25/02/2026
SPICE, SPIRITS & SHIPWRIGHTS
Culture & coastlines of Sulawesi: A unique maritime museum-led tour in Indonesia
THIS SEPTEMBER, AAMH members can join visiting museum professionals to experience a maritime-themed 14-day journey through southern Sulawesi, the orchid‑shaped island where Asia meets Australasia.
Once known as the fabled Celebes, Sulawesi was home to rival sultans, fearless Bugis sailors, and sea‑gypsies who roamed the waters long before European ships arrived. Today, its seaport Makassar is a thriving city with a rich maritime soul. Its old forts, bustling bazaars, Chinese and Arab quarters, and timber‑hulled trading fleet tell a vivid story of cultural exchange. Its seafood and street food are among the best in Indonesia.
Tour members will meet the island’s legendary boatbuilders and seafarers, the Makassarese, as well as the Bugis, Mandar and Bajo peoples. These are the mariners who sailed to northern Australia for centuries to harvest trepang (sea cucumbers) for the China trade, establishing close relations with First Nations people.
The tour visits dazzling white beaches where great wooden ships take shape – still built by hand using traditional techniques. It also travels inland to explore remote rivers, lakes and the dramatic Toraja highlands, known for spectacular rice terraces, grand carved houses, ancestral ceremonies and mountain landscapes.
The tour leader is Jeffrey Mellefont, an Honorary Research Associate of the Australian National Maritime Museum, where he was a founding staff member and editor of its journal Signals. Jeffrey has been visiting Indonesia since 1975 as a traveller, sailor and researcher. His fluency in Indonesian and personal contacts open doors to meet local people and experience their culture.
Priced at a very modest AU$5,500 per person (excluding air fares), the tour was developed as a non-profit event to follow the September 2026 International Congress of Maritime Museums (sea.museum/icmm-26)
For more information, to register interest or to make a booking, see
Join us on an extraordinary journey through southern Sulawesi, the orchid-shaped island where Asia meets Australasia, and ancient trade routes once linked Makassar with the far reaches of the Indonesian archipelago - and even northern Australia.
