Jakarta

[United1]

Gents,

Can anyone recommend the higher class happy massage place near SCBD area in Central Jakarta? I have some times to kill between meeting and late dinner and very interested for relax and fun.

I have been to Fortune Spa on Sudirman. Nicer facilities, but expensive (starts at 1. 4 M, ok attractive women) and always government cars park outside. I have been to the'Heaven near Dharam area, but that place is too run down. Malio and classics to further for me.

[United1]

Rodney. Sorry to hears about yours experince with the elec visa.

Your Visa might still be there, the website is not intusitive. So sometimes you needs to exit, reload, or click on the email that was sent to you. Its a pain, but it will be there. You just need to make payment. And for everyone else, make sure you screenshot everythings, becaause yes there is not guaratee you will find the PDF again or can downlad. Just be safe.

Also, some of you will have issues taking photo of your passport due to glare. It so annoyings.

EXTENSION is quite easy. Everying is done online. I suggest you do 7 days in advance of expiry to be safes. But same issue as above. You will think it did nothing, but then you will have to go back to website (reload, exit and relogin, something!) and you will find it has been apporoved. Again, screenshot everything just to be safe.

The nice thing about eVisa is you can NOW use the Electronic gates. Just scan your passport. We are amazings. No need to deal with mean immigration people who sometimes gives hard time.

Goood luck.

Hi Guys.

I just applied for the online Evisa, filled out all the forms and paid the 1. 5 juta only to have my application dissapear, googled up on it and apprently its quite common, be careful yeah, on that note how easy is it to extend a 30 day VOA in Jakarta? Thanks.

[DevSagar]

Yes mate, Jakarta Terminal 2 F has a duty free shop; I bought my whiskey bottle from there as I landed by VietJet Air. The shop is just close by opposite to conveyer belts before you exit.

Regards.

I guess we have the possibility of getting screwed regardless what menthol we employ. I had my CC compromised while using Tap / Contactless paying at a Chinese restaurant. As per Apple, Apple Pay is the most secure and it's paid using a different code. I guess whoever had my info from Tap, must've been very good at it. I ended up buying those NFC blocking sleeve for my cards.

And thanks XXL for the Bahsha translation. It will come in handy when I use it at duty free next month.

Speaking of duty free, anyone knows if Jakarta Airport Terminal 2 F (Cebu pacific and other budget airlines fly from) has duty free shops? Need to get some Tulamore Dew (if they have it) before my flight to Manila.

[FriendlyPlanet]

Let's say you pay Classic with CC, how do you go about avoiding the "currency conversion"? If you stick your CC into the machine (and enter your PIN) you have control over what happens and can deny the currency conversion. On the other hand, sticking your CC into the machine increases the risk of cloning etc. If you pay contactless, you may have no control over the currency conversion, indeed you may systematically get screwed by the house

Regardless of chip, swipe or pay wave (contactless) I always what will be charged to my card before tapping / inserting / swiping. And yes, always pay in local currency (and travel with a credit card that does not charge foreign transaction fees).

[Zippos]

I guess we have the possibility of getting screwed regardless what menthol we employ. I had my CC compromised while using Tap / Contactless paying at a Chinese restaurant. As per Apple, Apple Pay is the most secure and it's paid using a different code. I guess whoever had my info from Tap, must've been very good at it. I ended up buying those NFC blocking sleeve for my cards.

And thanks XXL for the Bahsha translation. It will come in handy when I use it at duty free next month.

Speaking of duty free, anyone knows if Jakarta Airport Terminal 2 F (Cebu pacific and other budget airlines fly from) has duty free shops? Need to get some Tulamore Dew (if they have it) before my flight to Manila.

Let's say you pay Classic with CC, how do you go about avoiding the "currency conversion"? If you stick your CC into the machine (and enter your PIN) you have control over what happens and can deny the currency conversion. On the other hand, sticking your CC into the machine increases the risk of cloning etc. If you pay contactless, you may have no control over the currency conversion, indeed you may systematically get screwed by the house like what seems to happen in Brazil clubs (see Sao Paulo thread). If someone knows the Indonesian idiom for "currency conversion" I'd be interested..

[Zippos]

Sweet Jesus mother of God!

Your are telling me I've been doing this wrong all along! No wonder why my departments finance team were asking for clarification on actual receipts. Time to change my cabbage head financial advisor.

Thanks much Werqweq and NoGermaphobe. I will stick to local currency moving forward. I'm going to send those links to my Branch Manager and ask her to advise that dumb Financial Advisor.

Hey Zippo, sorry, but the opposite is true. If you chose the local currency, wherever you are (e.g., IDR in Indonesia), exchange rate will be set by card provider (i.e., visa or mastercard). The mechant in Indonesia will have nothing to do with that, so the exchange you get is the best possible. After that, your own bank usually tacks on an invisible currency conversion fee (around 2 percent is typical).

If you select anything other than the local currency, the merchant in Indonesia (or rather, whoever handles the transaction for them) will themselves decide the exchange rate to use for conversion to USD or your local home currency, and your home bank will not be involved. This will always be a rate way worse rate than the visa / mastercard rate, and usually much worse than the 2% currency conversion fee your own bank tacks on.

There are some cards that do not impose this conversion fee I've read, but those are not available to me unfortunately. I instead use Wise, which has a lower fee than most.

[XXL]

Let's say you pay Classic with CC, how do you go about avoiding the "currency conversion"? If you stick your CC into the machine (and enter your PIN) you have control over what happens and can deny the currency conversion. On the other hand, sticking your CC into the machine increases the risk of cloning etc. If you pay contactless, you may have no control over the currency conversion, indeed you may systematically get screwed by the house like what seems to happen in Brazil clubs (see Sao Paulo thread). If someone knows the Indonesian idiom for "currency conversion" I'd be interested.

Meanwhile the following school translation can be useful:

"Ku tidak mau konversi mata uang, ku ingin bayar dalam rupiah" ("I don't want a currency conversion, I want to pay in rupiah").

[NoGermaphobe]

This is the correct answer. Always select the local currency and reject DCC (Dynamic Currency Conversion) to your home currency. Whether using a credit card or an ATM. Reject the automatic conversion to your home currency. Don't take my word for it either.

https://www.us.hsbc.com/internationa...utside-the-us/

https://www.americanexpress.com/en-u...hen-traveling/

https://www.cnn.com/travel/foreign-t...ncy/index.html

Hey Zippo, sorry, but the opposite is true. If you chose the local currency, wherever you are (e.g., IDR in Indonesia), exchange rate will be set by card provider (i.e., visa or mastercard). The mechant in Indonesia will have nothing to do with that, so the exchange you get is the best possible. After that, your own bank usually tacks on an invisible currency conversion fee (around 2 percent is typical).

If you select anything other than the local currency, the merchant in Indonesia (or rather, whoever handles the transaction for them) will themselves decide the exchange rate to use for conversion to USD or your local home currency, and your home bank will not be involved. This will always be a rate way worse rate than the visa / mastercard rate, and usually much worse than the 2% currency conversion fee your own bank tacks on.

There are some cards that do not impose this conversion fee I've read, but those are not available to me unfortunately. I instead use Wise, which has a lower fee than most.

[Werqweq]

When it comes to using of physical CC for any purchase, often others don't pay attention is to what currency to select! Most cases it will ask for local currency being option one which in this case IDR, which is set by merchants bank at a very high exchange rate, second option is USD which is also set by merchants bank at a higher exchange rate and third option is home currency where CC is from. It's always best to choose home currency that way home bank does the conversion based on mid-day exchange rate. That way you won't loose much in the process.

Hey Zippo, sorry, but the opposite is true. If you chose the local currency, wherever you are (e.g., IDR in Indonesia), exchange rate will be set by card provider (i.e., visa or mastercard). The mechant in Indonesia will have nothing to do with that, so the exchange you get is the best possible. After that, your own bank usually tacks on an invisible currency conversion fee (around 2 percent is typical).

If you select anything other than the local currency, the merchant in Indonesia (or rather, whoever handles the transaction for them) will themselves decide the exchange rate to use for conversion to USD or your local home currency, and your home bank will not be involved. This will always be a rate way worse rate than the visa / mastercard rate, and usually much worse than the 2% currency conversion fee your own bank tacks on.

There are some cards that do not impose this conversion fee I've read, but those are not available to me unfortunately. I instead use Wise, which has a lower fee than most.

[Incrociatore]

Starling does not charge you any fee, no matter where you are, if the card is supported, you just pay the Mastercard conversion rate, but you have to pay a local fee, if the bank charges that. In Indonesia the cheaper is BCA, at least this is what I have found out:

Bank Central Asia (BCA)

BCA is one of the largest banks in Indonesia, and their ATMs are widespread. They typically charge a fee of around 30,000 IDR (approximately £1. 50) per withdrawal with a foreign card, which is on the lower end of the spectrum.

Bank Mandiri

Bank Mandiri also has a large network of ATMs, and the fee is usually around 30,000 to 50,000 IDR (approximately £1. 50 to £2. 50). Mandiri ATMs are reliable and widely available.

CIMB Niaga

CIMB Niaga often charges a fee similar to other major banks, around 30,000 to 50,000 IDR. However, some users have reported slightly lower fees at CIMB Niaga ATMs.

1) CIMB Niaga is 3 juta (100 k notes).

2) Maybank Indonesia is 1. 5 juta (50 k notes).

3) BNI is 2 juta (100 k notes).

4) Mandiri is 1. 25 juta (50 k notes).

5) BCA is 2. 5 juta (100 k notes)..

[Zippos]

Grab, Goiek is set once and changes occur on each ride / food order. My CC has this feature of approving a merchant as Trusted merchant and it will continue thereafter to a set limit. Anything over that limit, it would ask me for approval.

When it comes to using of physical CC for any purchase, often others don't pay attention is to what currency to select! Most cases it will ask for local currency being option one which in this case IDR, which is set by merchants bank at a very high exchange rate, second option is USD which is also set by merchants bank at a higher exchange rate and third option is home currency where CC is from. It's always best to choose home currency that way home bank does the conversion based on mid-day exchange rate. That way you won't loose much in the process.

Another great option is, no international transaction fees CC, otherwise that puts a huge dent on the total amount. If grab ride is to be $1 then it will be $1 for CC with no international transaction fees, otherwise it could be $1. 05 to $1. 15.

Many won't care about a small amount but it will make a big difference when paying hotel bills, airfare.

At 3% surcharge, considering Visa and Master give a better exchange rate on your CC than you get when changing cash, the nett loss reduces to less than 3%.

I suppose with Grab you enter your CC once and for all and it charges the CC on autopilot from then on. 2FA verification after each ride would be too much of a hassle.

[XXL]

Classic Spa charges a 3% surcharge for CC. But my bill is usually less than $100 so the extra couple of bucks for the convenience and reduced risk from carrying a large amount of cash is well worth it to me. I don't remember such a charge at Emporium. Grab works totally fine on my Singapore cards. Don't know about US cards. For cash I draw about 1 M per day for tips and misc and never really run out. Usually come back with a few hundred K for the next trip.

At 3% surcharge, considering Visa and Master give a better exchange rate on your CC than you get when changing cash, the nett loss reduces to less than 3%.

I suppose with Grab you enter your CC once and for all and it charges the CC on autopilot from then on. 2FA verification after each ride would be too much of a hassle.

[Tiny 12]

Indeed in the first decade of the century you would get stopped by police late at night one day out of three in the area Ayam Wuruk / Lokasari / Stadium. On one night I swear the Prestasi cab taking me back did a turn on purpose so that we would get stopped by police. The cabbie most probably got a cut of the baksheesh.

I can't remember getting stopped, going to or from Jalan Hayam Wuruk or the Lokasari Plaza area. But then we roll differently. I would have been returning alone before 10:30 PM, with no more than a beer buzz. You on the other hand were likely traveling lit, with three or four hotties. Your adventures, especially at Stadium were among the most epic in the annals of ISG. The police probably smelled you coming a couple of kilometers away.

[Sychip1]

Since my last trip to Jakarta was brief just three days and had a great timeI've decided to spend five days in October and another five days in November during my stopover from USA to Sri Lanka. I'm curious if anyone has recommendations for places worth visiting beyond Jakarta for girls.

Maybe just stick with Jakarta I would say. It's such an enormous place in itself that for girls it's the best place if you only have 5 days x2.

[June Fly]

Since my last trip to Jakarta was brief just three days and had a great time—I've decided to spend five days in October and another five days in November during my stopover from USA to Sri Lanka. I'm curious if anyone has recommendations for places worth visiting beyond Jakarta for girls.