YOGYA, as it is almost always known, vies for the title of cultural capital of Java. (The other claimant is Solo.) Arts such as shadow puppetry, classical dance, batik painting and more thrive. Royal palaces and other heritage buildings are in the city, and outside, two jewels of Javanese culture.
Yogyakarta is an important centre for classical Javanese fine arts and culture.
Crafts such as ballet, batik textiles, drama, literature, music, poetry, silversmithing, visual arts, and wayang puppetry thrive.
The only Indonesian royal city still ruled by a monarchy, Yogya served as the national capital from 1946-48.
The city overflows with palaces, museums, cultural performances, galleries, and tourists.
Many of Indonesia's greatest Buddhist and Hindu heritage monuments are found nearby.
For better or worse, two major monuments see the lion's share of tourists, leaving some quite impressive sights almost empty.
Less than 40kms away, 9th century Borobodur is the most famous. The largest Buddhist monument in the world, it was abandoned from the 1400s.
Consisting of nine stacked platforms, the temple is topped by a central dome and decorated with 2,672 relief panels.
The central dome is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues, each seated inside a stupa. Borobodur is one of South East Asia's greatest monuments.
I visited Borobodur in 1993, but regrettably didn't get to Prambanan for three decades.
Built over 1100 years ago, Prambanan is a collection of Hindu and Buddhist monuments, the second largest in the world after Angkor.
The breathtaking Candi Shiva Mahadeva is the major temple of the complex, surrounded by the ruins of 224 nearly identical temples, each measuring 6 x 6 x 14 meters.
Within the area covered by the Prambanan ticket are other smaller monuments from the same era.
Candi Sewu, a long stroll from Candi Shiva Mahadeva, is the second largest Buddhist temple in Indonesia.
249 temples, in various states of ruin and repair, make for fascinating rambling.
If not for the grandeur of Candi Shiva Mahadeva, these outer temples would be major destinations in their own right.
They are instead sparsely visited.
With a motorcycle, it is easy to take in some of the many temples scattered nearby.
Some are relatively small, but set in the hills and make for a good drive.
Probably the most significant of the other temples is Candi Plaosan Lor.
The complex is made up of 174 small buildings, of which 116 are stupas and 58 are shrines.
There may have been a dozen other people there at most when we visited.
The magnificent cultures which produced and its depicted on the walls of these buildings lives on in Yogyakarta.
The cultural and spiritual centre of Yogya remains the Kraton, the royal palace.
Construction began during the reign of Sultan Hamengku Buwono I, in 1755-56.
More than just a royal residence. It was built to be a focal point of the Sultan’s entire kingdom.
Today it remains the focal point of Javanese court life and its arts.
Daily performances of gamelon orchestra and ramayana dance keep traditions alive.
Dancers and musicians are seen as prestigious vocations for young Yogyakartans.
The dancers gracefully depict the usual stories of palace intrigue- love, jealousy, rivalry, murder.
The Kraton is surrounded by many smaller museums and galleries, some specialising in subjects as niche as royal carriages.
Sonobudoyo Museum is probably the best general museum, with batik, wayang, gamelan, and unusual pottery on display.
Yogya has a street food culture, where customers sit on matts spread on the footpath. Now impossible on shitshow Jl Malioboro, the practise lives on in areas away from the crowds.
I spent many nights eating and drinking with local students on the main drag 30 years ago. This time, we chose residential area.
Yogya's markets are overlooked by most tourists, but are full of life and flavour.
All over Indonesia, people are very entrepreneurial. Coffee shops, street stalls, mobile vendors are all over Yogya.
Good food, fascinating history and incredible monuments, Yogya has something for most tastes.