Places of interests in Toraja

Rantepao
Rantepao is the second city after Makale in Toraja. The advantage of Rantepao is that most of the interesting places are in the radius of about 15 kilometers from the city.

Ke'te Ke'suThe village of Ke'te Kesu (about 4 km from Rantepao) has become a living museum. Here a whole tongkonan, or village of traditional houses, and their distinctive rice barns, looks out over a sea of rice fields. At the back of the village are some beautiful Tau tau and intricate old coffins.Seen from the front it is as though it lies in the middle of a sea of rice with a series of curve-shaped roofs and carved walls of their rice-barns that are pretty and fascinating. This village has four 'Tongkonan' or Toraja traditional houses. One of the houses in the middle, its lower part is made as a kind of small museum. The inhabitants mastered the skill of carving and painting which are able to be witnessed from those who are working there. Bamboo and wod carvings are sold in this barns that are big, and coral-reef hills that are big which contain graves that are hanging and is called 'Erong' by the local inhabitants.

Londa 
The best-known site is Londa (4 km from Rantepao), where a balcony of tau tau guard the entrance to two impressive caves filled with brightly decorated coffins, while all around them skulls and bones lie on the rocks.Londa cemetery of steep limestone side, located 8 km from Lemo, is one of the many old cemeteries in Toraja. It is said that the legend of this place is like the story of Romeo and Juliet. There were two people who loved each other, but their parents were against their relationship. Therefore, the two of them committed suicide by hanging themselves inside the cave. One of the sides of cemetery is in the height of the hill, dozens of 'Tau-Tau' are standing respectfully at the balcony. Their faces are as though they are alive, their eyes are open and looking with full authority to direction of a fertile land.

Lemo Cemetary
In lemo graveyards you can see the veranda of 'tau-tau' mixed up together with the steep coralstone museum in the open air, which seems to be combination between death, arts, and ritual. 'Tau-tau' is a small wooden statue which sometimes is made of bamboo tree. This statue is considered to accommodate the spirits of the past by people.At Lemo (12 km from Rantepao), the towering cliff face is filled with graves and tau tau of high-ranking aristocrats, best viewed very early in the morning before the sun gets too high.

Suaya  
The cemetery is on one of the sides of a hill. It is carved as a place of rest of seven kings and their families of the kingdom of Sangalla. The 'Tau-Tau' of the kings and the king's and the king's family are dressed in their Toraja king's traditional dresses, and placed in front of the cemetery of stone. Stone stairs are available to go up the hill where the king in his life-time used for having a quiet time. In that place, a museum will be built to display the wealth of the kings of Sangalla.

Makale
Makale is the capital town of the Tana Toraja government. The steep hills of the city are crowned with the tops of the church towers while the feet of the valleys are dominated by new government buildings. Many among them take building architectural type of the Torajatraditional houses which are full of carvings and an arch-shaped roof. The town is the right area for connecting west Toraja such as Tondon, Suaya, and Sangalla. On market days is this city the center of the activities because the people from afar came with their products such as cattle, woven mat handicraft, baskets and local made handicraft.

Batutumonga
One of the most scenic sights in the whole of Toraja is Batutumonga, high on the slopes of Mt. Sesean. The village overlooks Rantepao far below, and quite often the whole valley fills with mist. It is especially pleasant to spend the night there in one of the simple but adequate accommodations, and then, in the early morning walk the eight kilometres or so down to Tikale where your transport can pick you up.The location is in the area of Sesean that has a cold climate, around 1,300 meters above the sea level. In this area, there are 56 'menhir' stones that are put in a circle with five trees in the middle. Most of them are two until three meters high. A magnificent scenery can be seen from this place, which makes this place interesting to be visited.

Lokomata
It is a burial place but the tombs are digged into a very huge single rock. Located just about 3 km from Batutumonga facing a beautiful panoramic viewdown to Rantepao valley.  

Palawa
One of the most interesting villages in Torajaland located north of Rantepao with rows of typical Toraja traditional houses and rice barns. There are souvenir shops just behind the rice barns. Various typical Toraja handicraft are on sale.

Sa'dan
The village is beautifully located next to Sa?dan river, it is welknown for the typical Toraja weaving.