There’s an interesting paradox with surfing. The less crowded waves you want to surf the harder and often more expensive it gets. Here is a quick and hopefully helpful write up on our recent trip there and a couple useful tips that should save you a few pennies a long the way.
Getting to Simeulue from Bali isn’t direct, but it’s not complicated either. Here’s the route we took but depending on where you are coming from there might be better options for you. The main thing we found was your choice of airline.
- Fly from Bali (DPS) to Jakarta (CGK)
- Fly Jakarta to Medan (KNO)
- Fly Medan to Simeulue (SMG) on a smaller domestic aircraft
I would highly recommend Garuda Airlines for your flights to Medan. They maybe be a touch pricier than others (often not by much) but they’re more reliable and don’t charge for boards like Air Asia, Wings Air and Lion Air who will sting you 1 Million RP per board. Also on the Garuda flights, entertainment and meals are included.
Citilink is the second best option. It’s the budget version of Garuda and often one the cheapest options. Their policies have varied lately but as of today they don’t charge for boards either. Worth checking their policies first before booking.
Overnight in Medan.
Flights to Simeulue typically leave Medan in the morning, so odds are you’ll probably overnight in Medan no matter which airline you fly.
You can either try pick a spot close to the airport for an easy get away the following morning or book a spot in Medan city and experience a new place. Medan’s a big city and there’s plenty of interesting local joints to eat or if you want to play it safe before your surf trip there are some trendy cafe’s and restaurants around if you know where to look.
Now! Here’s the interesting part. The flight from Medan to Simeulue is only through Wings Air and if you have been paying attention you know they like a good wallet rinsing when they see a stacked surfboard bag. You will be taking a smaller prop plane so they have limited storage space and we’ve heard stories of unfortunate surfers whose boards didnt make the cut because of it. They will usually turn up the following day on the next available flight but it’s not ideal.
The alternative option is to arrange the boards to be sent via boat to Simeulue. Getting them picked up in Medan airport when you land or from you accomodation the day before you fly to Simeulue. You can ask your surf camp if they can help you arrange this or message Ilan +62 822‑2412‑3033. We used Ilan he was super helpful and reliable, our boards were at the airport in Simeulue when we arrived and we were surfing that afternoon. We paid 1 million RP per bag (regardless of how many boards).
For the trip back (Simeulue – Medan) because we had to send the boards a day earlier to arrive in Medan in time, we kept 1 board bag aside and just took the board we were going to surf that day with us on the flight back to Medan.
Like any remote surf trip, a bit of pre planning can go a long way and save you those pennies for the Bintangs.
Safe travels!
