Bengkulu is a slow coastal capital on Sumatra's west coast, far from the busier overland route through Medan, Bukittinggi, and Padang. It was once the British pepper outpost of Bencoolen, held by the East India Company before being swapped for Malacca in 1824, and that odd colonial history still gives the city its most memorable landmark.
Fort Marlborough is the essential stop, a thick-walled British fort looking toward the sea. Bengkulu also holds two important Sukarno sites: Bung Karno Seclusion House, where Indonesia's future president lived in exile, and Fatmawati House, linked to his wife and to the first Indonesian flag.
The city itself moves at an easy pace. In the late afternoon, locals drift toward Panjang Beach and Jakat Beach for food stalls, sea air, and sunset. Bengkulu is not a polished resort, but it has enough history and coast to justify a day or two if you are crossing southern Sumatra.