Magelang has many fascinating tourist destinations, ranging from natural, culinary, and artificial tourism to historical or religious tourism. Talking about historical tourism, there are many historical tourist destinations that you can visit when you go to Magelang and its surroundings. The distance is indeed quite far from the city of Jogja.
But you will indeed have an extraordinary experience when visiting it. One recommended historical or religious tour is the Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema.
About Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema
Bukit Rhema, better known as Gereja Ayam Magelang, was built in 1992 by Daniel Alamsyah. This church was built because Daniel received instructions to create a house of worship to pray in an unfamiliar place.
This tourist destination was initially famous because it was used as a filming location for the AADC movie, which later made it popular. The Gereja Ayam is located on Bukit Rhema Borobudur. This church is a house of prayer, not a church. Initially, the chicken-like symbol was not a chicken but a dove.
This place has been proven to be a place of prayer. Inside this church are many small underground rooms where you can pray. The place is clean and cool. Indeed, it will be solemn if used for prayer.
Unfortunately, the construction of this church was stopped due to funding problems. So, it was not continued. When I visited this place, this church was still not neat. Some say it was stopped because residents rejected it, but some say the construction costs are too expensive. Then, in 2014, it was reopened, but its function was changed to a tourist spot and opened to the public.
The Gereja Ayam in Bukit Rhema became even more popular when the movie AADC filmed one of its scenes in this tourist spot. Since then, Jogja travellers and other regions have become increasingly aware of this place.
Tourist Attractions at Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema
Tourists can visit many tourist attractions in the Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema tourist spot.
1. Religious Tourism
Following its original purpose, this church is used for prayer. Bukit Rhema provides several private prayer rooms that are pretty comfortable and have a calm atmosphere. One such room is Bukit Rhema, which is located on the underground floor. But don't worry, even though it is underground, it has sufficient lighting.
2. Enjoy the sunrise
Visiting tourists can witness the beautiful sunrise of Magelang city. But to get that beautiful view, you must visit early in the morning. Including me at that time, I arrived at the entrance at four in the morning because I was chasing the sunrise, which was said to be super beautiful with a view of Borobudur and a row of several hills in the city of Magelang.
3. Educational tourism
Inside the Gereja Ayam, which consists of 7 floors, each has its function. On each floor, several paintings that are required for education are pasted on the church walls. Each floor has paintings with different themes. For example, about life, nationalism towards the state and nation, and education on the dangers of drugs.
4. Culinary
In addition to enjoying the natural beauty and history, visitors to Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema can enjoy the culinary specialities of Magelang or its surroundings. Moreover, the latest information is that a shop called Kedai Rakyat W'Dank Bukit Rhema has been opened at the back of Bukit Rhema.
Currently, the Bukit Rhema entrance ticket includes free cassava. The cassava local residents make is called Singkong Desa or Latela Gombong Cassava. Singkong, from local community empowerment, is served with traditional chilli sauce, making it even more delicious to enjoy in the fresh air.
5. A green view of nature
We can see beautiful green natural scenery from the top of this Gereja Ayam. We will pass through a cool and fresh green forest when we go to this tourist spot.
6. Taking a picture
For those whose hobby is photography, this tourist spot is one of the sports to take various beautiful photos with a view of nature. You can take a majestic and stunning view of Borobudur at sunrise, especially if you take pictures from the top of this church.
In addition, the Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema building has a unique and beautiful architectural design, making it suitable for use as a photo object. The best photo spot for visitors is from the top of this church, where its chicken tail is visible.
Because it only fits a few people, it is finally limited to a maximum of six people, so visitors must queue. From this top, we can see a fantastic view from a height.
7. Cycling
Those who like sports can also visit this tourist spot by bicycle. You can travel while exercising, the path is safe enough for a bike.
8. Prewedding and wedding
This tourist spot can also be used as a prewedding and wedding venue. But for having this moment, you must book with the manager of the Bukit Rhema Chicken Church.
Address and How to Get There
Gereja Ayam Bukit Rhema is located in Gombong Hamlet, Kembanglimus Village, Magelang, Central Java, about 1-2 hours from Jogja City. The location is not far from Puthuk Setumbu in the Bukit Menoreh area. You can do trekking for about 15-20 minutes. Because of the forest area, the road conditions were a little wet, and the location was surrounded by open forest.
You can use motorcycle and car to get to tourist spots. The parking area is not large but enough for several motorcycles and cars. The entrance is through the entrance of Menoreh Hill.
Entrance Ticket
Tourists can enter and tour this tourist destination by paying IDR 10,000 per person. The Gereja Ayam is a building on which a pigeon was initially built, but many people consider it a chicken, so it became known as the Chicken Church or Gereja Ayam. The guard explained that this place is open to anyone who wants to visit and pray.
After enjoying the scenery and taking photos, we decided to go home. We took the same route when we left, but the ticket officer said tourists could take a different path by renting an ojek.
Are you curious to try visiting this religious tourist spot? I recommend not staying on weekends. It will be very crowded, so you will not enjoy the beautiful atmosphere. Visiting on weekdays will be more fun. There is no need to queue to take pictures at the church's top.
Have you visited this tourist destination? Please share your experience in the comment section.
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