Surabaya

Surabaya is Indonesia's second city and the usual base for Mount Bromo, the volcano sunrise that headlines most East Java trips. It suits travellers extending beyond Bali and Yogyakarta, not first-timers on a short trip. Plan one city day plus the overnight Bromo run, in the April-October dry season.

• Mount Bromo sunrise tour — midnight departure, crater viewpoint at dawn, then a jeep ride across the Sea of Sand to the crater rim
• House of Sampoerna, a free colonial-era museum with a working kretek (clove cigarette) workshop you can watch from a gallery
• Wander the Arab Quarter around Ampel Mosque, Surabaya's oldest — narrow market lanes, dates and perfume stalls
• Submarine Monument (Monkasel) — walk inside a real Russian-built submarine parked on the riverbank in the city centre

The city sights are cheap: most museums and monuments charge under Rp20,000 (about $1) at the door. Bromo is where the budget goes.

Surabaya's Juanda airport has direct flights from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, plus constant domestic links — about 1.5 hours from Jakarta and an hour from Bali. Trains from Yogyakarta take 4-5 hours and are a comfortable way to cross Java by day.

In a typical Indonesia route, Surabaya slots between Yogyakarta and Bali: temples first, Bromo sunrise in the middle, beaches last. If Bromo is the only reason you are coming, book a tour that ends with a drop-off toward Bali instead of returning to the city — it saves a backtrack.