You can immediately smell the fragrance once you set foot at Rumah Atsiri in Tawangmangu, Central Java, which is not really surprising since Rumah Atsiri is a place for making essential oils as well as an educational tourist spot to get to know aromatic plants and their uses.

The history of Rumah Atsiri itself begins with the collaboration between the Indonesian and Bulgarian governments to process essential oils with the basic ingredients of citronella in 1963. In the same year, the Citronella Factory was officially established, which was the wish of the first president of the Republic of Indonesia, Soekarno, so that Indonesia would have the biggest Citronella factory in ASEAN.

However, after becoming a place for research on essential oils in the era of President Soeharto, the Citronella Factory experienced ups and downs, changed ownership several times, and was closed in 2015. The Citronella factory was finally back to operating under the name Rumah Atsiri Indonesia in 2018 after being acquired by PT Rumah Atsiri Indonesia.

Interestingly, Rumah Atsiri Indonesia does not change the structure of the old building, so it still has the feeling of the 1960s building. Only the function has changed, such as the workshop is now a restaurant, the boiler room is a museum and the distillation room is a merchandise shop.

The uniqueness of the Rumah Atsiri Indonesia also attracts the attention of Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Angela Tanoesudibyo.

"This museum also exhibits original tools and equipment for making essential oils. The delivery of historical information is also in an interesting way," said Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Angela Tanoesudibyo while visiting the Rumah Atsiri Indonesia.

Rumah Atsiri Indonesia was built to introduce the heritage of Indonesia's essential oil industry through educational recreation equipped with various interesting facilities.

There are three buildings at Rumah Atsiri which have their respective functions, such as a workshop room, an essential plant collection garden, and a museum.

In its garden, Rumah Atsiri Indonesia now has more than 90 types of essential plants out of a total of 400 types of plants. Some of them are clove, sandalwood, citronella, lemongrass, rosemary, vetiver, and other volatile plants.

Meanwhile, in the museum, tourists can also learn about the history of essential oils from both the world and Indonesia, and learn about the process of making essential oils. Rumah Atsiri Indonesia also provides workshops that can be done by children and adults to introduce more about aromatic plants.

Now, Rumah Atsiri Indonesia has become a space for tourism and history of the distinctive fragrance of essential plants which is often visited by local and foreign tourists.

Photo and text: Akbar Nugroho Gumay

Editor : Fanny Octavianus