is about 10 km away from the city centre. Keep in mind that this large city does not have 1 central point where you want to spend the day walking around. For example; the old town is about 5 km south of the port, the city centre is about 10 km south of the port and anything in between also has sights to visit. Therefore you might want to think ahead what type of transportation you will be needing. We feel in this case the ship will need to provide a shuttle service into town, but this is not the case with every cruise line. Check with you ship what they have got organised.

Taxis in Surabaya

At the parking lot in front of the cruise terminal there are 2 kinds of taxis waiting for you. You will find the freelance taxis here. These are individuals that are interested in giving you a taxi tour. Negotiate a price before you step into the taxi. Prices range between 80 and 150 USD for the entire day depending on your itinerary and your negotiation skills. You will also find blue bird taxis at the terminal. This is the official taxi of Indonesia. These taxis are blue and have a meter. It will cost about 40.000 rupee to get to the old town, depending on traffic. You can negotiate with them for a a private service. The rule of thumb is that they cost about 100.000 rupee per hour. Tuk tuks or trishaws are also in abundance in Surabaya, but they generally do not come to the cruise terminal. You can only pick them up in the city centre.

Public Transport

There is public transport at the port that can take you to the city centre. You will find these Damri buses at the public road in front of the terminal. The fare one way is about 3000 rupee. Keep in mind the quality of the public transport might not be as good as back home, so be flexible.