Lake Toba Samosir Island, a tranquil haven

I planned a last minute solo trip Lake Toba after I decided to call off the trip the Cambodia due to the current situation. I chose to fly from Kuala Lumpur to Medan as the flight ticket was the cheapest. Lake Toba caught my attention after a quick check on Google map. Isn't it the world's largest crater lake that I learned about in high school Geography? Getting There - Take the bus from Amplas bus terminal to Parapat. (Rp 60,000) Then take a ferry to Samosir Island from one of the few ferry terminals in Parapat. I took the ferry from Pelabuhan Ajibata to Tomok (Rp 12,000) If you are taking the bus from Kualanamu Airport to Medan city (Rp40,000), take note that the bus may not stop right at Amplas bus station. I had to ask the bus driver to stop in the middle of the road and walked 20 min to the bus terminal. I think the new bus terminal is still under construction. The current terminal is made up of a few pondoks (stalls). No facilities there. Attractions - Check out the last two pictures. I happened to pass by what seemed like a tourist information centre when I took a walk through Tuk-Tuk area. The poster shows quite a lot of attractions in Lake Samosir and the neighbouring regions which I can't seem to find much information on Google. I picked a few attractions and toured around half the island on a motorbike. It's a pity that I can't ride a bike so I hired a local to take me on the bike tour for one day. (Rp500,000) Attractions visited: Huta Siallagan, Batu Kursi Raja Siallagan ( Stone Chair of King Siallagan ) Batu Passa and Liang Sipogu Beaches which include Sigurgur, Parbaba Beach, Pasir Putih Aek Rangat (supposed to have a hot spring but it was not open. The guide brought me to a small restaurant next to it which had a tiny pool with hotspring water) Bukit Burung (It's a lookout point further up the hill from Aek Rangat which many locals not know about. Happened to chance upon it on Google map. Even my guide didn't know about it!! So it was quite an accomplishment to bring him to a place that he had never been!) Lake Sidihoni Danau Aek Natonang Batu marhosa Air Terjun Sigarattung (Sampuran Na Pitu) Parhallow viewpoint and coffee shop Hotels - Hotel Tuk-Tuk Timbul Stayed two nights in a traditional room. No air-conditioning but Samosir is generally quite cool at night. Thought there would be lots of mosquitoes but luckily there were not. Overall it was a pleasant stay. There were many hotels and homestay which seemed to be deserted. I guess the tourism in Samosir has not really fully recovered. Shopping - There was a shopping streets in Tomok with hundreds of stalls selling similar souvenirs. business was not good as there were not many tourists so just beware of over desperate vendors pestering you to shop. #spooktaculartrip #laketoba #samosir #volcano #crater #medan #budgetfriendly #budgettravel #lake #solotravel #backpacking