Yogyakarta Nightlife: Bars, Clubs, Karaokes and Spas
By
Tibs
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I was disappointed with Yogyakarta nightlife. As a city famous for attracting students and tourists, I was expecting a fun party atmosphere with busy bars and nightclubs. On the contrary, Yogyakarta is quite conservative: Most girls wear the jilbab and you can see all over the city some aggressive banners against gays or Shia Muslims. I've read also about some incidents against a feminist group just a few days ago. This gave me the impression to be in Saudi Arabia more than in "tolerant" Indonesia. In spite of this, I still had fun but I had to try quite many venues before figuring out which ones were crowded and which ones were boring. The objective of this guide is to save you some time and give you the best tips to enjoy Yogyakarta nightlife if you are a single traveler there. If new bars and clubs open, please mention them in the comments to help me keep this review up-to-date. Last update: September 2018. Hotels in Yogyakarta Near the Nightlife:
Sugar is a small nightclub and karaoke located in Yogyakarta. It is the current hotspot among the Chinese community, and one of the only upmarket men's club in the city (the other ones are EC and Boshe VVIP ). Sugar nightclub is about 10 minutes away from the famous Malioboro street, inside the Indoluxe Hotel . It is a good idea to sleep there during your stay in Yogyakarta. It is a girl-friendly 4-star property with a nice spa (Royal Spa) and a rooftop swimming pool. You can get a room for less than 50$ if you book in advance. To compare the price between Agoda, Booking.com and others, click here: Indoluxe Hotel Yogyakarta .
Boshe VVIP is one of the best nightclubs in Yogyakarta with Sugar ( Indoluxe Hotel ). It is located in front of City Mall, about 1,5 kilometers from Malioboro Street. Contrary to what many people think, Boshe VVIP Bali is actually the copy, and Boshe VVIP Yogya is the original one. Both are almost identical: You have a stage with live music and DJs, cool staff with a punk-rock style, luxury karaoke rooms and a lot of lady companions.
Taphouse is a new beer garden in Yogyakarta (April 2016). It was almost an instant success and you should find it just as crowded as Sakapatat. It is located in a house almost in ruins, in which the owners have added a few vintage objects and plants. They also renovated some of the areas while leaving others untouched. The final result is original and it seems to be popular with the younger crowd (students).