Buton Fortress

Benteng Keraton Buton stands on a hill above Bau-Bau on Buton island and encloses about twenty-three hectares behind a wall of coral limestone blocks running some two thousand seven hundred and forty metres, built in stages from the sixteenth century by the sultanate of Buton, which controlled the sea route past south-east Sulawesi. It is cited as the largest fortress by area in the world, a claim that rests on a Guinness listing and on how you count. What makes it unusual is that it is not a ruin: a kampung lives inside the walls, with houses, lanes, a mosque of 1712, the sultan's tomb and the flagpole, so you walk through a working village rather than an archaeological site. Twelve gates and a number of bastions with cannon remain around the circuit.

What you actually see

• A 2.7-kilometre coral wall - the enclosure round the old sultanate capital.
• A village inside the fort - houses, lanes and a working mosque of 1712.
• Twelve gates and bastions - the circuit with its cannon positions.
• The sultan's tomb - the royal burial inside the walls.

When to go

April to October; mornings before the heat. Half a day.

Honest expectations

People live inside the walls - this is a neighbourhood, so behave accordingly. It is hot and shadeless on the wall circuit. Bau-Bau is reached by ferry or a small flight.

Nearby

Bau-Bau port is below; Wakatobi is east across the water.