Museum & Zoo Tanjungpandan

The Museum Tanjungpandan, run by the Belitung regency, occupies a colonial-era building on Jalan Melati in the centre of town. Its collection tells the story of the island through its long tin-mining history, with old equipment, photographs and models, alongside geological specimens, traditional household objects, weapons and ceramics recovered from shipwrecks in the surrounding seas.

Labels are mostly in Indonesian and the displays are modest, but the museum gives useful background to what you will see elsewhere on the island, from the kaolin lakes to the mining towns of East Belitung. Behind the building is a small zoo with local animals and birds, which is popular with families, although facilities are basic.

The museum is open daily, roughly 08:00 to 16:00, and entry is inexpensive. It is a short walk from Tugu Satam and close to several traditional coffee shops, so it fits easily into a morning in town. Allow about an hour, and visit early on hot days, as the galleries are not all air-conditioned.