Indonesia / North Sumatra / MedanMedan
Sumatra's Gateway: a Sultan's Palace and Little India
Indonesia's fourth-largest city and the way into North Sumatra: Kualanamu airport has flights from Jakarta and Bali, and from Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Singapore, with a train into town in about 45 minutes. A day covers the yellow Maimun Palace of the Deli sultans (1888), the Great Mosque near it, and the Tjong A Fie Mansion of a Chinese tycoon. Kampung Madras, the old Tamil quarter, has the Sri Mariamman temple (1884) and South Indian food, and the Tamil Catholic community built the Indo-Mughal-style Graha Maria Annai Velangkanni church on the edge of town. Medan is hot, busy and slow with traffic; most travellers stay a night on the way to Lake Toba or Bukit Lawang.
Highlights
- Maimun Palace of the Deli sultans
- The Great Mosque (Masjid Raya)
- Tjong A Fie Mansion
- Sri Mariamman temple in Kampung Madras
- South Indian food in Little India
- Graha Maria Annai Velangkanni church
- Kesawan's colonial shophouses
- Durian and night food at Merdeka Walk
Things to do
- Maimun Palace & the Great MosqueMorning · 2h
- Tjong A Fie Mansion & the Kesawan old townMorning · 1h 30m
- Sri Mariamman temple & Kampung Madras (Little India)Afternoon · 1h 30m
- Graha Maria Annai Velangkanni churchAfternoon · 1h 30m
- Merdeka Walk night food stallsEvening · 2h
- Durian tasting at a Medan durian stallEvening · 1h
Tours & tickets
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When to go
Best time: May – September
Worth knowing
Lebaran Travel Rush
Idul Fitri falls on 10-11 March 2027, with national holidays from 9 to 15 March. Domestic flights sell out weeks ahead and fares hit the legal cap, the roads out of Medan and Makassar jam, and Lake Toba's ferries and Bukit Lawang's guesthouses fill with holidaymakers. Book flights and rooms early or avoid that week.
Heads up
North Sumatra Rainy Season
From about September to December, heavy afternoon rain is common round Medan and Lake Toba, roads can be cut by landslides on the way to the lake, and the views across it are often in cloud. Mornings are usually clearer; keep a spare day for the journey back to the airport.
- Idul Fitri (Lebaran) homecoming — The end of Ramadan, when tens of millions travel home (mudik). Trains, flights and the Java–Bali and Bali–Lombok ferries sell out a month ahead and fares hit the legal cap; Jakarta empties and some restaurants close. In 2027 it falls two days after Nyepi, so the second week of March is the hardest of the year to travel in Indonesia. During Ramadan before it, Lombok and Java restaurants may be screened off by day.