How to Get From Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre
Ferry via Semarang · Ferry · Flight
In this in-depth route guide, you'll find the best ways to travel the 87 kilometre (54 miles) distance from Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre. By the end of this guide, you'll know exactly how to get there — whether you want to travel on a budget, reach Karimun Jawa City Centre as fast as possible, or enjoy the ride in comfort. We base our information on verified schedules, ticket prices, and on-the-ground insights from recent travellers.
What are the 3 ways to travel from Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre?
There are three ways to travel the 87 km distance from Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre. You can choose between the ferry via Semarang, ferry, and flight.
The journey takes between 5h–9h and the quickest way is by ferry (5h). If you're on a budget, the cheapest option is by ferry via Semarang with tickets starting at 110,000 IDR ($6.40).
7-9 hours
110,000 IDR ($6.40)
2-5 hours
125,000 IDR ($7.30)
7 hours
130,000 IDR ($7.50)
Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre by Ferry via Semarang
An alternative option is to take a ferry from Semarang to Karimun Jawa. While Semarang is a bigger city than Jepara and has a bigger port, the ferries from Semarang Ferry Terminal are available only every other week.
Travel time from Semarang to Karimun Jawa takes 7-9 hours, which is about twice as long as the slow ferry from Jepara. The ferries depart Semarang every other Friday or Saturday at 22:00. In Karimun Jawa, the ferries arrive between 06:00 and 07:00 the day after.
Ferry tickets start from 110,000 IDR ($6.40). For the schedule and online booking, you can click the button below:
Departure and arrival port
The ferries depart from Tanjung Emas Semarang, located about 3-4.5 km from Poncol and Tawang train stations in the city centre. From Jenderal Ahmad Yani Airport, it’s a 20-minute taxi ride to the port.
Unlike the ferries from Jepara, the ferries from Semarang arrive at the Port of Legon Bajak on the north side of the island. From here, it takes approximately 45 minutes to the town centre.
Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre by Ferry via Jepara
Jepara is the main gateway for people travelling to Karimun Jawa. From Jepara, you can reach Karimun Jawa by either fast or slow ferry. Both ferries on this route operate multiple days a week.
The fast boat is operated by Bahari Express and takes 2 hours from Jepara to Karimun Jawa. Tickets cost 200,000 IDR ($12) for the executive class and 230,000 IDR ($13) for the VIP class when you buy them at the port.
The KMP Siginjai slow ferry costs only 125,000 IDR ($7.30) per person. It’s a bigger ferry that takes 3 hours longer than the fast boat. If you easily get seasick, this slow ferry is a better choice for you as it’s more stable. You can also bring your motorcycle or car from Jepara to Karimun Jawa with this ferry.
Departure and arrival port
Both the fast boat and slow ferry depart from Jepara Kartini Ferry Terminal. This terminal is 10 minutes away from Jepara City Square.
In Karimun Jawa, the ferry terminal is located on the south coast. Outside the port, you’ll find several motorcycle rental shops. You can rent a motorcycle as soon as you arrive to get to your accommodation.
Ferry schedule from Jepara to Karimun Jawa
Booking Tip
Bahari Express is available for online booking on Direct Ferries, but tickets cost 400,000 IDR ($23) online. This is about 100,000 IDR ($5.80) more expensive than when you buy them at the port. Tickets for KMP Siginjai can only be bought at the port.
In case you will buy the tickets at the port, arrive about an hour before the scheduled departure time to ensure you get a ticket for this slow ferry. However, during holidays and high season (April to June) tickets usually sell out fast. If you travel during this season, we recommend booking your tickets in advance or asking your accommodation on the island to buy your ferry tickets for you.
Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa City Centre by Flight
The plane used to be a quick way to reach Karimun Jawa from Semarang because the flight took only 30 minutes.
Karimunjawa Dewadaru Airport (KWB) is basically a small airfield with limited flights. Only Wings Air used to offer flights from Semarang to Karimun Jawa every Monday, Friday and Sunday. The flight departed at 11:20 and the fare was around 400,000 IDR ($23).
Aircraft were small turboprops with limited seats so they used to get booked up fast in the summer and on popular holiday long weekends.
We rather recommend taking a ferry on this route because short-haul flights like this produce high carbon emissions that negatively affect the environment.
Coming from other destinations in Indonesia?
There are no direct routes to Karimun Jawa from other cities. From Surabaya, Yogyakarta, and Jakarta, you need to travel to either Jepara or Semarang to take the ferry to Karimun Jawa.
Make sure to check the ferry schedules above so you can plan ahead for your trip. See below for a more detailed guide.
Your best option when travelling from Surabaya to Karimun Jawa is by train via Semarang. You can then take the ferry from Semarang or head to Jepara, where ferries have more departures in a week.
It’s also possible to take a flight from Surabaya to Semarang, but all flights on this route make a stopover in Jakarta, making for a longer trip.
By Train
In Surabaya, you can take the train from Pasar Turi Station to Semarang’s Tawang Station or Poncol Station. Trains to both stations are available almost every hour.
Travel time is 3-4.5 hours with train tickets starting from 100,000 IDR ($5.80).
If you’re travelling on the day the Pelni ferries are available from Semarang to Karimun Jawa, you can directly take a taxi from the train station to the ferry terminal.
Otherwise, you’ll need to go to Jepara and take the ferry there. From the train station, take a short taxi ride to Kencana Travel Terminal. Kencana offers hourly bus trips from Semarang to Jepara. The bus ride takes about 3 hours and costs around 95,000 IDR ($5.50).
The Kencana Travel Terminal in Jepara is a 10-minute taxi ride to Jepara’s Kartini Terminal, where ferries for Karimun Jawa depart from.
From Yogyakarta to Karimun Jawa
When travelling from Yogyakarta to Karimun Jawa, you can also travel overland to Jepara or Semarang and take a ferry from one of these ports.
Yogyakarta to Jepara
There are local buses from Yogyakarta to Jepara daily. One of the buses that you can book online in advance is Day Trans, which departs from Gading. This bus company offers air-conditioned minibuses for 130,000 IDR ($7.50) per person.
The bus ride takes 7 hours and the minibus parks at the Day Trans terminal in Jepara, which is just a 10-minute taxi ride to the ferry terminal.
With the schedule, we suggest taking the 23:00 bus trip to Jepara. This way, you’ll arrive at around 06:00 with enough time before the 09:00 ferry from Jepara to Karimun Jawa.
Yogyakarta to Semarang
More bus companies operate from Yogyakarta to Semarang, but keep in mind that the ferries from Semarang to Karimun Jawa are available only every other week.
The buses on this route depart every hour from 04:00 to 22:15 with rates from 100,000 IDR ($5.80). Travel time is about 3-4 hours.
From Jakarta to Karimun Jawa via Semarang
There are two ways you can reach Semarang from Jakarta: by train and by flight. In Semarang, both the airport and train station are a short taxi ride away from the ferry terminal.
You can also head to Jepara by bus to take the ferry to Karimun Jawa.
By Train
The train journey takes between 5 and 7 hours from Gambir Station in Jakarta to Semarang Tawang Station. Train tickets on this route range from 360,000 IDR ($21) to 1,200,000 IDR ($70), depending on the class seat.
Trains are available from 07:15 to 20:35 and travel time from Jakarta to Semarang takes 5-5.5 hours.
By Flight
The flight from Jakarta to Semarang takes only an hour. You can fly out of Soekarno-Hatta or Halim Perdanakusuma airports to Jenderal Ahmad Yani Airport in Semarang.
There are flights from 06:55 to 17:30 on this route with airfares starting from 430,000 IDR ($25).
Due to Jakarta’s heavy road congestion, taking the train is by far the fastest and easiest way to get from the city centre to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
The train journey to the airport takes about 50 minutes and a ticket costs 70,000 IDR ($4.10). You can board the train at Sudirman Baru Station in the city centre and alight at Jakarta Airport Station. Then you can connect with the free sky train light rail system to whichever terminal your flight takes off from.
TIP: If you decide to travel by plane, please consider including a carbon compensation fee to reduce your impact on the environment.
Rounding it up
We hope this guide was helpful in planning how to get from Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa. If there's anything else you're wondering about, drop us a comment and we'll do our best to answer you within a few days.
PS: If you've recently travelled this route, share your experience with fellow travellers and help us improve this post. Thanks for helping out our travel community!
Frequently Asked Questions
The distance from Karimun Jawa to Karimun Jawa is 87 km.
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Ferry Schedule Notice
Ferry schedules can change due to weather, sea conditions, or seasonal adjustments. We recommend confirming departure times directly with the operator, especially during monsoon season.
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