How to Make Your Mt. Bromo Trek

Getting there: Garuda Indonesia Airlines flies from Los Angeles to Surabaya, Java. Round-trip air fare is $1,155. Garuda offers three flights daily to Surabaya from Bali. The 30-minute flight costs $39.50 each way.

Mt. Bromo tour: Orient Express Tours and Travel Service, headquartered in Surabaya, can arrange a trip to Mt. Bromo from anywhere in Indonesia. The standard tour includes one night in a first-class hotel in Surabaya, transportation to and from the airport and Ngadisari, a pony and guide, plus breakfast in the mountains.

One of the tour group’s English-speaking hosts will accompany you up the volcano. Price: $100 per person. Contact: Jalan Majen, Sungkong No. 202, Surabaya. The company also has an office at the Hyatt Bumi Hotel in Surabaya.

Accommodations: In Surabaya, the tourist-class Garden Hotel is centrally located and has three restaurants, including one on the rooftop overlooking the city, plus a swimming pool and sauna. All rooms are air-conditioned and include bath. Rates: $35 per day single, $45 double. Address: Garden Hotel, Jalan Pemuda 21.

Just behind the Garden Hotel stands the newer Garden Palace Hotel with 250 rooms, three restaurants, a pub and a rooftop pool. Rates: $55 single, $65 double. Address: Jalan Yos Sudarso 11.

There is also a first-class Hyatt hotel in Surabaya, the Hyatt Bumi. Rates are $90 double. Rooms can be booked by calling (800) 228-9000 inCalifornia.

Note: Hotels have a 21% service charge.

If you prefer to stay in the mountains in Ngadisari, there are plenty of villagers who will offer you a room for the night, though the quality varies. A basic room costs about $5. Right on the rim of the Tengger Crater, Hotel Bromo Permai is a good place to stay for the views of Mt. Bromo. It’s friendly and offers good value, with dorm beds for $4 or small rooms for $10. Very basic. Also has a small restaurant and bar.

Dining: Restaurants in Surabaya are good but can be slightly more expensive than those in Bali or other parts of Indonesia. The Chez Rose on Jalan Sudirman is a great place to splurge if you want a continental break from Indonesian food. Hotel restaurants are usually excellent, with Western and Indonesian menus. Also of note is the Zangrandi Ice Cream Palace, where the wealthy Surabayans pull up in their Mercedes for treats.

Shopping: Surabaya has no particular crafts of its own, but is a good hunting ground for antiques. A number of small shops at the junction of Jalan Basuki Rakhmat and Urip Sumoharjo have low prices and interesting odds and ends. Tunjungan Shopping Centre is the stop for low-priced music cassettes and small gadgets.

Transportation: Surabaya has a good bus system, plenty of taxis, becaks (three-wheeled cycle rickshaws where the driver sits behind you) and bemos (pickup trucks with benches for passengers). All forms of transport are very inexpensive. A taxi to or from the airport is about $5.

For more information: Contact the Indonesia Tourist Promotion Office, 3457 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 105, Los Angeles 90010, (213) 387-2078.