Discovering the Blue Flames of Ijen's Crater Lake

suitable for beginner climbers 👍

Great destination! Enjoyed the open trail and peaceful outdoor atmosphere.

Great destination! Enjoyed the open trail and peaceful outdoor atmosphere.

Although the climbing road is difficult and the scenery along the way is mediocre, the Ijen crater is definitely worth seeing. On the Tiffany blue lake, the yellow sulfur crystals are inlaid on the water like gilded patterns, which makes people feel pure.

We did the tour with a guide in April 2025. We were picked up at the hotel in Banyuwangi at 12:00 a.m. and then drove 1 hour by car to a parking lot with a few cafes right at the entrance to the Ijen. The climb is possible from 2 a.m. Our guide got the tickets on site and then we set off. If you are not good on foot, you can take a “taxi”. Several people then pull one person up on the cart. Costs about 1.7 million rupiah (one way). Price is a matter of negotiation. If you want to go down, you have to pay more. Going down is significantly cheaper. We ran completely. The hike uphill to the crater rim takes a good 1.5 hours on foot, is steep and slippery in places, but doable. From above you can sometimes see the blue celebration, when there are a lot of tourists (weekends are busier) you can't see it from above. The taxis also stop at the top. To get to the blue fire you have to walk at least another 30 minutes down to the shore of the blue lake. It's even steeper and more strenuous, sometimes narrow and the smell of sulfur is a bit aggressive. Sometimes there are a lot of people there, there can be no question of enjoyment, more of a crowd. The blue fire could be seen until around 5 a.m. We watched the sunrise, unfortunately it was a bit foggy. Still nice. To do this you have to go up the stony, steep path again and then keep left, it takes another 20 minutes to get to the viewpoint. In total, according to the fitness watch, we walked about 12.5 km and spent 5 hours there. In the last year, according to reports from the guide, there have been accidents, falls and people getting burned by fire. A nice experience, unfortunately a bit too many people.