Travel Guide Jambi

The provinces of Jambi, Bengkulu, South Sumatra and Lampung are four provinces that are rarely visited or even crossed. This region is home to almost nine million people, five million of whom are concentrated in Bengkulu province alone. You can venture into several national parks, including Kerinci Seblat, Sumatra's largest at 1.4 million hectares. Its rainforests are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.As for Jambi, the capital of the eponymous province and a river port located along the Batanghari River, it doesn't particularly stand out for its tourist attractions. It has a population of 300,000, mostly Kerinci and Minangkabau. Oil and gas exploration activities are present, with facilities such as the Minas oil field, one of the oldest in the country. In the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company formed an alliance with Sultan Muhammed Nakhruddin. The Dutch developed the pepper trade in the region while controlling the city. At the beginning of the 20th century, the VOC withdrew to Palembang, further south in Sumatra, and Jambi regained its independence. Its main sights are the mosque, the banks of the river and Mount Kerinci and Lake Kerinci. Don't linger here too long, unless of course you fall under its spell!