Volcano sunrises, Dutch colonial squares and £1 plates of nasi goreng. Indonesia is back under £450 return from London.
XiamenAir is flying London Heathrow to Jakarta for £410 return with one stop in Xiamen, and China Southern has Gatwick to Surabaya from £435 via Guangzhou. Both fares include a checked bag.
✈️ The Deal
- From: London, United Kingdom
- To: Jakarta or Surabaya, Indonesia
- Airline: XiamenAir (Jakarta), China Southern (Surabaya)
- Stops: 1 stop
- Price: £410–£435 return
- When: November 2026
Example dates:
London to Jakarta (XiamenAir):
06/11/2026 - 14/11/2026: £410
20/11/2026 - 28/11/2026: £410
27/11/2026 - 05/12/2026: £421
London to Surabaya (China Southern):
12/11/2026 - 19/11/2026: £435
26/11/2026 - 03/12/2026: £435
💰 How far does your money go?
A pint in a London pub now costs around £6.50. In Jakarta, a large bottle of Bintang at a warung is about £2.50, and a plate of nasi goreng from a street cart is closer to £1. In Surabaya, a bowl of rawon, the city's black beef soup, costs less than a Tube fare. A Grab ride across either city rarely tops £3.
☀️ The Weather
November is the start of the wet season in Java. Expect highs of 31-33°C and lows around 25°C, with Surabaya usually a touch hotter and drier than Jakarta. Rain tends to come as short, heavy afternoon downpours, with sunny mornings either side.
🏨 Where to Stay
One option in Jakarta, one in Surabaya, and a splurge for the end of the trip.
Ashley Wahid Hasyim · 8.7/10 · From £32/night A short walk from Jalan Sabang's street food, with a rooftop pool for the jet lag.
Hotel Majapahit Surabaya · 9.1/10 · From £65/night A 1910 colonial hotel on Jalan Tunjungan, with garden courtyards and a lot of history.
The Langham, Jakarta · 9.4/10 · From £190/night Sky-high rooms in SCBD and one of the best infinity pools in the city.
🎯 What to Do
Two very different cities, both a long way from a grey London November.
Mount Bromo at sunrise. Jeep up to the viewpoint from Surabaya overnight and watch the sun come up over a smoking crater and a sea of sand. House of Sampoerna. A free museum in an 1862 Dutch building in Surabaya, where you can watch clove cigarettes being hand-rolled at speed. Fatahillah Square. The heart of Jakarta's Kota Tua, with colonial museums, vintage bikes for hire and Café Batavia on the corner. Jalan Tunjungan at night. Surabaya's historic high street fills with food stalls, coffee carts and locals out for the evening.
🗺️ Where to Go From Here
Both cities are gateways to the rest of the archipelago.
Bali. Beaches, rice terraces and surf, about an hour by plane from Surabaya. Search flights Ijen Crater. Blue fire and a turquoise acid lake, reached via Banyuwangi by plane or a 6-hour train from Surabaya. Search flights Malang. A cool hill city with colonial streets and coffee farms, around two hours by train from Surabaya. Yogyakarta. Java's cultural capital, with Borobudur and Prambanan nearby, about an hour by plane from Jakarta. Search flights Labuan Bajo. The jumping-off point for Komodo National Park, around two hours by plane from Jakarta. Search flights
Under £450 return to Java with a bag included doesn't come up often. The cheap dates are all in November, so move fast.
Get every flight deal we find, on your favourite app.
Pick how you want to hear from us — or all three. Free, no spam.
