Waruga Burial Complexes
Waruga Burial Complexes
4.5
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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles28 reviews
Excellent
12
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12
Average
3
Poor
1
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0

Raymond W
Townsville, Australia4,535 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2011 • Couples
North Sulawesi is a beautiful part of the world, but it mostly attracts people interested in Pulau Bunaken, famed for its diving. However, it has a rich natural heritage on land, too, and is a very scenic part of the country. There is also something on offer for history buffs, in the form of 'warugas', a kind of megalithic stone tomb unique to this part of the archipelago.

You can find random examples of these tombs all around the hills behind Manado, but the very best of them are found in the area of the village of Airmadidi. These tombs of aristocratic warriors and chiefs were elaborately carved with unusual motifs and designs and are a small window on Indonesian religion and culture in the era before Islam and Christianity changed everything. You will probably need to hire some kind of motorbike or van to find the two main sites, both of which repay careful attention.
Written 10 June 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sashimidress
Yogyakarta Region, Indonesia120 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2014 • Family
So I had this idea to visit Waruga Burial Complexes while I am still here in N. Sulawesi but I had no idea where those warugas are located. We went to Tondano, to Sawangan, and got ourselves completely guided by a young man and he knows many things related to warugas. So, instead of burying their dead, ancient Minahasans put them into a box made from stone named waruga, in a fetal position. The box, and the roof, were carved to tell us about their social status, ethnicity (Mongolians, Chinese), and occupation. If I have a chance to visit Tondano again, I will definitely visit this burial complexes again. My Manadonese cousins were also impressed (they had no idea about Waruga before). This place is worth to visit. The guide name is Mas Rey and he is a helpful person. Beside the burial complex, there stands a "rumah panggung" acting like a mini museum about what those deceased brought to their warugas. There also mini reliefs about the emerge of warugas. Interesting. I love this historical site.
Written 27 August 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sulawesi volcano guide
Tomohon, Indonesia289 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2017 • Business
In egipt they have piramide but in minanahasa are warugas is stone grave.
as the thirds humanbeing before get to heaven.
our first house is inside mother and second house is the house where you live after by the mother.this is very nice where you to eplore of the past time of minahasa tribe who live in sulawesi island .
many i guided tourist here because i am legal here in north sulawesi but some times visited this place alone or with friend if i am longing to my tribe culture before christ or the magalitic tombs
thank you verymuch this my information
and regard from guide jotje lala
call and whatsapp
+6281340310671
Written 10 October 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bagus B
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2016 • Friends
Archaeological Park Waruga-Waruga Sawangan, after writing about the Archaeological Park Mural Waruga Sawangan published previously. In the Archaeological Park Waruga-Waruga Sawangan there are 144 waruga moved to where it was in 1817, after the Dutch colonial government issued a ban in 1800 to no longer perform burial in Waruga because of the smell coming out as well as the cholera outbreak, according to officials accompanying us around. Waruga are the graves of ancient Minahasa form hollow quadrangular stone about 1 meter high place to put the bodies of the dead in a sitting position, and the stone that covered the cupola. One Waruga usually used as a gravestone for one family, so that it can contain up to 12 bodies, which can be seen from the number of lines on the cupola Waruga ditoreh. The impression of entering a very strongly felt the Archaeological Park shortly after entering the Archeological Park complex Waruga-Waruga Sawangan, with rows Waruga clean and looks pretty well maintained. Some of the old trees that grow in the Archaeological Park Waruga-Waruga Sawangan strengthen the ancient atmosphere was very unique complex

Written 24 July 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

allisonde7890
Paris, France108 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Nov 2017 • Friends
Seeing these old tombs is a very unique experience. A guide should be able to explain to you what the different symbols mean. For example, a sun means it is a Japanese person and a figure in a European coat is a Spanish person (that will be obvious). The entrance fee is 50,000 per group, which you have to record along with your name in a book. Don’t believe the tour guide if he claims the fee is just for maintaining the temple, not for paying the guide. You don’t have to pay him, he already receives an income from the town. Just pretend you don’t understand him, thank him, and leave.
Written 4 November 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

asriniruth
Indonesia224 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2016
During my travel to Manado, after visit the most visited place which is Bunaken, i choose visit a unique historical burial site in Manado - Waruga in Airmadidi.
This place is coffin from stone - where people placed their dead body in a squatting position in these carved stone structures. There are around more than 100 stone of waruga located here, many stones have a different engravings, shapes, sizes.

This place is worth to visit, an amazing experience!
Written 31 August 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Boleslav
Colorado1,882 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2016 • Couples
There are few places in Airmadidi area that have warugas, old Minahasan sarcophagus.
We have stopped by famous Rap-Rap, located in Airmadidi.
There are around 150 stone sarcophagus located here, many stones have a different engravings, shapes, sizes.
It was very intresting to see all of them side by side.
Written 12 January 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

dynamic14
Singapore, Singapore10,296 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2015 • Couples
Never would have thought that visiting a burial site would be interesting, but it was and educational too.

Our guide explained to us how, in the olden days, the people placed their dead in a squatting position in these carved stone structures.

A closer look at the carved stone on the top used to cover the bottom part where the dead are placed will give an idea of the occupation of the deceased.

Our guide pointed out a the waruga of a general, a magician, a dancer, etc,,, Also by looking at the notches on the side, you can tell the number of people placed into that particular waruga.

One had a picture of a carved baby placed upside down and we were told that this was a baby which died at childbirth.

This is not the original site of the waruga but, from what we understood from our guide, were dug up by the government about 10 years ago and placed into this plot of land and in the process, a few of the waruga were broken.
Written 14 August 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Fadhel M
Bandung, Indonesia14 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2015 • Family
This is an amazing mystical tours which is in north sulawesi. this is the megalithic heritage, where in there are have a dead body. waruga consists of body section and cover the core is empty to be filled remains of the dead. waruga scattered in various places in north sulawesi especially in the land of minahasa. however, in the village of sawangan regency of minahasa in north you can see waruga in great numbers with a variety of forms that are already collected in the vicinity of residential location. tourists will go to here it is advisable to carry a personal vehicle because the place is pretty hard to find. this is an amazing experience!
Written 21 July 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

manadotourguide
Bitung, Indonesia21 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2015
waruga is a coffin from stone and made by 1 people before die and use this coffin after die and position in the coffin like first born
Written 29 October 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Waruga Burial Complexes, Airmadidi

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