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Balikpapan · Indonesia

Car hire and driving in Balikpapan

Driving distances to the cities around, the rules that change at the border, and where to compare rental prices.

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In Indonesia traffic drives on the left. Picking up at BPN means 7 km (4 mi) into the centre before the trip starts. The emergency number is http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q1061257.

Drives from Balikpapan

Car rental from Balikpapan: distances and estimated journey times
RouteCountryDistanceEstimated time
Balikpapan to NusantaraIndonesia35 km (22 mi)about 32 min
Balikpapan to Loa JananIndonesia82 km (51 mi)about 1 h 15 min
Balikpapan to SamarindaIndonesia93 km (58 mi)about 1 h 25 min
Balikpapan to BontangIndonesia172 km (107 mi)about 2 h 37 min
Balikpapan to MartapuraIndonesia323 km (201 mi)about 4 h 56 min
Balikpapan to BanjarbaruIndonesia328 km (204 mi)about 5 h
Balikpapan to BanjarmasinIndonesia338 km (210 mi)about 5 h 9 min
Balikpapan to PalangkarayaIndonesia340 km (211 mi)about 5 h 11 min
Balikpapan to PaluIndonesia341 km (212 mi)about 5 h 12 min
Balikpapan to PalopoIndonesia421 km (261 mi)about 6 h 25 min
Balikpapan to ParepareIndonesia436 km (271 mi)about 6 h 39 min
Balikpapan to SampitIndonesia453 km (282 mi)about 6 h 55 min
Balikpapan to JakartaIndonesia1,237 km (768 mi)about 18 h 51 min
Balikpapan to SurabayaIndonesia804 km (500 mi)about 12 h 16 min
Balikpapan to BekasiIndonesia1,223 km (760 mi)about 18 h 39 min
Balikpapan to BandungIndonesia1,200 km (746 mi)about 18 h 18 min
Balikpapan to DepokIndonesia1,248 km (776 mi)about 19 h 2 min
Balikpapan to TangerangIndonesia1,256 km (781 mi)about 19 h 9 min
Balikpapan to PalembangIndonesia1,355 km (842 mi)about 20 h 40 min
Balikpapan to SemarangIndonesia954 km (593 mi)about 14 h 33 min

Distances are straight-line; road and rail routes run about 15–25% longer. Times are estimates from distance and typical speeds, not timetables.

Where to compare car hire

ExpediaCar hire from the major suppliers, and the one to look at if the flight or hotel is already booked there. Part of Expedia Group.Check car hire on Expedia (opens www.expedia.com in a new tab)
DiscoverCarsCompares local and international suppliers. Read the counter reviews before you pick.Check rental cars on DiscoverCars (opens www.discovercars.com in a new tab)
Rentalcars.comBooking.com's car arm, with wide airport coverage worldwide.Compare suppliers on Rentalcars.com (opens www.rentalcars.com in a new tab)
Every link above leaves this site.

We take no bookings for these providers and hold no reservation with them. The provider you choose handles payment, confirmation, changes and refunds. How that works.

Common questions

Which side of the road do they drive on in Balikpapan?

The left, as everywhere in Indonesia.

How are the journey times on this page worked out?

From straight-line distance and typical speeds for each mode, so they are estimates for planning, not timetables. Road and rail routes run 15–25% longer than the straight line.

Where these facts come from

  • GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
  • Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
  • OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
  • Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines

Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.