Toraja's Works of Art And Hospitality Revealed in Luta Resort

Toraja's Works of Art And Hospitality Revealed in Luta Resort
Tejo
Tejo 
Updated
| 3 min read

Do you have a plan to visit Tana Toraja (Toraja Land) in the highlands of South Sulawesi, Indonesia? Well-known for its unique rituals for the dead, Toraja has attracted countless visitors with their one-of-a-kind culture and traditional practices. If you are planning to visit, we’d like to recommend you to stay at Luta Resort Toraja. Located in the city of Rantepao in north Toraja Land county (kabupaten in the local term), this is a hotel with Torajan architecture that offers its guests decent facilities and good services.

Torajan facade

toraja's works of art and hospitality revealed in luta resort | torajan facade

One of the resort’s features is the traditional touches on its architecture, where it is often styled with local Torajan batik, including on its facade. Since the resort doesn’t have a front yard, its batik-style facade is very much noticeable from the street. Stroll along Dr. Ratulangi Street and you will soon notice a 3-storey building with batik decor on the walls on the resort’s second and third storeys. Above the entrance, there is a kind of wooden roof that protrudes from the building. This kind of roof is called tongkonan and is often found in typical houses of Tana Toraja.

Talking about batik, it is the Indonesian traditional art of painting and Torajan people has their own batik patterns. Unlike Javanese batik that has detailed flowery patterns presented in the usual brown color, Tana Toraja’s batik has more color contrast (e.g. black or red with white background) and bigger motifs, which is not necessarily flowery. It can be any kind of patterns, including the sun or birds, as the Torajan people consider the sun and birds symbols of welfare. Batik is normally used for clothing. However, in modern times, it is often used for architectural purposes, like they do in Luta Resort Toraja.

Room facilities and rates

toraja's works of art and hospitality revealed in luta resort | room facilities and rates

Tana Toraja is located in a highland that is only 800 meters above sea level, which is enough to create cool weather at night (about 20 degree Celsius), hence you can have a comfortable night sleep, even in a non-airconditioned room. There are three types of room available: Junior Suites (from 82 USD), Deluxe (from 51 USD) and Superior (from 44 USD). All rooms are equipped with a private bathroom, plasma TV and IDD telephone and some are with the nice view of natural landscape (river, paddy field and the Mount Sesean are located behind the resort). A junior suite is spacious (45 sqm, with a sofa) and air conditioned. It is located on the third floor, hence it offers better outdoor view. Deluxe and superior rooms are located on the first (ground) and second floor and they are the same size (32 sqm), but deluxe rooms are air conditioned and the other type isn’t.

Tasty breakfast at Tangke Lumuq Restaurant 

toraja's works of art and hospitality revealed in luta resort | tasty breakfast at tangke lumuq restaurant 

Did I mention that the rates already include breakfast? Yes, breakfast is included and it is served in the hotel restaurant named Tangke Lumuq. It is a buffet style breakfast so you are free to help yourself to the spread and enjoy the variety of food as fried rice, fried chicken, fried shrimp, waffles, pancakes, etc. Make sure you don’t miss the Indonesian appetizer (it can be a dessert too) called pisang goreng (fried banana fritters). It’s crispy on the outside but with sweet and tender with banana inside. Yumm, how can you afford to miss this delicacy?

Great and friendly staffs

toraja's works of art and hospitality revealed in luta resort | great and friendly staffs

What is a good accommodation without good staffs? Many of us know how a mere hiccup in the service can ruin our whole day. But, rest assured. The staffs at Luta Resort Toraja are all attentive and friendly. If you ever need anything, just ask them. They’ll happily assist you with whatever you need. The only drawback is that some of them don’t speak English very well. You might need to use gestures to talk to some of them.

Book in advance to secure a room

Last but not least, like other four-star hotels, the resort is facilitated with a swimming pool and internet access across all areas in the resort. This resort is also conveniently located close to Toraja Land’s most famous site - Londa - where dead bodies are left in caves and trees. For that reason during the high seasons (e.g. Christmas, Islamic holiday of Ramadhan in July or August), this hotel is always fully booked. Hence, it is best to book a room here at least two weeks prior to your visit.

Disclosure: Trip101 selects the listings in our articles independently. Some of the listings in this article contain affiliate links.

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A versatile individual, Tejos nutures a passion for travel, writing, translation, and teaching. With expertise in crafting articles spanning diverse subjects, he specializes in travel, business,...Read more

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