Way Kambas National Park

One Of The Oldest Reserves In South East Asia And The Site Of The Sumatran Rhino Sanctuary, A Closed Breeding Facility Holding A Significant Share Of The Species' Surviving Population · Bandar Lampung, Lampung

Way Kambas is lowland Sumatran forest and swamp on the island's south-eastern corner, one of the oldest protected areas in South East Asia, and it matters for two animals. THE FIRST IS THE SUMATRAN ELEPHANT, at the ELEPHANT CONSERVATION CENTRE, which began as a place to hold and train elephants captured after crop raiding and has shifted - unevenly, and the ethics of the rides offered here are genuinely contested - toward conservation and patrol work. THE SECOND IS THE SUMATRAN RHINO, the smallest and hairiest of the rhinoceroses, of which PERHAPS FEWER THAN EIGHTY REMAIN ALIVE ANYWHERE. The SUMATRAN RHINO SANCTUARY here holds a meaningful share of them in a closed breeding facility. IT IS NOT OPEN TO VISITORS AND SHOULD NOT BE. Andatu was born here in 2012, the first captive birth in Indonesia in over a century - and a reminder that the entire species now turns on a handful of animals in a few enclosures.

Way Kambas, East Lampung Regency, Lampung, Bandar Lampung, Lampung, Indonesia

OPEN IN DAYLIGHT with a park entry fee and a separate vehicle charge; FOREIGNER AND WEEKEND RATES ARE HIGHER. THE MAIN ENTRANCE IS AT PLANG IJO, about two hours from BANDAR LAMPUNG, which has flights from Jakarta - and Way Kambas is also reachable overland from Java via the MERAK TO BAKAUHENI FERRY, which makes it an unusual thing: a Sumatran wildlife park you can drive to from Jakarta. THE ELEPHANT CONSERVATION CENTRE keeps daily hours. THE SUMATRAN RHINO SANCTUARY IS A CLOSED BREEDING FACILITY AND IS NOT OPEN TO GENERAL VISITORS. WAY KANAN, inside the park, has basic accommodation and is where river trips and night drives start. WILDLIFE IS AT DAWN AND DUSK; a midday visit sees very little. Guides are required for the interior.

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