Central Sulawesi

Central Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tengah, abbreviated Sulteng) is the province at the center of the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia.

Location of Central Sulawesi

Cities

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Map
Map of Central Sulawesi
  • -0.895119.8594441 Palu - the capital
  • -1.37859120.76242 Poso Poso on Wikipedia - market town wracked by interfaith violence, especially from 1998-2006.
  • -0.86795121.58573 Ampana - Transit point
  • -1.782222120.6494444 Tentena
  • -0.9525122.7883335 Luwuk

Other destinations

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Understand

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Get in

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By plane

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There are domestic airports in Palu (PLW IATA) (for Lake Poso and the central highlands), and Luwuk (LUW IATA) (for the Togian Islands, Morowali), with a reasonable number of domestic departures from Jakarta, Makassar and Manado.

Palu airport was designated an international airport in 2025 but as of mid-2026 the only international routes are charter flights to Guangzhou.

By bus

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From the south: buses leave Rantepao in Tana Toraja everyday around 09:00 (delays can be common), and stops at Tentena, Poso and Palu. The road is in a bad condition, with potholes being quite common. Therefore long delays can be expected. Try to get a seat on the more comfortable executive bus for this reason.

From the north: an overland bus route goes to Manado by Toli-Toli and Gorontalo, this is not very used by tourists though, as the Togian Islands is omitted on this route.

By boat

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Small ferries arrive in Ampana from Wakai, the "capital" of the Togian Islands, every day except Sunday and Thursday. The 5-hour trip is not recommended for people prone to seasickness, but the scenery is very nice.

Get around

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Standard Indonesian fare in the warungs, very few "proper restaurants". The fish, and especially the eel from Lake Poso, can be delicious.

Bat: at least a few warungs in Tentena, down by Lake Poso, sell this local delicacy. It is extremely spicy, and quite bony, but must be tried.

Drink

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Delicious coffee from Sulawesi is not only from Tana Toraja. In Central Sulawesi, there are two types of delicious coffee.

  • Toratima Coffee from Pipikoro District. A fermented coffee from bats, rats, and squirrels. But unlike luwak coffee which is fermented through the digestion, this coffee is from these animals' vomit.
  • Sojol Coffee from Donggala Regency, Arabica type coffee.

Stay safe

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Despite the end of interfaith violence in 2007, in 2017 the East Indonesia Mujahideen attacked the central town of Poso. Tourists were not targeted, but there were very few visitors in the area, anyway, and the police and military presence was very heavy. There were attacks on police and civilians in 2021, in the Sigi, Parigi Moutong and Poso regions. Most countries' foreign affairs offices warn against travel in these regions.

Go next

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This region travel guide to Central Sulawesi is an outline and may need more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. If there are Cities and Other destinations listed, they may not all be at usable status or there may not be a valid regional structure and a "Get in" section describing all of the typical ways to get here. Please plunge forward and help it grow!