One Better Way To Go From Bandung To Yogyakarta

Lodaya Train

Going from Bandung to Yogyakarta ?

You have several ways : 

1. by airplane (  Lion air and Merpati ) - the two airlines operates this route by small  aircraft with propellers. Although there's been no accident with it, but this kind of aircraft is likely to get heavy turbulence up there. One other point, Bandung's airport Hussein Sastranegara is catagorized as a hard-to-land airport, so personally I don't prefer going to Yogya by flight. Once again I emphasized that this is a very personal choice.
2. by bus/ car - many night buses depart from Bandung at 7 or 8 p.m, and arrive at Yogya early morning at 4 or 5 a.m. Executive coach like Kramatdjati with supercold AC and TV is also available. Daytime trip will take longer time because of busy traffic, with a high probability of jam at certain point between Bandung and Tasikmalaya.
3. by train - executive-class train Lodaya departs Bandung Railway Station twice daily : 8 a.m (Lodaya Pagi) and 8 p.m (Lodaya Malam), arrives at Yogyakarta in 7 hours 45 minutes.

On my trip last December 2012, I chose to go to Yogya by train, by Lodaya Malam, and to me it was a nice experience : well-maintained facilities both at Bandung and Yogya railway stations, fair fare (IDR 200,000 one-way), on-time departure and arrival,  clean cabin, comfortable seat, blanket and small pillow is provided for free, and they even provide electricity plug on every seat:

What about toilets? Toilets are clean enough..remember that no matter where you go in this earth, you should always tolerate some smell in public toilets :))

Tips for pessengers:

1. If you go night journey with Lodaya Malam, wear a pullover/ jacket (and socks, if you need ones) that's thick enough, because temperature is pretty cold, especially around 1.00 - 4.00 a.m when low outside temperature contributes negatively to cabin's temperature. 
2. Because cabin's lamps is always turned on, bring an eye-shade if you can't sleep in bright surroundings. 
3. A neck pillow will enhance your sleep quality.
4. This Lodaya train's final destination is at Solo, so wake up early in order not to miss Yogya station ;)
5. Book online your Lodaya Bandung-Yogya-Bandung to save your time.

And if you're planning to go to Yogyakarta, you might like this adventurous journey:
Pindul cave tubing (Gunung Kidul)
Oyo river tubing (Gunung Kidul)