Those plans were changed around 2001, when Mochtar Riady, the founder of Lippo Group, moved his parents' tomb from Malang, East Java to Karawang, which became the location of San Diego Hills.

To build San Diego Hills, the Lippo Group brought an advisor from Forest Lawn Cemeteries in the United States.

San Diego Hills also adapted the "Forest Lawn concept" of developing elegant cemeteries where visitors enjoyed visiting.

Bloomberg Business reported on its sports facilities, including a running track, its Italian restaurant La Colina, a small-scale replica of Istanbul's Blue Mosque and a man-made eight-hectare Lake of Angels that is open to visitors on rowboats.

The article also noted that the facility also hosts wedding parties, and a dedicated helicopter landing which allowed rich Indonesians to bypass Jakarta's traffic jams.