Your Ultimate Guide to Ijen Blue Fire: Experience, Tips, and More!

Gungti Darmesti

5 years ago

There isn’t anything in this world as thrilling as a venture into the depths of nature, conquering the challenges and hassles you meet along your journey, only to be granted an incredible, majestic look of the vistas that lie within. Nature always has a way to surprise you indeed! With all the persistence and energies spent, an enchanting gift awaits you for sure.

Indonesia has various hidden beauty within its tremendous, challenging terrain and one of the places where you could experience this is Ijen Blue Fire. A perfect depiction of Indonesia’s natural wonder, this place awaits everyone who is eager to conquer their journey to peek into this everlasting beauty.

Either you have never heard about this place before, or you have planned this visit for a while, both could benefit from this article we curated special just for you! This time, tiket.com will provide you with in-depth information about Ijen Blue Fire. This complete Ijen Blue Fire guide serves as a reference for your visit beforehand!

Read more:

Ijen Blue Fire, The Unique Natural Phenomenon Hidden Within The Highlands of Banyuwangi

So, t-mates, are you ready for a mesmerizing visit to one of the most astonishing sights of the blue fire? Read more below before you plan your trip to Ijen Blue Fire! 🙂

The Beauty of Ijen Blue Fire

Before you head on to start your journey, we all believe that it is crucial to know more about this enchanting beauty. Well, one wouldn’t decide without a closer look into what’s being offered, right? 🙂

This place features a caldera lake, with beautiful turquoise-colored water and steep, tremendous terrain surrounding this lake. What makes this place so fascinating is the phenomenon of blue-ish glow, often called blue fire, that you could witness during the dark.

You might wonder, what makes this beautiful blue glow that emits from within the caldera? The answer lies deep beneath the grounds. The glow results from the combustion of sulfuric gasses which appeared through cracks along the mountain. When these gasses come into contact with the air around, they ignite flames that could stand up to 5 meters high.

Many believe that this blue fire is a form of lava, but it is actually not. Some of these gasses condensed into liquid sulfur, which contributes to the blue glow liquid-look we could witness from above.

Best time to visit: May – June, Sunrise is longer during this period according to the locals

Weather: Cold and windy, temperature varies between 2 – 12 degrees celsius

Entrance fee: Locals (15,000 IDR on weekdays, 25,000 IDR on weekends) | Foreigners (100,000 IDR on weekdays, 150,000 IDR on weekends)*

Address: Jl. Kawah Ijen, Dusun Jambu, Tamansari, Licin, Banyuwangi Regency, East Java 68454 (Open in Google Maps)

A Glimpse Into Your Journey to The Top

Here’s the truth: Your journey to the top will not be easy. If any, it would be challenging enough. To reach this mesmerizing beauty, you would need to hike for about 2 to 3 hours, respective to your personal physical condition. Though the tracks are well-built (hence no need to worry about getting lost), it is both bumpy and steep in some of its tracks.

Due to its tremendous terrain in several parts of the tracks, you would find yourself stop for a while to catch your breath. These tracks don’t always climb up– in fact, you would find yourself walking on a flat surface, climb to the very-steep terrain, and down into the slope.

Usually, you would start your journey to Ijen at dawn. 2 AM seems to be the perfect time to start your journey from below.

TIPS TO CONSIDER:

Here’s what you should consider: the blue fire could only be witnessed during the dark, so it’s crucial that you reach the top before sunrise.

Calculation: With around 2-3 hours of walking, you will reach the top at around 4 – 5 AM. Just perfect to catch this unique phenomenon!

How to Get There

You could start your journey to Ijen from various landing spots in East Java. However, we would recommend you to not land in Surabaya if you happen to only visit Ijen. From Surabaya, you would need another 10 hours to reach the nearest city, unless you would plan for a visit to Surabaya, of course!

Most travelers would usually start their Ijen journey from Malang– considering you would also want a visit to Bromo Tengger National Park. From Malang to Ijen, you would spend another 5 hours to reach Banyuwangi– the nearest spot of the hike. If you want to visit Ijen only, you could land directly in Banyuwangi. Though you could find various public transport to take you to Banyuwangi, it would be better for you to hire a guide instead.

No worries! tiket.com is here for a reason! With To Dos feature from tiket.com, you could easily tailor your Ijen journey at your own comfort. You can check this 3D2N trip that includes both Bromo Tengger National Park and Ijen Blue Fire, or a direct visit to Ijen Blue Fire. A convenient way to book your journey alright! 🙂

Useful Tips

Here are 8 useful tips you could follow prior to your visit to Ijen Blue Fire to make your visit comfortable:

Due to its cold, windy weather, you should never forget to bring your jackets, sweaters, and long pants. In addition, you could also bring scarfs and mittens with you
Consider a little physical activity prior to your visit as an attempt to warm and prepare your body to avoid muscle shock
Use mountain shoes or sandals. Wear something that has a rough surface beneath
ONLY bring the things that are necessary: water bottle, camera, phone, and wallet. Remember, the journey is harsh, and you wouldn’t let your heavy backpack get in your way
Before you start your hike, do take your time to go to the toilet. You would not find any toilet along your journey above
Try not to eat heavy meals before your journey. If you want, you could opt for a snack instead
Bring flashlight. A flashlight is also useful to light your way amidst the bumpy tracks
Feeling tired from your journey? The locals in Ijen has a unique way to bring you up and down this tremendous terrain– with a two-wheeled cart! This may be particularly suitable for you who brings an older adult with you. The cost ranges from 400,000 IDR to 600,000 IDR for a one-way journey*

If you wonder what the two-wheeled cart looks like, it exactly looks like this *wink*:

Hotel Recommendations

You are going to start your journey at dawn, which means, you should wake up early to witness the amazing Ijen Blue Fire. That being said, choosing a hotel situated near this beauty would save much of your time. Below are two hotel recommendations:

1. Grand Harvest Resort and Villa

Address: Tamansari, Licin, Banyuwangi Regency, East Java 68454, Indonesia

Price: Starts from 550,000 IDR per room per night*

Distance to Ijen Crater Lake: Approximately 19,2 KM

Book a room at Grand Harvest Resort and Villa

2. Jiwa Jawa Resort Ijen

Address: Jl. Blimbing Sari, Desa Taman Sari, Licin, Banyuwangi Regency, East Java, Indonesia

Price: Starts from 950,000 IDR per room per night*

Distance to Ijen Crater Lake: Approximately 18,9 KM

Book a room at Jiwa Jawa Resort Ijen

Feeling Inspired? Plan Your Ijen Blue Fire Trip Now!

So, how does Ijen Blue Fire sound to you, t-mates? Though you need to exert more energy to witness this enchanting nature work of art, we are certain your experience will worth the energy that you spent! Now that you have read our Ijen Blue Fire guide, it’s time for you to plan your visit now!

Ijen Blue Fire awaits you, t-mates 😉

*price is valid at the time of writing