Sulawesi Shopping and Districts

(Sulawesi, Sunda Islands, Indonesia)



Souvenir shopping in Indonesia is always an enjoyable part of any holiday, and in Sulawesi, some very tempting gifts and local handicrafts grace the shelves of stores at the island's main resorts.

Makassar is central to the shopping industry in Sulawesi, with a good selection of stores being based on the Jalan Somba Obu. These shops sell everything from antiques and jewellery, to handicrafts originating from throughout Indonesia, including Kendari filigree silverware, Makassarese brass sculptures and colourful silks from Sengkang.


Where to Shop

Tourists in Makassar (South Sulawesi) will find a number of large, modern shopping centres to choose between. The Makassar Mall is the oldest of its kind in the city, although is more like a market than an actually shopping mall.

Located on the Jalan Sam Ratulangi, the Ratu Indah Mall stands out amongst the shopping malls in central Makassar and is simply enormous, although really if you shop here, you wouldn't necessarily know that you were shopping in Indonesia. Lying on the easterly outskirts of Makassar, the Panukkukang Mall is actually so vast that it is bigger than some entire villages in Sulawesi.

On the cultural island of Tana Toraja, the regional handicrafts are available at shops in central Rantepao, although you should always check the quality very carefully. The wood carvers of Kete Kesu are known in Sulawesi for their skillful work, creating wooden clocks, trays and miniature replicas of traditional Torajan houses. Further shopping highlights on Tana Toraja include velvet drawstring bags, chunky necklaces (made from seeds or silver), amber beaded jewellery, and hand-woven fabrics from Sadan.