Backstreet Academy
Backstreet Academy
5
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Monday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Tuesday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Wednesday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Thursday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Friday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Saturday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Sunday
6:00 AM - 10:00 PM
About
Explore Javanese culture through our exclusive collection of travel experiences - learn classical dance, master the local cuisine or create your own silver jewelry. The backstreets offer the richest interaction with the culture and people of a place. Immerse yourself in the de facto Javanese experience where the local backdrop retains its originality and discover a side of the city you never knew.
Yogyakarta Region, Indonesia

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Backstreet Academy
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


5.0
5.0 of 5 bubbles55 reviews
Excellent
50
Very good
3
Average
0
Poor
1
Terrible
1

msga12
adelaide480 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jan 2020 • Family
This tour was absolutely fabulous. We booked this tour only the evening before and it was no problem. We got quick responses from Backstreet Academy via WhatsApp. We were staying just off Marlioboro street so took a taxi from the train station to meet our guide Endah about 6km outside the city in the Silver Making district, this cost RP51k. Our guide had contacted us earlier via WhatsApp so meeting up was easy. Once we met she walked us through a few little alleys to the workshop where we met the family who run the tour, husband (50 years experience as silversmith),wife and adult son. It was fabulous, a real hands on experience. I made a silver ring and my daughter a copper bracelet. We weighed and melted silver, hammered it out, welded, measured ring sizes, decorated the ring and bracelet and polished it. All under the watchful eye of the silversmith who patiently showed us the techniques and fixed up our mistakes. The atmosphere in the workshop was really relaxed. Endah did a great job of translating and we really enjoyed our tour!
Great value, great fun, highly recommend!
Written 2 January 2020
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.

Daniela G
Lambach, Austria12 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2019 • Family
Thanks to the superb guide Anissa. She had a lot of good tips and gave so interesting insights in Indonesian way of eating & living. That was really great!!!!!😘
Written 3 August 2019
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.

Tessa2218
Johannesburg, South Africa7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2019 • Friends
We booked this tour just a few hours before it began and the arrangements were clear and easy. Our guide was Julie who was energetic and enthusiastic and spoke excellent English. The food was delicious and well chosen for a great introduction to Javanese / Indonesian food. Highly recommended!!
Written 16 July 2019
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.

Evgeniy K
Moscow, Russia18 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2019 • Family
Just facts (I'm ready to provide more documented details upon request), no emotions. We booked 3 tickets to Ramayana Ballet in Yogyakarta with Backstreet Academy on June, 29. We could do it successfully on their website, and we paid their commission online (they asked to pay full amounts of tickets with cash at ticket office). Next day they sent email telling there were no tickets which we booked and only "premium" tickets left (twice more expensive). We said OK, book them. They asked to pay full amount to their PayPal account, but we refused (I already had feeling that they are not reliable when they first accept the order and 1 day after check availability of tickets). We agreed to pay cash to their driver who would take us to the show. They suggested the time of meeting at our hotel and we started for the show 1 hour in advance. After we stuck in traffic jam for 2 hours, we made U-turn to go back to hotel. They called us to ask to pay for transfer. We said no honey no money, but it wasn't funny at all. After we returned to hotel and told them the story, they told us that they also could help with the tour and always advise to start 1,5 hours in advance, but for Saturday/holidays at least 2 hours in advance.
3 airline tickets from/to Denpasar Bali, 1 night in Hotel Tentrem, a lot of emotions... Nobody's going to compensate it. And after all that I had 4 emails like "Dear Evgeny,
Thank you for visiting Backstreet Academy!
How did your Ramayana Ballet Yogyakarta go? We sincerely hope that you have had a memorable experience at #TheBackstreets and that our hosts and facilitators have delighted you. We’d be grateful if you could write a short note to review your experience and help others also know about our hosts and the activities we offer. "
No comments.
P.S. I guess they will reply to this like "Nobody could predict traffic blah blah blah..." But their work is to predict, not only to resell something. My understanding is if they survive doing business like that, there is no real competition on this market. You can enter and work :)))
Written 6 July 2019
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.

Esther G
5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2019
Had Randy and Rama as hosts and they were so nice and informative throughout the whole trip :) We were tired from the airplane ride but they tried their best to entertain us! Thanks for the enjoyable food tour :)
Written 4 June 2019
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.

rocher2018
Hamburg, Germany1 contribution
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2018 • Couples
We booked two events with the Backstreet Academy. One of which was very well organized (a trip through Gunung Kidul with a host named Rama), the other was the Kopi Luwak Tour at Kotagede, for which we are not entirely sure why it was organized through the Backstreet Academy. The host (Edi) was not present when we arrived at the café neither did he speak English after he arrived 45 minutes late. In the end, we still enjoyed a Kopi Luwak tour with a lady from the coffee shop itself. The trip to the cave and snorkling in the Indian ocean in Gunung Kidul, I would highly recommend. Rama was very engaged in showing us all there is to see.
Written 27 September 2018
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.

jstriegl
Graz, Austria1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2018 • Friends
We really enjoyed our street food tour and I can highly recommend todo this Tour to anybody who is into special local yogya food and drinks.
Written 26 September 2018
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.

Anurag A
New York City, NY21 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2018 • Friends
We did the evening food tour and it was fantastic - our guide Rama was extremely knowledgeable, and gave us a comprehensive overview of the food culture in the region, as well as a brief political history of the region.

All the food that we ate was delicious, and there were ample quantities for everyone. We loved that all the spots that Rama took us to were full of locals - no tourist traps on this tour! There were 5 stops on the tour with a good mix of savory and sweet items. Additionally, loved walking through the main town square as well as the busy night market!

Would recommend doing this tour at the beginning of your time in Yogyakarta - great way to get acclimated to the region and figure out how to prioritize your time going forward.
Written 20 August 2018
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.

SpringZephyr
Singapore305 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2018 • Couples
We did a few tours with Backstreet. The evening food tour and the Kraton Water Palace. Rama also accompanied us on an archery course, more of that later.

We couldn't have asked for a lovelier time.

The food tour started with off with a meal, then it was snacks and we ended with coffee. We started off at the padang near the Sultan's palace and went down Malioboro street from one end to the other.

It was colourful and gave us a glimpse into the Malioboro social life. There are places like Jonkers in Malacca, where it is fun to walk thru, but while Jonkers is almost entirely tourist-oriented, Malioboro, yes it has its touristy spots, but it is also a place where locals frequent. I enjoyed especially the make-shift sit down dinner places that get torn down and put up on a daily basis! And also the local street coffee scene - it has to be experienced.

The Kraton water palace was another amazing experience. To see the ancient water palace with its sultan's building and the buildings for the queens and the royal children. The underground tunnels and the underground mosque. A unique sight.

Lastly, the archery course. We did a session in appreciating how the bow is built. No easy task. Some of the simpler tasks were given to us to have a taste of it! And then in the afternoon, we attended the archery course. I don't want to spoil the surprise, but the sport of archery in Jogya is quite a unique one. Rama facilitated the process. Pak Agung, the archery master led us through the theory and then the young adults of the archery club took our thru our paces. We enjoyed so much our interaction with them, as we learnt the sport.

This has been a very special trip and as we plan for our family trip to Danang, Vietnam this Dec with our 2 boys, we are hoping to get involved with Backstreet again!
Written 12 August 2018
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.

Chris C
New Haven, CT74 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2018 • Couples
My wife and I did the Yogyakarta street food tour with Rama. We ate at 5 places, all with amazing food and I definitely would not have known about them without this tour. Rama was a great guide, with a lot of knowledge about the food but also a lot of knowledge about the city and about Indonesia. It was a great pleasure to chat with him in between restaurants / stalls. I would highly recommend this tour for the food and for the experience.
Written 14 July 2018
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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BACKSTREET ACADEMY (Yogyakarta Region) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go