The first facility to open was Bina Ria Ancol beach, a stretch of sand that became famous in the 1970s for its drive-in theater - couples parked facing the Java Sea while films flickered on outdoor screens. A golf course, swimming pool, and oceanarium followed. The Putri Duyung cottage resort brought waterfront accommodations, and Hotel Horison arrived with something unexpected: the Copacabana Casino, one of three legal gambling houses that Governor Ali Sadikin licensed in 1967 to fund city infrastructure. Religious leaders objected, and the government banned all gambling in 1981, but the hotel survived. The complex's centerpiece came later: Dunia Fantasi, or "Fantasy World," a theme park built on reclaimed land at the Bay of Jakarta. It opened on 29 August 1985 with rides divided into eight regions - Jakarta, Indonesia, Asia, Africa, America, Europe, and a "Legendary Fantasy" zone featuring Ancient Greek and Egyptian architecture. Jakartans shortened the name to "Dufan" and made it their own.

What makes Ancol unusual is its sheer variety. Within the same perimeter fence, visitors can ride the Halilintar roller coaster, browse oil paintings at Pasar Seni (an art market and artist residency that hosts Friday night jazz sessions), watch dolphins perform at Ocean Dream Samudra, or snorkel through the Antasena tunnel at SeaWorld Ancol - which was Southeast Asia's largest oceanarium when it opened in 1996. Atlantis Water Adventure occupies five hectares with wave pools, lazy rivers, and water slides on the former site of a public swimming arena. Indonesia's first international beach golf course spreads across 33 hectares along the shore. Jaya Bowling is the country's first and largest bowling center, home to the National Bowling Training Center. Even the transportation is an attraction: a gondola system of 37 cable cars glides along the shoreline, offering aerial views of the resort and the Java Sea beyond.

Ancol's ambitions keep expanding. In 2022, the Jakarta International e-Prix Circuit opened on the complex's eastern edge, a 2.37-kilometer track that hosts the annual Jakarta ePrix for the FIA Formula E Championship - electric race cars screaming around a course that encircles Ancol Beach City's shopping and entertainment complex. The venue's capacity for spectacle is not limited to motorsport. On 17 February 2011, British heavy metal band Iron Maiden played their first-ever Indonesian concert at Carnival Beach, drawing over 25,000 fans. The Beach City International Stadium concert hall holds up to 22,000 people, and a Madame Tussauds wax museum gives visitors the chance to pose with celebrity figures in air-conditioned comfort. Allianz Eco Park, built in 2011, hosted the 2013 World Robot Olympiad and finale episodes of Indonesian Idol.

Getting to Ancol is part of Jakarta's broader transit story. The KRL Commuterline stops at Ancol Station, and Transjakarta buses connect the resort to neighborhoods across the city - with special holiday routes added during Eid al-Fitr and Christmas. Inside the grounds, free Wara-Wiri shuttle buses run three color-coded routes from six in the morning until midnight, weaving between theme parks, beaches, and hotels. The complex has not been without its troubles: a water slide wall collapsed in 2011, injuring four visitors, and the Tornado ride stranded fifteen passengers that same year. But the trajectory points forward. Plans call for further land reclamation along Jakarta's bay, with over 80 additional hectares reserved for expansion. What began as Sukarno's improbable vision - a dream park rising from malarial swamp - has become the place where Jakarta goes to escape itself, if only for an afternoon.