Melak is a town located in the regency of West Kutai which is found on the East Kalimantan province in Indonesia. It is the main entry point if one is to reach the West Kutai Regency, both from air and land due to Melak being bordered by the Mahakam River which is a huge river with the length of 920 kilometres. As such, it is easy to come over to Melak and even stay for a while before continuing your journey to explore the area in a whole. With the size of 287.87 square kilometres and a total of 11,087 residents, Melak has one of the smallest population density in comparison to other areas within the West Kutai Regency. This is of a great advantage due to the city being a small and peaceful city on its own with a strong sense of community. Melak borders the subdistrict of Barong Tongkok to the north, Barong Tongkok and Sekolak Darat to the west, Damai, Muara Lawa and Muara Pahu to the south and Mook Manor Bulatn to the east.

Airports in Melak

1. West Kutai Melalan Airport

West Kutai Melalan Airport is the main airport that functions to serve Melak and other surrounding areas, being located 28 kilometres away from the city. It is a public airport that can handle flights heading to destinations around and within Indonesia such as Datadawai and Samarinda which are handled by Susi Air. In addition to that, it can also handle international flights, albeit with a capacity that is not as big as other airports that are much bigger. It is located at an elevation of 100.5 meters above sea level with one runway measuring about 900 by 30 meters. It is the main gateway by air into the city of Melak as well as the whole regency of West Kutai.

How to Get Cheap Flights to Melak?

Traveloka is a travel search engine that makes it easy for travellers to find the cheapest flights to Melak and the nearby regency of West Kutai.All you need to do is key in the information in the search box, and the application will recommend the best trip according to your budget. It compares flight prices across some trusted airlines to help you to get the best possible deal. Use Traveloka’s price alert feature to be notified of flights in your desired price range to get the best flight price to Melak.

When is the Best Time to Fly to Melak?

The off-peak season to visit Melak, as well as the nearby regions, is usually in February which is the least humid month in Melak. As such, one can expect travel costs to be much lesser if you are travelling around this month. The peak time to visit Melak is usually around November to January, therefore expect prices to rise around this time. If you plan your trip well, you can undoubtedly save your money because the price for hotels and flights during peak season will cost you a lot of money.

Melak, just like other regions around Indonesia and surrounding countries especially the ones around the region of Borneo, has a tropical rainforest climate which dry season is shorter, and rainfall is normally heavy throughout the year. The average maximum temperature in Melak would typically reach around 32 and 35 degree Celsius while the average minimum would go to 23.4 and 24.4 degree Celsius. The hottest months are usually around April, May and June. Melak also has a high humidity with some months being more humid than others with chances of precipitation to happen all year round.

When you get to Melak, you can look forward to participating in the handful of events being organised here just like the locals do. As Melak comprises of a variety of ethnic groups such as Dayak, Kutai, Jawa, Banjar, Bugis and many more, most of the events and celebrations here are based on these unique ethnic groups’ traditional celebrations. In addition to that, the region to observes a variety of events that are celebrated at the national level, such as Christmas and New Year.

What are the Top 3 Things to Do in Melak?

1. Eheng – One of the visible landmarks in Melak which can is located about 30 kilometres southwest of the town, Eheng is a Benauq Dayak longhouse which is majorly made of wood and rattan. Visitors are welcome to come over to observe the ways of living of the locals as well as to purchase woven handicrafts, bracelets or an ornately carved Mandau.

2. Kersik Luway – A nature reserve which is located about 16 kilometres away from the town, one needs to access Kersik Luway via dirt roads if you are coming over by land. Kersik Luway is a rich preserve covering over 17.5 hectares worth of area which has 57 different species of orchid alone here, which is its biggest attraction point.

3. Sendawar Ethnographic Museum – Easily found along the way to the Eheng longhouse, the Sendawar Ethnographic Museum is one of the more recent attractions that can be found in the area. In a whole, the museum is, in fact, a cultural village that consists of 7 major buildings from different ethnic groups like Malay house, Kenyah house, Aoheng house, Bahau house, Benuaq house and lastly Tonyooi house.