Travel Guide Parc National De Bromo-Tengger-Semaru

Bromo, 2,393 m high, is a spectacular site, actually made up of three volcanoes. Its mythical circus, 11 km in diameter, contains a lunar sea of sand at its center, overlooked by a vertical wall over 200 m high. Three islets rise from this sea of sand: Widodaren, "the bride", Batok, "the cup" and Bromo, "the fire". In the distance, further south, you can see Mount Semaru: the highest mountain at 3,676 m, and the most active volcano (it belches smoke every 20 minutes or so). The immense crater is also home to a number of lakes.When clouds cover the crater floor, the volcanoes seem to be suspended in absorbent cotton. There are some great photos to be taken, especially at sunrise. The most beautiful sunrises take place in the dry season, but it is possible to visit the mountain in the rainy season.The Bromo smokes, but doesn't spit. According to legend, the Bromo was dug out by a giant using a coconut shell to win the heart of a beautiful girl promised to him by his father, the king, if he could accomplish the feat in the space of one night. As the titan looked set to carry out his task masterfully and finish the hole before dawn, the good king ordered the roosters to be fed in the middle of the night. The roosters crowed, and the giant, who thought he was late, sped up and died of a heart attack.The Bromo is the site of a festival, the Kasada festival. At its foot is a Hindu temple belonging to the local Tenggerese people, one of the few Javanese (600,000 in all) who share the Hindu religion of the Balinese. These descendants of the Majapahit era wear ponchos, an image reminiscent of the Andes in South America. Check with the Surabaya tourist office for the exact date of the annual ceremony. At midnight, pilgrims climb the Bromo and make offerings to ensure their wishes are granted. Chickens and goats are thrown into the crater, which is spectacular, but not as spectacular as the speed with which the members of the cleaning service catch the offerings on the fly. Incidentally, even outside this special period, you'll still find people at the top of Bromo selling you a small bouquet of flowers to throw into the volcano as an offering. To do this, you'll have to climb the 246 steps to the crater rim..A final word of advice: we're at altitude, so it's cold, very cold; temperatures can drop to 5 or even 0°C in the middle of the night. If you don't have any, or not enough, you can rent jackets, scarves and even gloves in the village and around the volcano. There are also BNI cash dispensers in the village, where you can withdraw money with Visa or Mastercard.There are three access points: Cemoro (or Cemara) Lawang to the northeast, the most popular entrance; Tosari to the northwest (a very pleasant resort); and Ngadas to the southwest.