Palembang
Palembang is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra.
Palembang is the capital city of the Indonesian province of South Sumatra. The city proper covers 348.34 square kilometres on both banks of the Musi River in the eastern lowlands of southern Sumatra. It had a population of 1,668,848 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2025 was 1,829,745. Palembang is the second most populous city in Sumatra, after Medan, and the twelfth most populous city in Indonesia.
Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where to eat
Palembang cuisine is the second most well known from Sumatra after Padang. They primarily use freshwater fish and prawn as ingredients due to the paramount role of the Musi River for the area. Spices are also generally included although not as liberal as its same-island counterpart. Malay, Indian, and Chinese culture has also influenced Palembang's culinary scene.
- 01Mie Celor
- 02Ilir H
The most famous mie celor restaurant in Palembang, situated at a market.
From Wikivoyage: Palembang, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.
Getting to Palembang
- Jakarta → Palembang434 km · quickest by road, 14h 35m · Rp308,000–411,000
- Batam → Palembang459 km · quickest by road, 43h 38m · Rp601,000–801,000
- Padang (Katapiang) → Palembang548 km · quickest by road, 11h 41m · Rp445,000–594,000
- Plan a tripFrom anywhereThe planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.
No local-transport research exists yet for Palembang
Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Palembang. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.
- Get aroundIt is quite easy to get around in Palembang since there are a lot of public buses, modified vans (Angkots or Angkutan Kota) and for short distances there is always becak.
- Get aroundDon't be surprised if they keep packing the buses and angkots with people even though they are full.
- Get aroundOn land, motorcycle taxis, ojeks, are cheap, quick, and everywhere.
- Go nextTravel by road to Jambi Go to Lampung by train Travel by ferry along the Musi River estuary to Bangka Island
From Wikivoyage: Palembang, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.
- 01435 km
- 02475 km
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- 04648 km
- 05687 km
If you know how people move in Palembang – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.