As the capital city of Indonesia, Jakarta has a lot of attractions that are highly recommended. Starting from the historical, natural and modern tourist attractions, all of them are available to please its visitors. For culture lovers, you should consider these cultural attractions in Jakarta while for foodie lover, make sure you visit these street food spots in Jakarta.
Jakarta is one of the popular cities in Indonesia. As the popular city and the capital city of Indonesia, Jakarta has some iconic landmarks that are very attractive to the visitors.
You might have ever heard Monas (Monumen Nasional), the icon of this city and the most famous landmark in Jakarta. Besides Monas, there are some other iconic landmarks of Jakarta you must visit. Here are the 5 iconic landmarks of Jakarta to capture your best moment at.
- Monas (Monumen Nasional)
The first iconic landmark in Jakarta is its icon itself, Monas. Monas is located in Gambir, Central Jakarta. This landmark is as tall as 132 meter and it was the idea of the first Indonesian President, Ir. Soekarno.
This landmark was built to commemorate the struggle of the Indonesian people while defeating the colonials. If you plan to visit this place, make sure you know how to get to Monas in Jakarta Pusat.
Monas can be described as a marbled monument which has the solid golf-covered flame weighing 14.5 tons. You can take an elevator to go to the top and take a glorious bird’s eye view of the nation’s capital. It will surely a great spot for a selfie too!
Nearby Monas, there are some other tourist attractions you can visit, such as the National History Museum and the Hall of Independence where you can find the original text of the proclamation of Indonesian Independence.
If you’re still near Monas, you can also try these things to do near Monas.
- Istiqlal Mosque
This mosque is one of the architectural masterpieces you can find in Indonesia. It is also one of the beautiful mosques in Indonesia. Right after Indonesia got its independence, the leaders of the nation decided to honor the new republic as home to the largest Moslem population in the world.
It took around 17 years to build Istiqlal Mosque. Istiqlal Mosque is known to be the largest religious center in Southeast Asia as it can accommodate around 120,000 guests at one time.
This mosque is a masterpiece of symbolism, which also features 7 gates, 5 levels of a main hall and an impressive 45-meter dome. Each of the number represents the Islamic belief and the country’s rise to independence.
- St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral
Across from Istiqlal Mosque, you can find another religious and iconic landmark of Jakarta, which is St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral. You can just simply call this church as Cathedral Church.
This church was consecrated in 1901 and it belongs to the complex of attractions near Merdeka Square. Cathedral Church is also considered as the historical reminder of the Indonesia’s collective religious tolerance.
The church building includes a statue of Our Lady Mary and three magnificent spires. Two of the spires loom over the complex at 60 meters while another one rises 45 meter above the mid-section of the church and this resembles a cross.
- Selamat Datang Monument (Bundaran HI)
Selamat Datang Monument is a monument located in Central Jakarta. This monument was completed in 1962 by the sculptor named Edhi Sunarso. This monument is known to be one of the historical landmarks of Jakarta.
The monument consists of 2 figures, which are five meters high from head to toe or seven meters from the tip of the raised arm to toe. The design of the monument was inspired by some sculptors along with the former president of Indonesia, Soekarno.
This Selamat Datang Monument was named that way to symbolize Indonesian people who greet their future. Besides, this monument also symbolizes the openness of the Indonesian nation to visitors of the Asian Games IV.
Selamat Datang Monument is located precisely at the center of a roundabout known as Bundaran Hotel Indonesia or Bundaran HI. It is named that way due to its proximity to Hotel Indonesia.
- Dirgantara Monument
Another iconic landmark of Jakarta is Dirgantara Monument. Dirgantara Monument is also known as Gatot Kaca Monument, Tugu Pacoran. It is named that way as it is inspired by the appearance of Gatot Kaca in the Javanese wayang figure and its location in Pancoran, South Jakarta.
Just like Selamat Datang Monument, Dirgantara Monument was also commissioned by the former President Soekarno. He made this monument to commemorate the Indonesian Air Force and early Indonesian aviators who flew against the Dutch in order to get the independence.