A brief summary on the itinerary
Escape Plan to Semarang in July 2013:
Total duration 3D2N
Singapore is 1hr behind Semarang, Indonesia.
Flight time is 2hrs direct flight on Silkair (won a pair of free tix for its inaugural flight!) from Singapore to Semarang
Morning flight on 29th Jul and arrival in Semarang also in the morning.
Day 1 Yogya Night market on Malioboro street
Day 2 Borobudur, Prambanan Temple, Mt Merapi
Day 3 Home Sweet Home
This escape plan was triggered from the winning of a pair of tickets to Semarang which is close to the UNESCO Borobudur that I very wanted to visit. I was joined by a good old friend who volunteered to his time to travel with me (since not everyone was really interested in Indonesia and taking 3 days of precious leave for this) and also doing up a flawless itinerary that ensured affordable fun.
Budget nature: Easy on the wallet
Winning the tickets helped to reduce the overall costs by a bit but the cheaper route was to fly direct to Yogyakarta instead. There are, of course, other cheaper budget airlines that fly there and thus the win is of not much significance. Travelling in Indo is cheap by international standards and with proper planning it can be achieved easily. We did it under SGD$300 all in.
Complexity: DIY possible for the novice
Some planning is definitely required but it is not too difficult to travel. Some difficulty in communication might be expected but heading to Yogyakarta is not difficult. Prearranged drivers would make traveling to various stops at Yogya easier and save up on some time but expect to pay a little bit more for the hassle free travel.