Fort Belgica is a historical site in Banda Neira built by the Portuguese in 1611 and is one of the iconic colonial architectural heritages in Central Maluku. This pentagonal building holds important traces of the colonial era and the spice trade.
Fort Belgica: Ancient Historical Tourism in Maluku (enggars15 Instagram)
Location and Access to Fort Belgica
Fort Belgica is located on Naira Island, Banda District, Central Maluku Regency, Maluku Province. From Ambon, visitors can go to Banda Neira by ferry or speedboat and continue the journey to the fort.
Opening Hours and Ticket Price of Fort Belgica
Fort Belgica is open every day from 08.00 to 17.00 WIT. The entrance ticket to this fort is 20.000 IDR per person to enjoy this historic building and the surrounding panorama.
The main attraction of Fort Belgica is its pentagonal shape with each side reaching 40 meters in length. From 30 meters above sea level, visitors can see stunning views of the open sea and the impressive Banda Volcano.
Fort Belgica was originally built by the Portuguese as a military headquarters to maintain their dominance over the spice trade. Later, this building was developed by the Dutch VOC as a control center and monitoring place for merchant ship traffic entering and leaving Banda Neira.
Fort Belgica is an interesting educational tourist destination for tourists who want to learn about the history of trade and colonialism in Indonesia. In addition, this building is also widely known because it appears in the picture on the 1.000 IDR money, becoming an iconic symbol of Banda Neira's history.
The architecture of Fort Belgica, pentagonal with towers at each corner, makes it unique compared to other forts in Indonesia. This building was designed for optimal defense, offering interesting insights into colonial defense techniques and architecture.
