Trip in mentawai island

Mentawaian indigenous people

Korne sakalio, your local mentawai guide in west sumatera and beyond

Travelling to meet indigenous tribe of mentawai with local tour guide

There are ferry connections once a week : Friday from Padang and back on Saturday from Siberut.
There are also fastboat leaving on Tuesday and Saturday from Padang to Siberut and back from Siberut to Padang the same day.

With the ferry, it is a night crossing and it takes about 10h to reach Siberut. You leave Padang around 8pm depending on the current weather condition.
You arrive at 6 in the morning.
There is a dormitory with AC.
With the fast boat, you leave from Padang in the morning around 6 am and arrive in Siberut beginning of afternoon.

Once  you arrive in Siberut, your guide will buy all the food for your stay and ask the permit and then you start your trip by few hours in motorized canoe sailing up the river.

Depending on the length of your stay and your wishes, you can stay with one or two families. Families don't live in government villages (less authentic) but in isolated "uma" (traditionnal Mentawai house).
But you can visit by food others uma in the neighborhood.

We try to adapt to your wishes and are flexible, as well for families or trek.
Do not hesitate to ask us so that we can organize a suitable trip for you.

There is no program there, but you live with them, follow their activities (fishing, hunting (not sure as they don't hunt everyday, it's very rare), attending the preparation of sago, their main food), the poison for arrows or their loincloths...

We are not enthusiast of organizing the trip with "1 activity per hour" where we must see and do everything even if it's mean miss the essential but rather take time to live with them and discover them, at their rhythm, and try to be seen as a friend, not as a tourist.
Some people might find that time passes slowly (bring a book), but we really want to keep our ethic and do not fall into sensationalism where activities such as false shamanic ceremonies are made just for tourists eager to see more and more and take a lot of photos.

With little luck, you can attend a traditional shamanic ceremony.
That would be a priceless gift. I personally went to meet them 4 times but have never had that chance.

However, you will be able to meet shamans and ask them anything you want to know.

About organization, you will leave Padang with a guide assistant from Authentic Sumatra team and in Siberut, the Mentawai guide will be her to welcome you and spend the whole stay with you.
We are working with trusted and competent Mentawai guides.

By choosing us to organize your Mentawai trip, you contribute to help the local people.

We will be honest but unfortunately, there are no longer Mentawai people who did not meet tourists.
The Island has been visiting for more than 30 years (missionaries, explorers, anthropologists, photographers, TV crew, travelers...)
But families in which we are going are still living in the jungle with traditional way.

In term of physical difficulties, it is not a cakewalk but doable. But if you are used to trek in the mountains, if you are good walker, in the jungle, it's different. The difficulty is to walk with the mud, on slippery log.
Comfort into "uma" is very rudimentary : you all live together, sleep on the floor on thin mattresses (with mosquito net), and shower in the river. About the toilets, it's in the jungle.

Food consist on rice, vegetable, noodles, eggs, potatoes and we provide mineral water. Alos tea, coffee and biscuit. You can also taste the Mentawai food such sago or sago worm.

It's a chance to be able to meet the Mentawai before their culture completely disappears. Not so many Mentawai live in traditional way nowadays. The tattoo tradition disappears also, only old people and some young have tattoo but not many.

Living with the Mentawai people can a be violent and confusing experience, so to avoid the clash of culture, I suggest you to prepare yourself by reading or watching documentaries about them.

Practical : an anti malaria treatment is highly recommended, be in good shape, be tolerant, easy going and easy to adapt person.

We suggest you to bring : copy of your passport (for the permit), your personal medicine, insect repellent trekking shoes, socks, bikini, rain gear in case and easy dry clothes, flip flop for the uma, sleeping bag or sarong for the night, frontal torch...
It's also good, if you have, to bring plastic shoes to walk in the river wihout getting hurt (stone, wood).

No suitcase of course but backpack. Travel as light as possible, take what you really need.
We can keep the rest of your stuff in Padang in our house while you are in Mentawai.

2/3 practical tips : Ask your guide before taking pictures (except your host family), some of them don't really like while others would ask money for that.
If you want to bring some gift for them, cigarettes is the most precious gift, plastic pearls (women love to make necklace pearls), soaps, shampoos, pocket mirror, flashlight or pens