East Java, Volume 1 is out: 136 pages in English, 22 chapters

Updated 20 October 2026: four pages of corrections and reader help have been added to each file. Volume 1 now has 136 pages in English and 132 in Polish; the 22 chapters and launch dates stay the same. The added pages explain how to use the guide and map links, include a pre-trip checklist and correct the old Ijen closure notice. The original chapter pages remain, so read the corrections first.

Volume 1: East Java (Tom 1: Jawa Wschodnia) came out in Polish on 7 September 2026; the English edition followed on 19 September 2026. To see the layout first, the free 5-day Java plan in English is 24 pages, same layout, same hand.

The book is a PDF with 22 chapters and two ready routes (7 and 15 days). The Polish edition has 132 pages and gives prices in IDR and Polish złoty; the English edition has 136 pages and gives them in IDR and US dollars. Below are the contents, the corrected Ijen status and the history of the launch promotion. Check the Volume 1 product page for the current price and purchase terms.

What's inside

22 chapters, in this order (titles translated from the Polish edition):

1. Why East Java
2. Flights and a sample budget
3. When to go
4. Apps and tools that save your life
5. Health and safety
6. Visa, vaccinations, insurance
7. Internet, SIM, money
8. What to pack (and what NOT to bring)
9. Transport on Java – the complete guide
10. What to eat on Java
11. How not to be a rude tourist
12. Yogyakarta and around
13. Solo (Surakarta)
14. Dieng Plateau – coloured lakes and temples
15. Karimunjawa – an archipelago, coral, paradise away from the crowds
16. Bromo and Ijen – the iconic volcanoes
17. East Java deeper – Banyuwangi, Tumpak Sewu, Malang, Surabaya
18. The 7-day plan – two versions
19. The 15-day plan – the full experience
20. A ready-made Google Maps list
21. Budget mode: Java for under 100 zł a day
22. East Java and what next

Chapters 1–11 are preparation: flights and budget, visa, health, SIM, packing, transport, food and how not to be a rude tourist. Chapters 12–17 are the places, from Yogyakarta to Banyuwangi. Then two day-by-day plans: chapter 18 has two versions of a week (the classic Yogyakarta, Tumpak Sewu, Bromo and Ijen, or Yogya, Dieng and Karimunjawa), chapter 19 the full 15 days with a budget for the whole route. Chapter 20 is a Google Maps list to load onto your phone, 21 works out Java for under 100 zł a day, and 22 says what to do when the island runs out at Banyuwangi.

Every day of the plan has transport with a price, entries with a price and one thing not to do. The Bromo and Ijen chapter gives you the choice of base, jeep prices, four sunrise viewpoints with their drawbacks, the 255,000 IDR ticket and the Ijen night timeline hour by hour. It isn't a photo album; there are photos, but the price tables take up more room.

Who it's for

Someone going to Java for the first time, alone, by train and bus, who wants to know before leaving what the Borobudur ticket costs, what time the Ijen gate opens and how not to get stung on a jeep at 3 am. The budget it's built on: 65–135 zł a day for everything on the ground.

It's not for someone looking for Bali (Bali appears only as the ferry from Ketapang), not for a resort-and-hotel-tours trip, and not for anyone with three Java trips behind them, because they already know most of this.

Ijen reopened: read the correction before planning your visit

When the Polish edition launched on 7 September, Kawah Ijen was closed following the fire on 4 September. That was the status recorded in the original chapter, not the current situation. The official KSDAE announcement reopened the tourist park from 28 September 2026.

The four pages added on 20 October correct that closure notice. Ijen is day seven in the 7-day Plan A and day thirteen in the 15-day plan. Before fixing that overnight stop, read the current Ijen status and scheduled closures and check the park's latest notices. An open park does not guarantee access to every section or a blue-fire sighting. The Ijen preparation guide covers the checks to make before booking transport.

The launch promotion has ended

At launch, Volume 1 cost 69 zł ($17), and the PREMIERA code took 10 zł off, bringing it to 59 zł. The promotion ended on 30.09.2026. The lowest price in the 30 days before that discount was 69 zł ($17). These are historical prices.

For current prices, availability and file delivery dates, see the shop pages for Volume 1: East Java, Volume 2: West Java and the Complete Java bundle.

How buying works

You choose from the payment methods available on Stripe; the PDF link arrives by email right after payment. The refund rules are on their own page: if the file didn't arrive, won't open or doesn't match the description, you write within 14 days of receiving it and get your money back (refund rules, 14 days). The product page has a free sample: the contents page and the opening page of chapter one, no email and no strings. If the style isn't for you, just don't buy.

Not yet? Start with the starter

If you're not sure Java is for you at all, take the free 5-day Java plan in English first: 24 pages in PDF, a route from Yogyakarta with prices. It's written by the same hand and in the same layout as Volume 1, so afterwards you know what to expect.