Indonesia guide › Plan your trip to Indonesia
What vaccinations do I need for Indonesia, and is there malaria?
No vaccination is compulsory to enter Indonesia (except yellow fever if you arrive from a country where it circulates). Several are recommended, though, and malaria depends entirely on your route: practically absent from the main tourist areas, it's still present in the east of the country.
Vaccines, from the most common to the most specific:
- For everyone: routine vaccines up to date (tetanus, diphtheria, polio, measles), plus hepatitis A and typhoid, both spread through food and water.
- Depending on your trip: hepatitis B for a long stay; rabies for a long, remote stay or contact with animals (stray dogs, monkeys); Japanese encephalitis for a long stay in the countryside, especially near rice fields.
Malaria is concentrated in the east: Papua, Maluku and East Nusa Tenggara (Flores, Sumba, Timor). The risk is very low in Jakarta, other cities and the main tourist areas such as Bali. Whether you need antimalarials therefore depends on your itinerary, to be discussed with a doctor.
The real everyday threat is dengue fever, spread by a mosquito that bites during the day and rising sharply across the country. Protection is the same everywhere: a tropical-strength repellent, long sleeves in the evening, a mosquito net if the room isn't air-conditioned.
How to prepare:
- 6 to 8 weeks before you leave, see your GP or a travel clinic: some vaccines need several doses spread over weeks. The CDC, TravelHealthPro (UK) and Smartraveller (Australia) all publish Indonesia-specific advice.
- In your bag: your medication in its original packaging with a copy of the prescription. Psychotropic drugs, including some anxiety medication, sleeping pills and strong painkillers, are treated as narcotics in Indonesia and checked on arrival.
- On the ground: no tap water, for drinking or for doubtful ice; after any animal bite or scratch, wash the wound with soap and water for several minutes and see a doctor the same day.
Hospitals in the big cities are decent, but an evacuation from a remote island is very expensive, and your home health system won't pay (Medicare doesn't cover you overseas): see Do you need travel insurance for Indonesia?.
Tip: give your doctor your island-by-island itinerary: the advice isn't the same for two weeks in Bali as for a month between Flores and Papua.
Information checked in November 2026. Check before you travel; this is general information, not medical advice.
More landmarks in this section
- Do I need a visa for Indonesia?
- What are the entry requirements for Indonesia?
- How much does a trip to Indonesia cost?
- Is Indonesia safe to visit?
- Should you worry about volcanoes and earthquakes in Indonesia?
- What currency does Indonesia use and how do you pay?
- Which SIM card or eSIM should you get for Indonesia?
- Do you need travel insurance for Indonesia?
- Indonesia etiquette: what to wear and how to behave
- Travelling in Indonesia during Ramadan: what to know
- Drugs, new criminal code: which Indonesian laws affect tourists?
- What should I pack for Indonesia?