Tangkoko National Reserve
Tangkoko National Reserve
4.5
About
Duration: More than 3 hours
Meets animal welfare guidelines
Suggest edits to improve what we show.
Improve this listingTours & experiences
Explore different ways to experience this place.
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Top ways to experience Tangkoko National Reserve and nearby attractions
Are you currently on your trip?
Help us find experiences available for you.
The area
Address
Best nearby
We rank these restaurants and attractions by balancing reviews from our members with how close they are to this location.
Attractions
1 within 6 miles
See what travelers are saying
- 1544patriciabDunedin, Florida32 contributionsJotje Lala - great guideWe used Jotje Lala as a tour guide and he was excellent. He was great at spotting wildlife and also amazing ancient trees. He also arranged a good lunch for our group and provided a drivers and comfortable vans. You will have a lovely trip!Visited March 2024Traveled as a coupleWritten March 17, 2024
- Quqing H4 contributionsAn unforgettable experience in TangkokoWe went to Tangkoko in the afternoon at about 4pm. A group of black macaque monkeys were playing near the entrance. In the following 2-hour trekking, we luckily met a kind of bird we've never seen before, cuscus bear and the tarsiers (monkey with big eyes!). It was great fun. Make sure you have mosquito spray as there are quite a lot of them! Our guide was Mr. Jotje. He took us to a great local restaurant with great ikan bakar (grilled fish). He also found us delicious durian and duku. Can't be better!Visited April 2024Traveled with friendsWritten April 19, 2024
- JinjjaDaebakkSingapore, Singapore198 contributionsCute Tarsiers of TangkokoWe drove about 2-3 hours from the Manado and it was totally worth it. It is compulsory to hire a local guide who is very knowledgeable of the area and the chances to spot wildlife are high with them. Although we were bitten by some ants. I'm happy to say my family managed to see the tarsiers, hornbill, cuscus and an owl. The trek is off the main path so make sure to wear proper shoes.Visited May 2024Traveled with familyWritten May 26, 2024
- Katherine S24 contributionsThe best tour guide for Tangkoko National Park ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️I highly recommend choosing Jemy Lambaihang, originally from Bitung, North Sulawesi, for visits to Tangkoko National Park. He is the best guide and his family has a beautiful resort right at the entrance to the park. Jemy began his career as a bird-watching guide in Sulawesi in 1998 and I met him many years ago when he led me scuba diving in Raja Ampat. He is a volunteer with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) at Tangkoko Nature Reserve in North Sulawesi. He has a website at Jemysadventure.com and you can also reach him via WhatsApp and Facebook. He picked us up in Bitumg from the marine port, gave us an amazing amazing walking tour of the park, stored our luggage and provided lunch and then drove us to Manado where we flew out the next day to SG. His English is perfect and he has the eyes and pointers and binoculars to help you see the neatest things in the jungle: we saw a family of ~ 50 black monkeys, kingfisher birds, and other surprises I will treasure as long as I live. The price was excellent as was the service. Can’t recommend Jemy enough. I wish him a lot of successVisited June 2024Traveled with friendsWritten June 5, 2024
- Victoria I19 contributionsGreat national park and guide recommendationTangkoko is a great place to see Sulawesi wildlife. I went with a guide called Jemy who I would 100% recommend. Jemy is very kind, great English skills, and amazing at spotting the animals. I went for a morning and afternoon walk in the park with him and spotted cuscus 3 times (one of the sightings was of a pair mating), the macaque troop twice, tarsiers and so many beautiful birds (notably the Phillipine megapode, knobbed hornbill, Sulawesi dwarf kingfisher, Sulawesi lilac kingfisher, green-backed kingfisher, ashy woodpecker). Jemy can also show you where some nice snorkelling right off the beach is. Jemy can be contacted on WhatsApp +62 821-9865-0529Visited June 2024Traveled soloWritten July 9, 2024
- Jl TravelTomohon, Indonesia16 contributionsNoordam cruise ship handled by jotje lala toursYes 9 january tangkoko wildlife tour handled by jotje lala tours and travel been contacted by group pasenger of noordam cruise in this number +6289515507588 . This trip started from bitung harbord bitung city north sulawesi. In this service jotje lala tours handle 8 pax mrs sandra and group of noordam cruise ship. Yes we have seen black macaques,tarzier spectrum the small carnivor mongkey,green back king fisher birds,cuscus,butterfly and so on. Lunch served in tangkoko. Thanks for the group trusted jotje lala tours and travel.Visited December 2024Traveled on businessWritten January 18, 2025
- smvNYCNew York City, New York377 contributionsA must do in BitungWe visited the reserve as part of a tour. The place was very crowded as a cruise ship had docked that day. Still, we were still able to enjoy the forest, see the black monkey, a tarsier and even a couscous bear!Visited January 2025Traveled as a coupleWritten January 19, 2025
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
136 reviews
Excellent
96
Very good
26
Average
11
Poor
3
Terrible
0
These reviews have been automatically translated from their original language.
This service may contain translations provided by Google. Google disclaims all warranties, express or implied, with respect to translations, including any warranties of accuracy, reliability, and any implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from forgery.
Lemon C
Singapore12 contributions
Oct 2023 • Solo
I hired Jotje as a guide for 2 days to bring me to Tangkoko nature reserve and Lokon volcano. He is fluent in english and loves taking photos of his guests! We went to Tangkoko on a Sunday and engaged a guide upon arrival to increase our chances of spotting wildlife. The visit had exceeded my expectations as we saw many animals and birds. Plus, no bashing of forests required. A lot of walking had to be done but the terrain is easy and relatively flat.
Written November 14, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
K Evans
4 contributions
Aug 2022 • Family
We stayed in Tangkoko for three nights at Tangkoko Hill with our three adult children. The lodge is simple but spotlessly clean and the food is excellent.
The quality of the guiding by Sam (samuelbirding.com) and Meydi was superb. We saw over 30 different birds inc a Hornbill feeding it’s mate. Sam even set up a hide to ensure we saw the Pitta. We also saw critically endangered Macaques. bear cuscus and Tarsiers. We booked through reefs and rainforests in Totnes Devon , who use Safari Tours . Both excellent especially Freddie who drove us around north Siluwasi for 5 days.
The quality of the guiding by Sam (samuelbirding.com) and Meydi was superb. We saw over 30 different birds inc a Hornbill feeding it’s mate. Sam even set up a hide to ensure we saw the Pitta. We also saw critically endangered Macaques. bear cuscus and Tarsiers. We booked through reefs and rainforests in Totnes Devon , who use Safari Tours . Both excellent especially Freddie who drove us around north Siluwasi for 5 days.
Written August 29, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LMilich
Jakarta185 contributions
Jul 2021
Set out at 3 pm from the Bitung area and reached the reserve shortly before dusk. Lucky to see a couple of female black macaques sauntering down the path, so we followed at a respectful distance. The male circled us, joined the females, and off they went into the woods for the night. We continued with our local guide, who knows the strangler fig where a tarsier family spends the daytime hours. Great seeing them as they emerged! We were also quite entertained by the song of roosting kingfishers. All in all, a very worthwhile excursion.
Written July 13, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
thedeca
Bandung, Indonesia3 contributions
Apr 2022 • Couples
We enjoyed our walk and our guide Julian was great. However, the local price and price for foreigners differs conciderably. Local price 5rb, Rp (7,50rb Rp on weekend), while we were charged 150rb per person, even though we are KITAS holders and study in Indonesia on governmental scholarship and live here more than 5 years. In other tourist destination in Indonesia we always get local price, but after short communication with head of reservation we were left with bitter aftertaste. He was super passive aggressive and his strongest arguments regarding price was "because it's been like that for 15+ years, you are not the first one who complains, and it's government who said so". Hey, maybe then it's a moment to take it into account and report to government, things in the world are not an unchangeable constant. He finished by saying that it would be better if we(all visitors) don't come at all and that he was very happy when COVID19 pandemic came, so no one was visiting. Gladly he gets a salary from government, while local guesthouses stay empty and guides unempliyed in the meantime. Very unpleasant conversation and this attitude made us feel unwanted guests.
Written April 9, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lukas M
4 contributions
Aug 2024 • Couples
Night tour not recommended. Too many people stare and shine at the poor animals. Guide and owner of Jungle homestay only went with us on the paved road to the park and to two places where we could see once a bird spider on the tree and once the Tasiere. All other guests were disappointed too. Don't understand the positive review. Wouldn't drive here anymore.
Automatically translated
Written August 4, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Explore Togean Island
Ampana, Indonesia8 contributions
Dec 2022 • Business
One of the best forest in North Sulawesi Indonesia. We come for birding trip around 3 Days with our clients and organize by Ardhy as the Birding and Wildlife guide also trip organizer in Sulawesi Island. We explore In this forest we can see some endemic bird of Sulawesi Island like Knobbed Hornbill, Lilac Kingfisher, and Green-backed Kingfisher. For the wildlife we can see Tarsier Spektral Gursky, Kus Kus ( Sulawesi Bear ) and Macaca Nigra. If you want to visit this forest just e-mail in tourguidesulawesiindonesia@gmail.com or also you can text in WhatsApp +62 85211072098. This guy very helpfull and also already work for long time in tourism. High recommend for go with him
Written May 18, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Tikibird
Brisbane, Australia1,305 contributions
Nov 2023 • Solo
Great diversity of birdlife which can be very good at camouflaging so you need a good guide. I went with Stefan Bee (ask your lodge to book him or find him on Facebook). He was amazing at spotting the birds both by sight and sound and he could identify them all. He found the tarsiers, cuscus and a large group of macaques as well. Highly recommended!
Written November 7, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Miris_voyages
65 contributions
Dec 2022
If you are a diver visiting Lembeh or Bunaken, we would highly recommed to also visit the Tangkoko National Reserve. WIth a competent guide, you will see so many animals during a 3-4 hour visit - for us it was simply amazing. You will be in a beautiful rainforest with easy hikes - more tourists should visit and provide an incentive for the surrounding communities to protect this incredible nature.
Written December 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BSGA
Macon, GA64 contributions
Oct 2022
This was one of my favorite wildlife hikes. The trails are moderate, and you can see tarsiers, cous-cous, macaques, and hornbills with a good guide. The tarsiers were the highlight of our trip. There are opportunities to spend multiple days exploring. Note the tarsiers are viewed at dusk or dawn.
Written October 15, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CindyMcCarty
Dallas, TX134 contributions
Oct 2023 • Friends
The trek through the jungle was a wonderful experience and feel of nature after being on a cruiseship . The trails were clear, our guides were attentive but not overbearing. The scenery was beautiful and seeing a multitude of monkeys was entertaining!
After the hike we had a tasty box lunch and swim in the ocean. Clear water with lots of colorful fish!
Changing facilities were very "rustic" so be prepared. It is a jungle!!🌿🍂
After the hike we had a tasty box lunch and swim in the ocean. Clear water with lots of colorful fish!
Changing facilities were very "rustic" so be prepared. It is a jungle!!🌿🍂
Written October 22, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
It is mandatory to go to park with park? Or it is possible to visit a park without guide?
Written July 11, 2022

jotjelalatours@gmail.com
Manado, Indonesia
1 contribution
Visit park with ranger guide
Written July 1, 2024
Is Tangkoto Reserve open and will it be open Nov 2019? Google Maps has it listed as "permanently closed".
Written June 16, 2019

jotjelalatours@gmail.com
Manado, Indonesia
1 contribution
Already opened
Written July 1, 2024
I was looking at Google Maps today and it has Tangkoto Nature reserve listed as "permanently closed". Is this a mistake? Did something happen? Is it just a seasonal thing? We hope to go in Early Nov 2019. Want to make sure it is not closed. Thanks.
Written June 16, 2019
It is not closed, still open. I can recommend Tangkoko Hill resort.
Just contact Franky, the owner.
tangkokohill please google it.
I already informed tripadvisor that this place is open.
For more information about North Sulawesi contact:
cv minahasa adventure - please google it, too.
We speak English, German, Chinese and of course Bahasa Indonesia.
Written June 26, 2019
Hello: is it good for 8 years old kid ? and suggestion? thanks
Written January 7, 2019
If the 8 year old likes nature and the outdoors and doesn't mind walking, then yes. Some 8 year olds would enjoy and appreciate the reserve; others would not.
Written January 16, 2019
Hi Sebastian, your photos of Tangkoko are wonderful!!
I will visit the park and others destinations in North Sulawesi in August.
Can I know which camera did you use? (:
Thanks!
Written March 15, 2018
Hi, we are a couple, reasonably fit, in our 60's. Is the 4 or 5 hour walk through the nature reserve very strenuous? Are there rest stops? Any advice much appreciated!
Written August 13, 2017
The walk itself won't be a problem. But there is no toilet inside the park
Written August 15, 2017
Showing results 1-6 of 6
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing