Robb Report Malaysia’s Tailored Travel Went On An Indonesian Archipelago Hop

The Indonesian archipelago has long held an allure for travellers. Across the 17,508 islands—according to official government records—one finds rich natural history, a cultural melange, and an exoticism borne from centuries of the human condition. Robb Report Malaysia’s most recent Tailored Travel programme would immerse its readers in this setting via a five-day, four-night adventure spanning two time zones.

First up came the glittering metropolis of Jakarta, which is home to 42 million people and has recently overtaken Tokyo as the world’s largest city. This was followed by the idyllic island escape of Komodo, where a grouping of volcanic islands makes up the otherworldly landscape of the Komodo National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

This edition of Robb Report Malaysia Tailored Travel, in collaboration with Ayana, showcased two properties under the group’s flag. It began with our readers checking in at the 366-key Ayana Midplaza Jakarta, which is connected to the MRT and within walking distance of the adjoining Midplaza tower.

Over two nights, Robb Report Malaysia’s readers enjoyed the many attractions within and around the hotel and its six F&B outlets. Breakfasts at Rasa restaurant proved to be an indulgent affair with an international and regional range of cuisine from eggs to soto madura, an East Javanese soup with a heady mix of aromatics, finished with a spicy sambal and a squeeze of lime.

“Ayana Midplaza Jakarta offers a different way to experience the city,” says Louis Lai, who was among the participating readers and a returning traveller to Jakarta after a long hiatus. “I was only minutes from Jakarta’s business centre, yet I still found space to pause, dine, recharge, and reconnect. For me, that balance is what an urban sanctuary really means.”

At the hotel’s Jimbaran Lounge, so named for the coastal town where the 222-acre Ayana Bali is located, readers savoured a respite from the city’s hustle and bustle on its grounds composed of water features, frangipani, quaint gazebos, and filled with birdsong.

A lunchtime treat showcased some of Jimbaran’s new culinary signatures; a Gohu Tuna Tartare with exceptionally fresh tuna on a bed of pillowy rice, and Nasi Campur Ayana—mixed rice with beef satay gapit, black spiced duck, salted squid with green chilli sambal, long beans with coconut, balado potatoes with quail eggs, corn fritters, pickled vegetables, and peanut and kaffir lime crackers.

To wrap it all up, dessert took the form of the Pisang Ijo: steamed banana in pandan skin, banana gelato, bubur sumsum foam, and nitro pisang Ambon. Louise Chan, the adventurous gourmet, says: “I still had room to try the Es Campur Jimbaran, a refreshing mix of tapioca, palm fruit, jackfruit, and chilled coconut. Each dessert was beautifully presented, and they reflected the skill of the hotel’s strong pastry team, the talent behind the pastries and desserts served across all of its restaurants and bars. It was a sweet, memorable ending that showed the hotel’s strengths in pastry.”

Just as importantly, the hotel’s location in the central business district allowed an exploration of the megacity that is Jakarta with access to some of the most popular malls such as the capacious Grand Indonesia with over 100 shops and 200-plus eateries, serving gastronomic delights ranging from palate-tingling nasi padang to the trendy Coach restaurant with its American grill classics.

The Island Life

Following the Jakarta sojourn, the next leg of Robb Report Malaysia’s Tailored Travel programme took us east, two hours by plane to the idyllic seaside town of Labuan Bajo. A 10-minute drive would bring us to the calm Waecicu Beach and Ayana Komodo with stunning views over the water from almost every corner of the resort, a magical panorama which feels like a slice of heaven.

Over drinks at the hotel’s Unique rooftop bar, the group learnt that much of Ayana Komodo ties back to the opulent 90-hectare Bali property formerly known as The Ritz-Carlton, Bali, now Ayana Resort Bali.

Many members of the team have stayed with the company through its whole evolution, from the Ritz-Carlton years to the birth of the Ayana brand, and several went on to help open Ayana Komodo. That rare loyalty is evident in the warm, polished service, of the pride in their retelling of the early years of Ayana Resort Bali and also the birth of the beautiful Ayana Komodo which we find ourselves in.

Amid the breathtaking panorama of the sun setting into the horizon, guests were treated to a traditional Flores dance while sipping the bar’s signature cocktails made with hints of mangoes, forest honey, candlenut, and Flores coffee.

Next came dinner at Honzen, the resort’s Japanese restaurant staffed by entertaining teppanyaki chefs. This dinner was courtesy of asset management firm AHAM Capital which also participated in this edition of the programme. Over the courses of Wagyu sirloin and lobster, entertainment came in the form of multiple dancing flames on the sizzling grill as well as moments of hilarity in between, with guests attempting to catch—with their mouths—morsels of food tossed in their direction.

Beyond Honzen, Japanese touches at Ayana Komodo also extend to the rooms with heated toilet seats as well as miso soup served at breakfast. The all-day Rinca restaurant, which serves international fare by the swimming pool and water sports station, offers a breakfast spread which ranges from a pastry section to local noodles as well as jamu, an Indonesian herbal elixir made from millennia-old recipes intended to promote health and wellness.

The next day brought island hopping, with the resort’s Lako Cama speedboat providing a swift ride over a hypnotically blue Flores Sea, which forms part of Komodo National Park. Established in 1980 to conserve the Komodo dragon, the park has a total surface area of 1,817 sq km on both land and sea. Its marine environments are known to be home to over 1,000 species of fish, dugongs, sharks, manta rays, dolphins, sea turtles, more than 14 species of whales, and at least 250 species of reef-building coral.

The red coral and the foraminifera—a single-celled marine organism that lives on the coral reefs—contribute to the blush of the famous pink beach found on several of the Komodo Islands. On Padar Island, the guests made a satisfying trek to the summit viewpoint. The reward: gazing at the majestic, untamed wilderness of what felt like a prehistoric landscape, a rugged wild beauty formed by the collision of major continental plates and ancient coral reefs emerging from the ocean depths.

At neighbouring Rinca Island, guests ventured into the home of the Komodo dragon, named after nearby Komodo Island. The Komodo dragons, revered by locals as protectors of the island, appear near a watering hole and, ominously, next to the skull of a water buffalo picked clean.

Back at Ayana Komodo, the evening breezes from the sea welcomed the group at the overwater Naga Bar, located at the end of the 250m private jetty. Dinner would then commence to the sounds of the single-stringed sasando, an instrument from Rote, East Nusa Tenggara. Over freshly grilled lobster, fish, and other seafood, the group relished the cool starlit night, speaking of adventures still to come, perhaps a voyage on Ayana Komodo’s luxury phinisi Lako di’a and more memories of the Komodo Islands.

Cover image: Sweeping views from the hike on Padar Island.

Photography by Javier Ariad, Law Soo Phye, and courtesy of Ayana Midplaza Jakarta & Ayana Komodo Waecicu Beach