We chose to take the train for the voyage from Yogyakarta to Bali, Indonesia mainly because Indonesia does not have a reliable air carrier with a good flight safety record! The entire trip took us 22 hours, with the first train taking about 9 hours and the second train about 10 hours.
We hired the same cyclo driver who had taken us to the performances to take us to the train station. The charge was double the normal rate to the station, which is normal. But at 10,000 rupiah, it was still a bargain!!
We took the Esekutif Class (first class) train again, but this train was nowhere near the quality as the train from Jakarta to Yogyakarta! The service was sparse and the ride was rough and long. We had to change trains in Surabaya, and waited at the train station in Surabaya for our next train for at least an hour in the middle of the night. If you want to visit Mt. Bromo, you can get off the train here or continue a little farther down to Probolinggo.
Two noisy rough trains, a bus ride, including on a ferry, and a taxi ride, 22 hours, and no sleep later, we arrived in Bali! Maybe it would have been better to opt for the 16 hour bus ride…. The train ride from Jakarta to Yogyakarta had been quite comfortable, but the ride from Yogyakarta to Bali was much longer and the trains weren’t as nice… Oh well, at least we are now in Bali. 😉