Visiting Java - Kampung Warna-Warni
How one of the worst slums in Indonesia became a colorful tourist attraction
Jodipan’s colorful story
In summer 2023, I traveled through Java, Indonesia. My itinerary brought me from the capital city of the Indonesian province Java Timur, Surabaya, to Yogyakarta, the capital of the Yogyakarta Sultanate and former capital of Indonesia, to the second largest city of Java, Malang. Usually, tourists (me too!) come to Malang to visit Mount Bromo, one of the most active volcanos in the world. However, there are a few lovely spots to discover in Malang itself too. One of them is Kampung Warna-Warni (or Jodipan) and its neighboring villages Kampung Tridi and Kampung Biru Arema.
A few years ago, Jodipan was one of the worst slums in Indonesia. The situation was so bad that the government was about to evict the inhabitants and demolish the slum when eight students of the University of Malang came up with a genius plan: turning the slum into a colorful tourist attraction. A local paint company sponsored the paint to color the village. Together with the Indonesian military and artists, the locals started to transform the slum into a colorful village. The area was cleaned up from trash and a waste management system was established. Suddenly, their village attracted tourists from all over the world! Visitors pay a little fee to enter the village. Back in 2023 I paid 5000 IDR, which was around 30 cents. The place is the perfect spot for great photos, especially selfies but also for flying drones. I went down to the Brantas river to fly my drone. It’s very instagramable! Every street is painted in a different color and decorated with umbrellas or flowers. There are beautiful murals to marvel at and take pictures of. It’s like diving into a rainbow!
There are also many events with music, dance and tasty food in the villages. I could watch some local girls rehearsing traditional Javanese dances on the main stage in their amazing colorful costumes with their golden headpieces. They happily posed for pictures. When strolling through the narrow streets, you will nearly walk through somebodies living room. This might be a bit awkward, but the locals are very welcoming and happy to show you around. A former teacher who grew up in the village was my guide and told me how desperate and bad the situation was before the magic colorful transformation of Kampung Warna-Warni happened.
The situation of the locals improved drastically. They finally were able to generate some income by selling souvenirs or snacks and drinks to tourists. Shortly after the makeover of Jodipan, Kampung Tridi on the other side of the Brantas River witnessing the success of Jodipan, asked for a sponsorship too and became the second colorful village. They are connected by the yellow bridge. A third village followed but this time they chose blue, Kampung Biru Arema. It is right next to Jodipan and Tridi.
How to get there
When I was in Malang, I was residing at The Shalimar Boutique Hotel, a glorious example of colonial architecture with a rich history. Staying there is a unique experience. I went the easy way, ordered a Gojek through the app and comfortably rode on the back of a scooter from the hotel directly to the main gate of Jodipan. In Indonesia, I mainly use Gojek for shorter distances in the cities. It’s quick, easy and cheap. For longer distances or destinations out of town, it’s better to have a driver who will wait for you. During my stay in Malang, I went to a waterfall outside of Batu and on the way back, I was too far out to order a Gojek. I had to walk quite a bit to get to an area where Gojek was available. Here you will find more about Gojek, what it is and how it works.
Plan a few hours to visit Jodipan, Tridi and Biru Arema. You want to have enough time to walk around, take pictures, fly your drone, watch a show, listen to some music… If you get hungry, the locals are happy to serve you with snacks and cold drinks.
