Sumatra cities North Sumatra West Sumatra Aceh Riau

Sure, Medan in the north is the largest city on Sumatra, and it ranks third throughout Indonesia (1. Jakarta, 2. Surabaya, 3. Medan, 4. Bandung).

But Medan is much less urban than Jakarta or Surabaya. In a way, Medan is just a village that spreads over some 400 or more square kilometers.

The second most urbanized area on Sumatra is Bandar Lampung in the far South. Bandar Lampung, or actually the two towns of Teluk Betung and Tanjung Karang may by themselves not be as large as Palembang, but the surrounding area (especially Natar to the north) is much more industrialized than Palembang, and even more industrialized than Medan.

Bandar Lampung, though geographically on Sumatra, in many ways is part of the Jakarta region. It's populated mostly by Javanese, has a local tourism industry similar to the one found in other areas near Jakarta (e.g. Bogor) and has Jakarta-style wealth (and traffic).

Travelling on the main road up on Sumatra, the atmosphere really changes after passing Baturaja town. From Baturaja, it's Sumatra kampung atmosphere, no longer 21st-century Indonesia.

Guide books usually list Palembang as the second largest, and Padang as the third largest city on Sumatra. But my feeling is that the information is outdated, or just based on administrative boundaries.

Padang may be the most beautiful of Sumatran cities (and it's a beautiful city indeed), and Palembang may be the traditional number two on Sumatra, but Pekanbaru seems larger than the two.