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Automobiles

In Yogyakarta, taxis are cheap and plentiful, but if you want to explore the villages and temples beyond the city, a car is useful; rent your wheels from the friendly people at Nanda Car Rental (+62 (0)274 433 3333/3300) and, for a little extra, you can hire a driver, too.

Planes

Domestic Indonesian airlines such as Garuda, Lion Air, Adam Air and Batavia Air run daily flights from Denpasar (Bali), Surabaya, Balikpapan, Jakarta and Lombok to Yogyakarta's Adisutjipto airport. Arrange airport transfers in advance with your hotel.

Trains

If you're travelling to Yogyakarta from one of Java's major cities, and time is absolutely on your side, a scenic rail route is feasible. Tugu, the central train station, has good connections with Solo, Surabaya, Jakarta and Bandung. Ring Yogyakarta's train information line on (+62 (0)274 514270) for details. If you're coming from Jakarta, the Argo trains are by far the best and most comfortable, getting you to Yogyakarta in seven or eight hours, instead of the usual 10-12 hours.

Dialing

Country code for Indonesia: +62. Yogyakarta area code: 0274.

Reads

Prolific Indonesian author Pramoedya Ananta Toer's Arok of Java: A Novel of Early Indonesia follows Java's 13th-century equivalent of Robin Hood. Phil Grabsky provides a gripping account of the construction and history of Borobudur in his book The Lost Temple of Java.

Do go / Don't Go

Daily temperatures don't vary wildly, but if you want to catch festival time, hit the city during high season (June-October).

Cuisine

Taxis

Within the city, metered taxis are abundant and relatively easy to flag down. After dark, minimum fare is Rp 10,000. Traditional means of transport like becaks (three-wheeled pedicabs) and andongs (horse-drawn carts) are quaint and fun for a quick whirl. Feel free to haggle enthusiastically: tourists are overcharged, more often than not.

Tipping

Major hotels add a 21 per cent service and government tax to bills. Elsewhere, a tip of 10 per cent is usual. It's customary to round small amounts up to the nearest convenient coin denomination.

Currency

Indonesian Rupiah (Rp).

Packing

Think comfortable, loose and airy - the humidity hits you as soon as you step off the plane. As ever in a destination with a significant Muslim population, revealing clothes are inappropriate away from the beach, and a particularly dim idea around temples and other holy sites. Comfy Birkenstocks or Air Rifts will see you right as you tramp around Borobudur.

Arts

The 200-year-old Sultan's Palace complex, the Kraton, was revered as both capital of the ancient kingdom and heart of the cosmos. In the 20th-century, the inner walls underwent a major revamp, resulting in a unique design combining traditional Javanese with modern European. The palace is a centre for gamelan music, dance and puppetry, with wayang kulit (shadow theatre) performed throughout the night on the second Saturday of every month at Sasana Hinggil in Alun-alun Selatan. The Sono-Budoyo museum at 2 Jl Trikora also has performances Sunday to Friday, 11am-1pm.

And...

Shopping

For batik cloth and other home furnishings, head to Ardiyanto Batik Gallery at Jl Magelang Km 5.8 (+62 (0)274 562777). The palatial showroom doubles as a gallery, and is filled with antiques and paintings. MD Silver (+62 (0)274 375063) is the oldest silver workshop in Kotagede. In Magelang, Tarjiman Stone Carving, Tangkilan Rt 04 Rw 18 (+62 (0)293 782242) produces special orders for Buddhist monasteries. Java Madura, Jl Monumen Jogja Kembali (+62 (0)81 746 4720) is a good source for antique and reproduction furniture.

Viewpoint

By far the best views of Yogyakarta and its surroundings (including Indonesia's most active volcano, Mount Merapi) are to be had from the top of Borobudur's main stupa. We recommend going early in the morning for a sunrise experience before the hordes of tourists arrive.

Something

Visitors to the Kraton can watch classical Javanese dance performance, 11am daily. Many art galleries in Yogyakarta hold free exhibitions: try the French Cultural Centre (+62 (0)274 371105), Kedai Kebun Forum's Gallery (+62 (0)274 376114) or Cemeti Art House (+62 (0)274 372105). Outside the city, Prambanan temple is stupendous, and costs nothing to visit.

May-October Ramayana Ballet, the epic dance performance based on Hindu folklore, takes place over successive nights fortnightly, at an atmospheric outdoor theatre at the Prambanan temple complex outside the city. The rest of the year, performances are held indoors. Ring Tourism Indonesia for details (+62 (0)21 632 5960). May-June Waisak Festival commemorates the three most important events in the life of Buddha. The spectacle at Borobudur is magnificent, with thousands of devotees gathering for prayers and processions, during four days of festivities featuring cultural performances and exhibitions. July Yogyakarta Arts Festival, a blend of traditional dance, music and puppetry in locations around the city.