Tangkoko Jungle Homestay

Close to the national park. Mosquito net on the bed.

The staff was not really welcoming or friendly. The tours were okay, but a bit pricey for what it is. The food at the homestay was okay, but not very tasty. The restaurants at the main road were also not great.. There were chicken & birds running around on the metal roof during the whole day & night, which was very noisy. There is no Grab, Gojek etc in Tangkoko - make sure you have a trusty taxi driver to get out of there! The hosts charge quite a lot.. If there is an electricity outage, the water does not work (I guess they use a electric water pump). The mattress was quite hard.

Some of the homestay family members were very friendly, lunch and dinner were tasteful, the location was perfect

I believe you can find better value for money at other homestays in the area: - The mattress and pillows were of poor quality (below average) - The tap in the bathroom sink didn’t work properly, so you needed to use the shower to brush your teeth etc. - The breakfast was basic, but given our early departures for hikes, I understand why it didn’t include cooked items like eggs. - When we were leaving, we noticed children (likely under 12 years old) cleaning the room next to ours. It’s unclear whether they were helping out for fun or if an adult would join them later. - The primary reason I didn’t fully enjoy our stay, was the interaction with the main contact person (possibly the father or patriarch) of the homestay. Communication was often awkward or unclear, particularly upon our arrival, although it did improve as our stay progressed. He also led the morning and evening hikes to spot wildlife like tarantulas, cuscus, and tarsiers. However, it seemed he struggled physically with the walks, needing to slow down, which limited the area covered and made the overall pace slow. I typically love wildlife hikes, but I found this one quite boring because of the slow pace. That said, he genuinely cared about showing us the animals and made a real effort to spot them, even when other groups had left the area. His enthusiasm was clear, but his physical condition was a limitation. We noticed a significant difference when we went on a birding hike with another guide on our second day.

Good homestay very clean, run by a friendly family. Beside the main gate to the park. We went with Mr. Franky to do the evening walk (150/pax) and the morning walk (250/pax) to the forest. He is a very honest man and a very good guide. He knows every corner of the forest and show us. Follow his steps and you'll see a lot of animals!!.

The room was clean, had warm water coming out of the shower and ac, but the main building is oddly decorated and a bit strange. The woman who cooked the food was kind. The morning tour in the national park was good. We had Godman as our guide and he walked us far off the main path, for 4 hours, and was really trying his best to listen where the bird species were and we got to see many animals!

The man Frankie, who runs the place, is definitely not the most welcoming host. DON’T take the night tour, especially not with him as your guide, because he is extremely slow and tells you almost nothing about the park and the animals. The night tour is an absolute NO GO. It is NOT WORTH the money, unless you really just want to see the little Tarsius animal. All they do is take you to a tree in the park where the Tarsius is living, and you will be standing there next to 50 other loudly talking tourists who are shining bright light at the animals while taking pictures….You barely go off the main path. You might see monkeys and a tarantula, together with the other 50 tourists and guides who all follow the exact same route, and then you return home. Our guide (the host Frankie) just took the motorbike back home after one hour, and left us in the park with another random guide who could barely speak English. This was a bad experience. We definitely don’t recommend this so-called “guided tour”.

Nothing

Poor rooms. Extremely basic and very very noisy all night long (barking dogs, pigeons on the metal roof which makes you hear every little move they make and motor bikes and cars passing by till late) Super badly maintained, leaking airconditioning, leaking water bassin in the bathroom and the owner pretending we are the first guests telling him about this. Not a really warm welcome upon arrival. We booked our two rooms quite some time in advance. We arrived around 3pm (normal check-in time) and were taking the last two rooms of the homestay but the manager/owner didn’t even know who we were asking us “who are you” without even friendly greeting us. The room still had to be cleaned as well so we had to wait extra time for that to be finished. Food was very poor …with a long waiting time and not a friendly service. Another thing that appalled us is that they keep several cats, dogs and even a tropical bird in cages. We heard the bird “screaming” loudly all the time we were having dinner in the room next to the kitchen where the bird is kept in a small cage. That happening in an area that is promoting nature is unbelievable to us. For us an absolutely NEVER AGAIN and definitely a non recommended place to anyone.

It was such a nice stay in this homestay. The host Franky welcomes you like a friend and part of the family. We even visited a local wedding and I played some violin for them :D Also the Jungle Tours are quite interesting, and he can show you so many animals. The rooms are close to the jungle and are well equipped. Just go there, you won't regret it. Franky, I miss you and your family!

Familierun homestay with friendly owners situated very close to tangkoko ntl park - we enjoyed the stay and our guided tours in the park a lot

Many Pigeons in the roof of the House we stayed in that made a lot of noise making it hard to sleep

The hosting family was very kind and helpful, they organize everything you need. The food was great, the garden outside was really nice for relaxing.

The room was clean and comfortable. The staff was also very friendly and helpful. My guide Franki was great. He made my visit to Tangkoko national park very special and is a real expert on the wildlife of the area. He is determined to create the best possible experience for his clients.