Mamasa: the other Toraja highlands

Mamasa sits in a high valley in the middle of West Sulawesi, at around nine hundred metres, where the air is cool at night and the rain comes most afternoons. It is a Protestant, Toraja-related corner of the island: tongkonan-style houses with saddle-backed roofs, carved facades, and a calendar of church festivals as much as rice harvests.

The town is small and the valley is beautiful in a worked, inhabited way: terraces, coffee gardens, buffalo in the lanes and woodsmoke in the evening. It is not Tana Toraja, and it does not want to be. That is the point. The same architecture and a version of the same culture, without the tour buses and with a road that takes real effort to reach.

A high valley with its own language

Mamasa is both a town and a regency, one of the six that make up West Sulawesi. The valley floor is a patchwork of rice, maize and coffee, with the town strung along a single road and the hills rising steeply on both sides. Coffee is the cash crop on the slopes, and the beans from this valley have a reputation in Makassar and beyond. Mornings are clear, afternoons cloud over, and the temperature drops as soon as the sun goes.

The Mamasa language is related to Toraja, and so are the houses, the burial practices and the importance of buffalo. But the history diverged. Mamasa was Christianised early, and the churches are as central to the landscape as the tongkonan. Sunday here is a serious business, with families walking to services in their best clothes.

Houses, churches and the shape of the town

The old houses stand on piles, with curved roofs and facades of carved panels. Buffalo horns are stacked on the front posts of families that can afford the ceremonies, and some houses are abandoned while others are still lived in. A few have been turned into guesthouses, which is the most comfortable way to sleep in one.

The town itself is a market street, a cluster of government buildings and a handful of churches, one of them old enough to be worth a look. Walk it in the late afternoon, when the market packs up and the light comes down the valley. The best view is from the road above town, where the roofs and the terraces line up together. The old part is small enough that a walk takes half an hour, and the best houses sit on the lanes behind the main road, where the sound of the valley comes up between them.

Walking between villages

The best of Mamasa is outside town, on the paths that link the villages. Terraced hills, bamboo bridges, coffee drying on mats, and houses that appear around a bend without warning. Aralle, further north, is one of the prettiest: a long village with terraces falling away below the road and the valley opening out behind it.

Walks range from a couple of hours to a full day, and the classic longer route is the trek across to Tana Toraja, which takes several days with a guide and a lot of climbing. Arrange guides in Mamasa town and agree the route and price beforehand. Do not expect marked trails, signposts or anyone selling tickets at the trailhead.

Getting there: two rough roads

There are two ways in. From Polewali, on the coast, the road climbs over a pass and takes about three to four hours in good conditions. From Mamuju, the provincial capital, it is longer, roughly four to five hours, on a road that is partly sealed and partly not. Both are scenic and both are slow. The pass is often in cloud, and the road narrows where it has slipped, so the journey takes the time it takes.

Landslides can cut either route in the wet season, and repairs can add hours. Shared cars and pickups run the Polewali road most mornings; ask at your guesthouse the day before rather than relying on a timetable. A private car is the comfortable option and costs more, but it lets you stop for the views that the valley keeps producing.

• Polewali: about three to four hours, the shorter route.
• Mamuju: four to five hours, partly unsealed.
• Ask about landslides before leaving either end.
• Carry cash; there are few ATMs in the valley.
• A private car is worth it if you have luggage.

Sleeping, eating and behaving

Accommodation is simple: guesthouses and homestays in town, from about Rp 250,000 to 500,000 a night, with a few better places on the valley edge. Hot water is not guaranteed and neither is wifi. Bring cash, because ATMs are few and cards are rarely accepted. Meals are rice, vegetables, river fish and coffee, taken where you are staying. Portions are generous, the coffee is grown on the surrounding hills, and dinner tends to arrive early, whether you are hungry or not.

Ask before photographing people, houses or ceremonies, dress modestly for church, and accept coffee when it is offered. The valley is not a museum. The ceremonies you might stumble on are family business, not performances, and the polite thing is to watch from a distance unless invited closer.

Questions people actually ask

Is Mamasa the same as Tana Toraja?

No. The two share language roots, house styles and burial traditions, but Mamasa is a separate regency in West Sulawesi with a mostly Protestant population and far fewer visitors. The landscape and the architecture are similar; the atmosphere is quieter.

How do you get to Mamasa?

By road, either from Polewali on the coast in about three to four hours, or from Mamuju in four to five hours. Both roads are rough in places and can be cut by landslides in the wet season. Shared cars run most mornings; ask locally the day before.