Makassar — still sometimes called Ujung Pandang — is the largest city in eastern Indonesia and the gateway to Sulawesi. Sprawling along the southwest coast, it is a busy port city with a long trading history: Bugis and Makassarese sailors once dominated commerce across the Indonesian archipelago, and the city's old harbour at Paotere still fills with wooden pinisi schooners.
The 17th-century Dutch Fort Rotterdam, one of the best-preserved colonial forts in Indonesia, sits right on the waterfront and houses a museum of South Sulawesi history. Along the coast, Losari Beach is the social heart of the city — locals gather at sunset to eat grilled fish and pisang epe (pressed banana) from the waterfront vendors.
Makassar is famous for its seafood. The city's signature dish, coto makassar — a rich beef offal soup served with ketupat rice cakes — is worth seeking out at any of the many warungs that line the streets. From here you can arrange trips to the karst landscapes of Rammang-Rammang, the beaches of the Spermonde archipelago, or onward travel to Tana Toraja in the highlands.