Bangka Belitung are two beautiful islands lying in the placid South China Sea to the east of Sumatra. Geologically these islands are more closely related to Malaya and Borneo than to Sumatra – forming part of the older, non-volcanic core of Sunda Shelf. Getting more popular as travel destination, they in fact possess some of Southeast Asia’s finest beaches, as well as offering calm and beautiful hideaway for traveler.

Bangka and Belitung islands are best known as the “tin islands” – part of a rich vein of tin ore running from here up through the Malay Peninsula to southern Thailand, which has historically furnished much of the world’s supply of this versatile mineral. Decades of mining have transformed the landscapes of these islands. Densely jungle hills have given way to scrubby forest dotted with small lakes called kolong – huge, water-filled cavities where tin has been mined. Despite centuries of large-scale exploitation, the islands are still sparsely populated.