Hotel: Mercure Jakarta Sabang, Indonesia

Here’s our recommendation for a hotel base to consider for a stop in Jakarta when you’re pressed for time and want to squeeze quick sightseeing in:

Mercure Jakarta Sabang

Now, this is a 4-star hotel, and generally we don’t really see the point of spending that much more than a basic place to sleep costs, never mind recommend them; but in this particular case we do, and the reason is simple: The excellent location!

You’re steps away from Merdaka (Independence) Square,

which has the excellent National Museum to the west and the handy Gambir train station to the east, from which you can also catch cheap and frequent airport buses.

Thing we definitely recommend here though, is up to the northeast you see Mastjid Istqual and the Gereja Katedral — where else in the world can you stand in the same spot and take two pictures like this?

Why, nowhere we know of, that’s where!

And this is one impressive mosque — even if you don’t generally make a habit of visiting religious institutions, this one is worth your while, check it out:

So yep — we figure that walking distance to all that makes Mercure Jakarta Sabang an excellent choice for your Jakarta visit!