With more than 17,000 islands scattered across the equator, Indonesia is less a country than a constellation—with volcanoes rising from turquoise seas, jungle-fringed coves, and villages reachable only by boat. To truly experience it, you have to travel the way Indonesians have for centuries: by sea.
The phinisi, a twin-masted wooden schooner hand-built by the Bugis shipwrights of South Sulawesi in the early 20th century, is both a national symbol and a thing of rare beauty. First developed centuries ago by the Bugis and Makassarese shipbuilders of South Sulawesi, the phinisi was once the workhorse of Indonesia’s maritime trade—carrying…