Maribaya has been quite a famous natural hang out place even since my parents generation. But like any other place that is famous and beautiful, with time if if unmaintained, even Maribaya can sort of loose its charm, and that is what happened (or so I thought).
Due to this image in my head of the unmaintained Maribaya, I was quite surprised when my Yoga School decided to throw its annual Yoga Festival in the vicinity, where exactly did they think they could throw it when the area is so poorly developed I thought.
So it turned out that the Maribaya area has been renovated! Now they have cleaned and redesigned the area to make it more interesting for visitors, this newly cleaned area is called Maribaya Resort.
Maribaya resorts beauty turned out to be beyond my expectation. With an entrance ticket of IDR 35,000 (2.5 USD) we can already have access to two different water falls and the wooden pathways that passes through the green valley. Other than that, the Resort also provides a play ground for children, which looks a lot like my image of hobbit houses, and also a Mini Zoo with bunnies. Children can also feed the bunnies, by buying their food at IDR 5,000 ( 0.3 USD). There is also a pond where we can fish fish and watch small turtles.
Inside the Maribaya Resort area we are not allowed to bring food and drinks from outside. But there are many small restaurants selling a variety of food and also a Cafe.
One of my favourite point of this resort however is their hot spring pools. At 40 degrees Celcius The water is not as hot as the neighbouring Ciater, because it is located a bit further down from the volcano, but it is still superbly refreshing to go to because of the superb nature surrounding the hot spring. I personally prefer the design of the pools in Maribaya than in Ciater, and also since this place is not yet as known, it is not yet as crowded as Ciater. Its truly amazing to enjoy the hot springs while listening to the sound of a real water fall nearby and seeing the beautiful forrest.
However the Pool Area I am talking about (the VIP pool area) is not included in the entrance ticket price, and an additional IDR 90,000 (7 USD) must be payed to access it (note that with IDR 115,000 or 9 USD you can also get food and drinks while in this area). Towels and lockers are already included, although the later part needs to be requested.
If you do not like the idea of out door/public pools, you could also go to the private pools. They charge IDR 90.000 (7 USD) for one hour. Other than these VIP areas, there is also a pool area for children and foot hotspring area which charges only IDR 35.000 ( 2.5 USD)
If you are interested in boutique hotels, Maribaya Resort also provides glamour tents experience (as in tents that have a pretty indoor design and are clean), but the prices for these are quite high. However if you do choose to stay there you will get full access to the park area and the pool area.
If you are interested in going to Maribaya Resort, I suggest you to plot at least half a day there so that you can truly enjoy the peace that the place brings.
