Ketingan Village Resort

Rating :

2.8 ( 8 Voter(s) )

A. Overview

Enjoying natural countryside atmosphere is always an interesting alternative for family excursion. Besides giving you a relief from daily routines, village outings would provide unique experience for those living in busy and all-quick towns. You do not need to have a relative in a village for there are lots of village resorts offering different tour packages.

One of such villages in Sleman is Ketingan, also known as Desa Burung Kuntul, the village of egrets. Indeed, the village is famous for its egret and heron colonies—there are thousands of them. Every morning, the bird will fly away leaving their nest to the watery farm fields to look for food. At dusk, they will come back to Ketingan and perch upon trees.

The birds showed up in the village for the first time in 1997. That time, some colonies of egrets came to Ketingan, shortly after the inauguration of the village gate by Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X. They rested on the trees and roadsides. People used to ignore them and in fact try to get rid of them. But instead of decreasing, there were a lot more of them coming.

In 2005, an effort of preserving the egrets was initiated. It was decided that Ketingan was to become a village resort featuring countryside beauty and the bird colonies.

Aside from those aspects, Ketingan also offers tour packages that include making traditional tonic, farming, and watching daur hidup (life cycle) ceremonies and gejog lesung musical performance.

B. Features

How shady the kampong is can already be felt since the entrance gate. On the right and left side of the road, there are trees so as to explain why egrets love to stay. There are trees in every yard such as melinjo, sapodilla, mahogany, jauhar, jackfruit, Poinciana, and bamboo. All these give Ketingan the fresh air and greenness.

There are posts used for watching birds. The best times to do that are morning or afternoon. In the morning, the birds fly in flocks leaving the village. In the afternoon, the colonies will come home to their nests. Taking photographs will be best in these times.

The egrets in Ketingan have a unique behavior. Every full moon and Kliwon Friday (based on Javanese calendar), they have a gathering. Thousands of them will fly and flap their white wings upon the village from afternoon until the night come. This provides exceptional views and moments for photographers.

Aside from observing egret colonies and their habitats, tourists can learn farming, gejog lesung music, and see the life cycle rituals. In the farming package tour, tourists will get some lessons with real farmers. They will try working fields, planting rice seeds, plowing soil, and harvesting ripening rice plants.

If lucky, you can also see the Merti Bumi ritual, which is held annually. This is a form of gratitude to God for the abundant crops. In the ritual, the people of Ketingan will be wearing traditional clothes and walk in a procession around the village carrying gunungans (cone-shaped rice) and the crops. In the night, there will be a wayang show and other traditional art performances.

C. Location

Ketingan Village Resort is situated in Tirtoadi Village, Mlati District, Sleman Regency, Yogyakarta.

D. Access

Ketingan is only 10 km away from Yogyakarta and 3 km from Magelang Street. Tourists taking private transportation can take the route Yogyakarta—Magelang Street—Mlati—Ketingan. There is no need to worry for there are road signs to the village along the way. It is quite easy to get there because the street is plain and enjoyable with the green rice farms on both of its sides.

You can also use the pick-up service provided by the management of Ketingan Village Resort. Or else, you can take a bus. From any bus station you start, you should stop at Jombor Bus Station and continue your trip with a cab.

E. Ticket

There is no charge for visiting the village. It is free to watch the egret colonies. However, there are charges for the package tours and accommodations. Those who want to experience the countryside life and stay over there can stay in the rural lodgings. Tariff for the stay and facilities (meals) for a day and night is Rp 50,000 each person.

F. Accommodations and Other Facilities

More accommodations and facilities are available in the village now. Among them are guides, bird-watching towers, lodgings as many as 48 units and can accommodate 250 people, and transportation service for visitors.

The main package tours include bird watching, farming, art performance, and traditional culinary lessons. These activities are available for all ages.

Text: Elisabeth Murni
Photo(s): Collection of Jogjatrip.com
Translation: Reza Daffi
(Primary data and various sources)

Read : 5160 time(s).

If you are from outside Yogyakarta and want to visit this place by travel agency services,
please contact:

Maharatu Tour and Travel

Jl. Sisingamangaraja No. 27 Yogyakarta.
Telp. +62 274 8373005. Fax. +62 274 379250
Email : maharatu@maharatu.com -maharatu257@yahoo.com
Website : www.maharatu.com

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