Pare-Pare South Sulawesi Indonesia
Indonesia

4 Cruises availables At departure or passage at this port

Silversea Cruises (4 Cruises)

Pare-Pare, Indonesia | Cruise Port Guide

Wooden schooners with slender bows still sail the Makassar Strait, as in the days when Bugis sailors ruled the spice routes. It is their homeland you reach when docking at Pare-Pare, the second-largest city in South Sulawesi, about 155 kilometres north of Makassar. The port call is rare on itineraries, and that is precisely what makes it valuable: here, nothing has been prepared for the passage of the white ships.

A city of sailors and traders

The city lives from its port, its fishing and its trade, and you can see it from the very first steps. Along the waterfront, warehouses alternate with stalls where fish and seaweed are drying, while bajaj and motorbikes weave between the carts. The Bugis, a seafaring people renowned throughout the Indonesian archipelago, have for centuries built pinisi, cargo sailing ships whose hulls are still born on the beaches of South Sulawesi, without written plans, according to know-how passed down from father to son.

The native son who became president

The city proudly honours its most famous child: B.J. Habibie, Indonesia's third president, an engineer trained in Germany and a respected figure in the country, was born here in 1936. On the waterfront, a monument depicts him alongside his wife Ainun, whose love story has inspired books and films throughout the archipelago. Residents come to take photos there at the end of the day, when the breeze from the strait tempers the heat.

Markets and daily life

To feel the city's heartbeat, head to the markets. The stalls overflow with mangoes, rambutans, fish from the strait and chilies sold in small pyramids. Smiles accompany every transaction, and children happily practise their few words of English with the rare cruise passengers. An aimless stroll, between mosques, stalls and improvised badminton courts, says more about Sulawesi than many guided tours.

The road to the Toraja highlands

Pare-Pare owes its place on cruise maps above all to its position as a gateway to Toraja country. On longer port calls, organized excursions climb to these highlands, where traditional houses, the tongkonan, raise their bow-shaped roofs above the rice paddies. The Toraja are known for their elaborate funeral rites, their tombs carved into cliffs and their wooden effigies watching over the dead. The mountain road, however, takes several hours each way: the round trip takes the whole day and should only be attempted with the ship's organized tour.

Staying by the water

Those who choose to stay in town will find what they are looking for in simplicity. You follow the coastal promenade, sit down to a plate of grilled fish with sambal, and watch freighters and small boats share the harbour. The local coffee, strong and sweet, is sipped unhurriedly in the shade of the awnings. Nothing spectacular, everything genuine: the life of an Indonesian port that plays no role.

Casting off

At departure, the pinisi often come home with the tide, sails lowered, engines sputtering. From the deck, you follow these hulls, heirs to a thousand years of navigation, with your eyes, and you realize how lucky you were to land on a shore so few travellers know. The city holds on to no one, but it stays for a long time with those who watched it live.

Frequently Asked Questions

On the west coast of South Sulawesi, about 155 km north of Makassar, facing the Makassar Strait. It is the province's second city and a rare call on cruise itineraries.
A good deal, in fact. The town lives off its harbour and you see it from the first steps: the waterfront alternates warehouses with stalls where fish and seaweed dry, while bajaj and motorbikes weave between handcarts. An aimless walk tells you more about Sulawesi than most guided tours.
The town itself: the markets, the waterfront, the Habibie monument, grilled fish with sambal at a table outside. Toraja country, the region's great excursion, takes a full day and should only be attempted through the ship.
Indonesia's third president, an engineer trained in Germany, born here in 1936. On the waterfront, a monument shows him beside his wife Ainun, whose love story inspired books and films across the archipelago. Locals come to be photographed there at the end of the day.
Yes, but only on long calls. The mountain road takes several hours each way and the round trip fills the whole day. Go through the ship's excursion: it is the only sensible way to hold to the schedule.
The traditional houses, tongkonan, raise their prow-shaped roofs above the rice fields. The Toraja are known for their elaborate funeral rites, tombs cut into cliff faces and wooden effigies watching over the dead.
A seafaring people renowned throughout the Indonesian archipelago, who have built pinisi cargo sailing ships for centuries. Their hulls are still shaped on the beaches of South Sulawesi, without written plans, following knowledge passed from father to son.
Stalls overflowing with mangoes, rambutan, fish from the strait and chillies sold in small pyramids. Smiles come with every transaction, and children happily try out their three words of English: cruise passengers are still rare here.
No, and that is exactly its value. Nothing has been arranged for the white ships. Look for no spectacular monument and no tourist infrastructure, but for the honest life of an Indonesian port playing no role at all.
The Indonesian rupiah, in cash and small notes: cards are barely accepted outside the few hotels. Indonesian is the official language, Bugis is the language of daily life, and English comes down to a few words exchanged with a smile.