Jakarta: Indonesians think highly of Australia - but it would seem the feeling isn't mutual.

Almost half of more than 2000 Australians surveyed view Indonesia unfavourably, according to a new report that reveals significant challenges need to be overcome to build a closer relationship between the two countries.

Despite politicians constantly claiming a close friendship, research commissioned by The Australia-Indonesia Centre, based at Monash University, found there were clear differences in the way Indonesians and Australians feel about each other.

Indonesians were overwhelmingly positive, despite some negative perceptions of Aussie tourists in Bali, with 87 per cent of 2103 Indonesians interviewed saying they had a very or somewhat favourable view of Australia.