Self-Launched Java Volcanoes & Temples: Borobudur, Bromo & Ijen on Your Own

Land at Yogyakarta (YIA or Adisutjipto) and make your own way into the city. Grab or Gojek from the airport to the backpacker hub around Jalan Sosrowijayan / Prawirotaman costs roughly £4-6. Check into a budget guesthouse, then spend the afternoon sorting logistics: buy a Java train ticket at the station or via the Traveloka/Tiket.com app, and shop around Malioboro's tour agents for a shared Bromo-Ijen combo (typically £80-110 per person including jeeps and guide). Evening: street-food crawl on Malioboro — gudeg, bakmi jawa, sate klatak for a few pounds.

🚌Airport to city by Grab/Gojek, approx £4-6

🛏Budget guesthouse in Sosrowijayan/Prawirotaman, £10-14/night (dorm or private fan room)

• →Settle into guesthouse
• →Book train tickets via Tiket.com or Traveloka
• →Compare shared Bromo-Ijen tour prices on Malioboro
• →Malioboro street-food walk

Get up early and make your own way to Borobudur. Cheapest option: public bus (Trans Jogja + local bus) to the Borobudur terminal, around £1.5, though many travellers take a Grab for ~£8-12 to save time. Buy the Borobudur climb-to-the-top ticket directly at the gate or online via the official Borobudur booking site (~£15 for the temple-and-structure climb ticket, or ~£25 with the sunrise add-on at Setumbu Hill). After the temple, walk or take an ojek to nearby Candirejo village, where you can join an independent village tour: cassava chip making, gamelan lesson and vegetable garden walk for around £8-10 booked direct with the village cooperative. Take the local bus back to Yogyakarta in the afternoon.

🚌Public bus/Trans Jogja + local bus approx £2, or Grab round-trip approx £15-20; village ojek £1-2

🛏Budget guesthouse in Yogyakarta, £10-14/night

• →Borobudur climb-to-the-top temple ticket (~£15)
• →Sunrise at Setumbu Hill (optional add-on ~£10)
• →Candirejo village tour: cassava chips, gamelan, gardens (~£8-10)
• →Optional horse-carriage village loop (~£3)

A full self-guided culture day around Yogyakarta. Start at the Kraton (Sultan's Palace, ~£1 entry), then walk 10 minutes to Taman Sari Water Castle (~£1). Loop in the Pasar Burung bird market and the old silver-working quarter of Kotagede Mataram — a becak (pedicab) ride between these spots costs under £1 each and is half the fun. In the late afternoon, take a Trans Jogja bus or Grab out to Prambanan Temple (~£20 entry, or ~£28 combined Prambanan + Ratu Boko ticket). Stay for sunset over the spires — the tour's guide does this, but you can do it just as easily alone. Return to the city by Grab (~£8).

🚌Becak rides ~£1 each; Trans Jogja/Grab to Prambanan approx £8

🛏Budget guesthouse in Yogyakarta, £10-14/night

• →Kraton (Sultan's Palace) entry ~£1
• →Taman Sari Water Castle ~£1
• →Pasar Burung bird market (free)
• →Kotagede Mataram silver quarter (free)
• →Prambanan Temple entry ~£20
• →Optional Prambanan sunset stay

Today is a travel day, exactly as the original itinerary does it — but on the public rail network. Take the morning train from Yogyakarta (Tugu) to Probolinggo or Malang on the southern Java line; the ~9-10 hour journey costs around £12-18 in economy/executive depending on class, booked via Tiket.com. From Probolinggo, take a shared angkot (minibus) up to Cemoro Lawang village at the Bromo crater rim for ~£2-3, or a private transfer for ~£12. Check into a basic crater-rim guesthouse (cold, simple, but unbeatable location). In the late afternoon walk out to the viewpoint over the Sea of Sand and catch sunset from Mentigen Hill — free and easily done solo.

🚌Yogyakarta-Probolinggo train ~£12-18; shared angkot to Cemoro Lawang ~£2-3

🛏Simple crater-rim guesthouse in Cemoro Lawang, £12-18/night (shared bathroom typical)

• →Sunset viewpoint at Mentigen Hill (free)
• →Sea of Sand overlook walk
• →Arrange Bromo jeep with guesthouse for tomorrow (~£20-25 shared)

The classic Bromo morning: your guesthouse will arrange a seat in a shared 4x4 jeep (or you can book a shared sunrise jeep tour via Klook/GetYourGuide for ~£18-25) leaving around 3:00-3:30am. The jeep drives you to the Pananjakan viewpoint for sunrise over the caldera — same view the group tour gets, same jeep system, just booked directly. From there the jeep drops you at the Sea of Sand, where you can hire a horse (~£5-7) to carry you partway up the crater steps or simply walk the 30-40 minutes to the rim. Climb the 250 steps to peer into the smoking crater. Back at the guesthouse by late morning; rest, then take an afternoon bus toward Bondowoso/Sempol for the Ijen leg (~£6-8, 6-7 hours).

🚌Shared Bromo sunrise jeep ~£20-25; local bus to Ijen area ~£6-8

🛏Budget guesthouse/homestay near Ijen (Sempol or Bondowoso), £10-15/night

• →Pananjakan sunrise viewpoint (jeep included)
• →Mount Bromo crater climb (250 steps)
• →Horse rental across Sea of Sand (~£5-7)
• →Afternoon transfer toward Ijen

Another pre-dawn start. Join a local Ijen trekking tour booked through your homestay or via Klook (~£18-25 with mask and guide) — leave around 00:30-1:00am to reach the crater rim before crowds. Descend toward the blue fire and the turquoise acid lake, and watch the sulfur miners hauling 70-90kg baskets (a trolley service is available to pull you back up for ~£8-10 if the climb is tough). Sunrise from the rim is unforgettable. Back at the trailhead by mid-morning, then take a shared transfer to Banyuwangi's Ketapang ferry terminal (~£3-5). The roll-on/roll-off ferry across to Gilimanuk, Bali takes about an hour and costs ~£1. On the Bali side, a shared shuttle or bus to Ubud/Denpasar runs ~£8-12, or a Grab for more. End point: your Bali hotel.

🚌Shared transfer to Ketapang ~£3-5; ferry to Gilimanuk ~£1; Bali shuttle to Ubud/Denpasar ~£8-12

🛏Arranged independently in Bali on arrival

• →Ijen crater pre-dawn trek with guide (~£18-25)
• →Blue fire viewing (weather-dependent)
• →Sulfur miner observation and acid lake rim
• →Optional trolley push-up service ~£8-10
• →Ferry crossing to Bali