When you want escape from the hustle and bustle of daily routine and relax but it’s not the right time to take a leave, a staycation in Jakarta is the answer. Hence, a staycation in a nice hotel on the weekend has become a lifestyle for Jakartans and those who live around the megapolitan city. I am no longer living in Jakarta but I need it sometimes, especially this year to escape Nyepi Day in Bali and take care of other stuff, we flew to Jakarta to stay in Menteng for a week. Although surrounded by skyscrapers in the heart of Jakarta, we felt as tranquil as staying in a villa in the middle of Ubud Bali. How could it be possible?

A Week of Staycation in Jakarta

Last month was pretty hectic for us since we had to apply and proceed with some documents at the French embassy in Jakarta. Meanwhile, traveling with a baby is a new skill we are still learning. We needed to stay in a place that is not only comfy, and tranquil but also strategically located not far from the offices we needed to visit in the heart of Jakarta, hence we chose to have a staycation in Menteng Park Jakarta.

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I am familiar with Menteng Park and the area hence when it appeared on Booking.com I was sure it would be a great choice for our staycation in Jakarta. Menteng Park is indeed an apartment, but the front tower, called Emerald Tower, is rented daily as a hotel, managed by a different company than the apartment.

Our hotel for a staycation in Jakarta is a deluxe, spacious room sized 40m2. It got everything we needed for a staycation in an apartment in Jakarta. A space for Aimee to play, a washing machine and kitchen, and a tranquil environment. But the highlight of our stay was the private elevator that enabled us to go up and down quickly without having to wait or queue with other visitors.

At that time Bali was celebrating Nyepi Day, so we took the chance to have a longer holiday in Jakarta. In total, we stayed in Menteng Park for 6 days. Jakarta was busy with its business as usual. Getting stuck in a traffic jam has always been part of the routine in Jakarta as well. When our business is done, we’d prefer to stay inside and enjoy the facilities Menteng Park offers. I and Adrien love to swim, so we enjoyed the 50-meter infinity pool very much.

It also has a great gym and kids club that I and Aimee visited. Although it’s better to be enjoyed by kids above 1 year old, it is still nice to spend some time in.

Things to Do While Having a Staycation in Jakarta

Our hotel is strategically located in the heart of Jakarta, not far from business and entertainment centers in Sudirman-Thamrin, or Kuningan. It’s easy to move around to some of the nicest shopping malls in Jakarta such as Plaza Indonesia and Grand Indonesia. But when we’re tired of the idea of having to get stuck in a traffic jam on the way to the shopping mall, we prefer to walk around Cikini.

Located only 1,1 km away from Menteng Park is Perpustakaan Jakarta Cikini (The Jakarta Cikini Library). After walking for 4 minutes, I arrived at the newly revitalized library that had garnered an impatient buzz from the public. Perpustakaan Jakarta Cikini is part of Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM), Jakarta’s iconic art, cultural, and science center, which underwent a revitalization in 2019 with architect Andra Matin at the helm.

Dominated in a warm tone of wood and concrete, the library has taken advantage of its three floors and sweeping size, sectioning them to encompass its big collection of over 100,000 books of varied genres and archives, various facilities, and common areas. There are stairs that tower to the sixth floor (which may already be visitors’ resorted photo spot), seamlessly integrated with reading tables and racks that display specialized collections, from books about Jakarta to curated titles on art, literature, and culture.

Each floor dedicates rooms for gatherings and activities to take place. There are both open and private reading rooms, discussion booths, a broadcast room for podcast sessions, a children’s area as well as an inclusive room where the visually impaired can access braille materials—all of which members of the library can freely reserve and access. Perpustaakan Jakarta Cikini indeed looks comfy and inviting, more than some coworking spaces and coffee shops. Sadly, I spent only a little time here, but next time in Jakarta I’ll come again and spend more time to work and read!!

To visit Perpustakaan Jakarta Cikini, please make a reservation first here

Not far from the library is a line of coffee shops and restaurants housed in old colonial house shops. One of it is Bakoel Koffie, which means coffee merchant. Bakoel koffie an iconic place to hangout, meet, work or simply surf the internet while sipping a cup of freshly roasted Java. It has became a melting pot where people with all kind of background and social income class gather around to simply enjoy their cup of Java; from artist to painter, writer to diplomat, politician to business people, teachers to professionals, student to journalists, all mingle together, sharing ideas, socializing, or simply working.

Dubbed as the older coffee roaster in Indonesia, Bakoel Koffie has successfully made curious to visit its outlet. Their coffee is a bit too bitter for my taste, but it’s still nice to hang in their Dutch & European colonial styled cafe for a few hours while tasting some Indonesia iconic food such as Nasi Goreng and Soto Ayam. If you’re looking for a more authentic taste of Indonesian cuisine, you can head to the next door restaurant, Dua Nyonya. I love their Iga Penyet, tasted very authentic and yummy! Definitely will come back 🙂

Our staycation in a hotel in Jakarta was nice and serene. The environment and hotel facilities was great helped us to rest with our baby! There are some places I wanted to visit such as Lucy in The Sky bar that is actually located very close to our hotel. But well, traveling with a baby sometimes can be not very easy, so I will save this one up for our next staycation in Jakarta.

Curious about my adventures in Europe and America ?. You can click the following links to see my traveling videos that have aired on Net TV :

1. Desa Hallstatt, Desa dengan Arsitektur Klasik di Pinggir Danau
2. Imutnya Park Guell, Dunia Fantasi Ala Gaudi di Barcelona
3. Ada Turki Mini di Bosnia Herzegovina
4. Nyobain Makanan Khas Bosnia, Kaya Rasa dan Pasti Halal
5. The Bean, Seni Kontemporer yang Ada di Film – film Hollywood

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