North Sumatra (Sumatera Utara)

1. Brastagi
Brastagi is a lovely tourist town in the Karo highlands, 70 kms on the way from Medan to Lake Toba. Brastagi is famous for its flowers, vegetables and fruits. The most famous is probably Marquisa or passion fruit. Sweet oranges are also its specialty. The local markets are swarming with activity and scenes from traditional Karo life. Days are extremely pleasant and night can be quite cool. Gundaling Hills provides a clear view of Mt. Sibayak and Mt. Sinabung volcanoes. Enjoy the cool atmosphere and magnificent view. Some hotels offer golf course with the fabulous scenery as the background. Alternatively you can explore this area to seek fresh, tropical fruit and vegetables.

2. Bukit Lawang: The Sanctuary of Orangutans
Literally meaning "door to the hills", Bukit Lawang is a small village situated at the south of the Mount Leuseur National Park. It's located about 90 kilometers northwest of Medan, the capital city of North Sumatra, Indonesia. The focal point of village life here is the river running through the heart of it. And its main attractions are the Orangutan rehabilitation center, crossing the Bahorok River and climbing steep, jungle-clad hills. Bukit Lawang might be one of the best places to meet this exclusive and unique primate. It's one of the largest stronghold communities of orangutans, with more than 5000 of them occupying the jungle. Founded in the early 1973, Bukit Lawang was set up to preserve the decreasing number of orangutans as the negative result of hunting, animal trading and damaged environment. The rehabilitation center helps orangutans regain their natural habits by getting trained through certain programs before released back to the wild. Once a primate heads back the jungle, the rehabilitation center keeps provididing it with supplements and regular check-ups. If you wish to feed the orang utan directly, there are 2 feeding times 08.30 am and 3.00 pm; you could feed them with milk, bananas and other food supplements supplied by the rehabilitation center. All the activities within the Gunung Leuser National Park should be done under the permit and guide by professional provide by the rehabilitation center. Some visitor argued that the regulations is way too strict and stiff, but the rehabilitation center excuses that the wrong contact by human could harm the orang utan.

3. Jangga Vilage
Jangga is a village of native Bataks, located in the hills, on the main road to other Batak communities living separately there. It's famous for its beautiful ulos cloths. You can watch young girls or mature women weaving ulos cloths inside their booths. You can also find rows of traditional houses and the cultural or historical remains left by Batak kings centuries ago, such as King Tambun and King Manurung monuments. Jangga Village is located on the edge of Simanuk-manuk Mountain, about 24 km from Lake Toba, Parapat.
4. Lingga Vilage
Lingga Village is a traditional Karo village and is still preserved and inhabited today.

5. Nias Island: Idyllic Surf and the Last Megalithic Culture Alive
Located west of the island of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean are a chain of islands, running alongside Sumatra but separated from the mainland by a deep trench, they include the islands of Nias, Simeulue, the Mentawai islands and Enggano. Few early trading ships dared to approach these islands because of their forbidding appearance, veering instead to the ports of Padang and Bengkulu in Sumatra. Therefore, for centuries, the people here lived in virtual isolation as these islands were left mostly untouched, until early in the mid 19th century when Dutch and British vessels came to anchor here. Today, Nias island belongs to the province of North Sumatra, Semeulue is in the province of Aceh NAD, Mentawai forms part of West Sumatra and Enggano belongs to the province of Bengkulu. The island of Nias is the largest among these islands. It is 130 km long and 45 km wide, lying 125 km off Sumatra’s west coast. Today, Nias is popular for its rolling waves, equaled only by surf on neighbouring Mentawai islands. Australian surfers in search of the perfect wave were among the first to "discover" Nias and the island is now home to the Indonesian Open surfing Championship at Lagundri beach.
Nias was part of the famous Hippie trail of the 1960s, particularly travelled by surfers, which lead to Bali. Some claim that the waves at the southern beach of Sorake are better than the ones in Maui. Surfers report that the 2005 earthquake has made the waves even better, hollower and longer. Its famous seven second tubes have become nine second tubes! The best known surfing area is Sorake Bay, close to the town of Teluk Dalam, on the southern tip. Enclosed by the beaches of Lagundri and Sorake, the bay has both left and right-hand breaks. As they wait for waves, surfers can often see sea turtles swimming below. There are also two consistent, world-class waves in the nearby Hinako Islands, Asu and Bawa. Many lesser-known, high-quality surf spots with low crowds await adventurous travelers.
Inland, Nias has retained one of the most unique cultures in south east Asia, expressed in large stone monuments, paved plazas and stone-jumping rituals. Earlier called the last living Megalithic Culture in the world--although now disputed--Nias is a rice-growing society primarily influenced by the Bronze Age Dong-son culture of Annam (North Vietnam), and by early Hindu, Chinese and Muslim traders. Folklore relates that the Nias people originated from the Gomo River area in the central part of the island, where gods descended and sired the human race. From here the culture spread north and south developing different traits, but both maintaining the Gomo area as their ancestral home. Chinese chronicles called Nias the “Gold Island”, while at one time in history it was also known as the source of slaves and thrived on the slave trade. The majority of the population is now Catholic or Protestant. On Nias, the nobility was wealthy as is apparent from their impressive traditional dwellings, the stone slab megalithic monuments in front of their ancestral homes and their elaborate ritual feasts that included the entire village. They also kept slaves whom they sold to foreign traders. This custom was stopped in the 1840’s. The Nias village is a fortress with large stone-paved central “plaza”. Stilt houses stand parallel on either side of the plaza while bamboo barricades protect the village from outside attacks. Most impressive are the stone jumping rituals, known as fahombe, which was an initiation rite towards manhood and practiced by warriors. Here acrobatic tribesmen today leap feet-first over piled-up stone columns of 2.5 meters high and half a meter wide. The stone jumping ritual and the simulated war dance ritual may now also be performed for tourists.

6. Sipiso-piso Waterfall
Sipiso-piso Waterfall is located on the North side of Lake Toba, 24 kms from Kabanjahe. The 120 meters waterfall is visible from gazebos near the food and souvenir stands.

7. Tangkahan
Tangkahan is combinations of vegetation and topography makes it a marvelous tourist spot rarely found elsewhere. The Batang Serangan and Buluh rivers, converging exactly in this zone, are typical of rainforest streams, with diverse varieties of vegetation and colorful rocks and Sumatra Elephants on their banks. The clear, bluish green river water againts the panoramic view creates a mystical atmosphere. The Best season to Visit is June to October.

8. Enchanting Toba Lake in Parapat
Viewing this vast lake might make you believe that you're actually visiting an ocean instead of a lake. The atmosphere is so cool and refreshing, the view magnificent and breath-taking, for you can see mountains circling this area. Samosir Island is located proudly in the middle of the lake. Another lake inside Samosir Island makes this place more unique and interesting. This lake is about 1,700 m2 in size with the depth of approximately 450 meters. About 906 above sea level, this lake hosts various interesting plants. Some people, viewing the sunrise and sunset around this area, claim that Toba manages to help them forget their problems even though only for a while.
(references: www.indonesia.travel and www.my-indonesia.info)