Mount Bromo volcano tour

Mount Bromo is famous in Java and is a must visit! This sunrise tour was incredible, one of the best experiences we’ve ever done!

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Which tour to book for Mount Bromo at sunrise?

These are the tours we would recommend, there are private, shared or even a multi day tour including other locations!

Private Bromo Tour start from Malang – 1D – This is the trip we did and loved it! Start in Malang about 00.30AM. This is private tour not share with other participant. This package is more comfortable and you have more flexible time as it is private. Finish at your hotel around lunchtime.

From Malang: 1-Day Mount Bromo Shared Trip – Explore the beauty of Mount Bromo and admire the natural landscapes along the way with a shared transfer from Malang to Bromo.

From Surabaya or Malang: Mount Bromo Sunrise 1-Day Trip – Get picked up from your hotel in Surabaya or Malang and witness the breathtaking sight of the golden sunrise rising behind Mount Bromo with sulfur steam and the Sea of Sand stretching out around you.

Surabaya or Malang: 3D2N Tumpak Sewu Bromo Ijen -Trekking to the bottom of a huge waterfall, hike up 2 volcanoes to overlooks its smokey crater, enjoy the morning with the beauty of sun arising will show you the amazing mountains in surrounding.

Our Mount Bromo Sunrise Tour – what to expect!

The drive from Malang to Mount Bromo

We booked a driver to take us out to Bromo for sunrise and were picked up at 12am midnight. It’s an early start but if needs to be. You’ll drive out in a jeep, bouncing around in the back for about 3 or 4 hours before arriving at the viewpoint for sunrise. It’s a long and slightly uncomfortable trip but it will be worth it!

The jeep is necessary as there’s some off road driving needed. Climbing up the hill you’ll join hundreds of other jeeps all heading to the same spots, one of 3 viewpoints. We wondered if we had made a huge mistake and thought maybe it was overly touristic but it ended up being amazing.

Our driver got us up as close to the viewpoint called ‘KingKong Hill’ as possible before telling us he would wait in the traffic jam of jeeps for us to come down.

The Viewpoint

It’s freezing up here before sunrise and we hadn’t brought any warm clothes (Mike was in a T-shirt and shorts!) as we’d put our laundry in and it hadn’t come back in time. Luckily our driver Johnny saved the day handing us 2 sleeping bags to wrap up in! We were so thankful for his kindness as we would have frozen up there!

Off we set wrapped in sleeping bags to the viewpoint. There are lots of little coffee shops selling food, drinks and hiring jackets. You’ll see guys selling gloves, scarves and beanies too.We found a coffee shop with 3 in 1 coffee for sale (a staple for travelling in Indonesia) and bought two cups. They were also selling pisang goreng (fried banana) and hot chips.

After downing some much needed caffeine and watching others sit around their campfires (inside the shop!) we headed up to the viewpoint. You’ll need a torch or use your phones torch to see your way. We arrived at the top and saw a sea of people all finding their place to watch the sunrise.

Sunrise over Mount Bromo

There was lots of room for everyone so we found a spot and waited only about half an hour before the sky lit up with hues of oranges, pinks and yellow! It was spectacular! Standing in the dark while the sky glows is always a special moment but to do it overlooking such a beautiful location was next level. The sunrise starts from the left before reaching Mt Bromo. As soon as the sky lights up Hal the view make your way to the right where you’ll find beautiful views over the Mt Bromo crater. Its otherworldly!

We stayed here watching the sun come up, taking pictures for ourselves and for other tourists for about 3 hours. Heading down we weaved our way through the sea of jeeps to find Johnny. Luckily I took a picture of his number plate so we knew what we were looking for!

Finding him halfway down the hill we jumped in the jeep and sat in the inevitable traffic jam for about half an hour before we were off to the crater. This was an experience!

Climbing the Crater of Mt Bromo

Once you arrive at the crater area you’ll park and have to walk 1.5km across the volcanic sand of the caldera. It’s a long hot walk. There are motorbikes you can get a ride with and horses you can ride but I’m not sure how well the horses are looked after so we never use them. Bring a scarf or face mask to walk across the sandy area as dust and sand is blowing in your face constantly. Wear a hat and sunglasses as it gets hotter here.

Once you cross the sand you will climb up about 100 stairs to the top of the crater. At the top there’s a section with a bit of a concrete barrier in front of the crater. Make sure to stand behind this as it’s slightly safer although areas are ruined and completely missing. Mike had to find a spot to get a clear view and I was so nervous!

The crater is really interesting, smoke is constantly coming up and the smell of Sulfur is heavy in the air. Spend however much time you like here, we took some pictures and stayed about half an hour.

Tip– although there is a barrier between the path and crater there’s no barrier behind you. Be careful stepping near the edge as it’s steep and slippery with people pushing past to take photos.

Heading back to Malang

Walking back down the stairs we started the walk back to the jeep. Again there’s dust flying around, a good idea is to bring a scarf or face mask to stop from breathing in the dust.

Once you get back to the jeeps there is your last toilet to take advantage of. It’s a little rough but doable and costs 5k.

Finding Johnny again we were off to see a few more stops on the way. He showed us the Savannah, the sea of sands and Teletubbies Hill. There was a place where a famous Indonesian move was made and we stopped to take a picture. On the drive back we chatted about what we had seen and Johnny gave us insights to his life, life in Java and the Javanese language.

We loved this tour! It was a long and tiring but such a rewarding day and one we highly recommend. You can book online here if you’d like to see this incredible sunrise for yourself.