Aileu | Ainaro | Atauro Island | Baucau | Bobonaro | Covalima | Dili | Ermera | Lautém | Liquiçá | Manatuto | Manufahi | Oecusse | Viqueque
Why visit?
On the border with Indonesian West-Timor, Covalima is well off the usual tourist routes. Malae (foreigners) are a rarity here, so expect a warm welcome from the locals. It is the epicentre of Timor-Leste’s oil and gas industry, which provides the vast majority of the country’s revenues. Though there are few signs of it other than some oil pumps, the only expressway in the country, and a huge international grade airport. The regional capital Suai has a few sights, but you’re likely to spend longer relaxing on the coast at Suai Loro.
Top three experiences
- Enjoying the sunset, dinner and possibly crocodiles at Suai Loro
- Seeing many traditional thatched houses
- Visiting Suai’s impressive Avé Maria Church
Top places to stay
- Joia Hotel, Suai (+670 7726 2709)
- Eastern Dragon Hotel, Suai (+670 7738 2319)
Top places to eat and drink
- Suai Loro beachfront restaurants
- Restaurante Carinhosa, Suai (+670 7512 6727)
- Restorante Trecia, Suai
Sights
Suai – Regional capital Suai feels more like a collection of villages, than a town, but has a few sights in the centre and a tragic history. On 6 September 1999, two days after the results of the Independence Referendum, 245 people were killed by Indonesian militia while sheltering inside the original Avé Maria church. The sobering Monumento Massacre Septembro Negro 1999 commemorates those events. The much larger Avé Maria Cathedral was built on the site of the original church. Between the two is the covered Mercado de Suai, lined with alleyways filled with all manner of things to buy. Suai is also a great place to see traditional Timorese thatched buildings.
Suai Loro – Ten minutes drive south of Suai, Suai Loro (south Suai) is home to a black sand beach backed by restaurants serving delicious locally caught fish, and is a good place to see (and stay a safe distance from) crocodiles. A few walls remain of a Portuguese fort. Randomly there is also a small model of the Eiffel Tower, a long way from Paris!
Suai Expressway – This four lane road is the only highway in the country, and runs 30km along the south of the island from Suai to Fatukahu / Mola, with 10 bridges, 4 intersections, 20 viaducts, 20 drainage boxes and 60 hydraulic passages. Phase 1 was completed in 2018 at a cost of $500m, and was at the time the largest infrastructure project in the country (now superseded by Tibar Port). The long term four stage plan is for a 155km highway capable of 100 km/h traffic from Suai to Beacu in Viqueque. It is part of the Tasi Mane Project (TMP), an ambitious $15bn corridor of petroleum infrastructure along the southwest coast of Timor-Leste including industrial development, airports, refineries, and an LNG plant. A key element of Timor-Leste’s 2011-2030 Strategic Development Plan, progress on the TMP has been stop-start as negotiations have continued with development partners, including Australia’s Woodside Energy, on what is known as the Greater Sunrise Project. The highway is meant for cars and trucks only, but you’re likely to see motorbike, bicycles, and pedestrians on it, and maintenance appears to be a challenge.
Xanana Gusmao International Airport – Built as part of the Tasi Mane Project, this modern airport opened in 2017 at a cost of $120m. It welcomes two small MAF flights a week, at facilities more impressive than Dili’s International Airport. It is a bit surreal flying from here, walking through the empty terminal and unused X-ray machines.
Getting there
Local buses leave Dili from the Taibessi bus station, cost $12, and take most of the day to travel to Suai. MAF fly twice times a week from Dili to Suai, a very scenic 40 minute flight.
Getting around
As usual in Timor-Leste it is easiest to have your own transport. If you do there are many scenic drives around Covalima, particularly to the west in areas such as Fatululic and Fatumea, where almost no malae venture unless they’re working for NGOs.