Lombok & Bali in 2 weeks

Lombok and Bali are only two of the hundreds of beautiful islands Indonesia consists of. It will clearly take a lot longer than 2 weeks to really get to know all of them, but you’ve got to start somewhere, right?! I had heard great things about Lombok being a lesser developed but beautiful island, and about swimming with Manta rays near Nusa Penida. We therefore decided to combine Lombok with a couple of days on Bali and some party time on Gili Trawangan squeezed in between.

Day 1 – 4 Kuta, Lombok

We flew to Lombok via Jakarta and took a taxi to Kuta, which is at the south coast of the island (not to be confused with Kuta in Bali!!). This is a lovely town with lots of surfers and backpackers, enough restaurants, cute cafes and a very laid back vibe. Everything within the town is walking distance, but you’ll definitely need a motorbike/scooter to explore the amazing beaches along the south coast. We stayed here for 3 nights, but would have loved to stay a bit longer as we felt like there were many more bays and beaches to visit. Kuta is not a party destination, but there are certainly some cool bars and a party on the beach organised by some locals, which consists of a campfire, a campervan selling drinks and a DJ. We took a surf lesson at Pentai Selong Belanak, which, besides the fact that one of the teachers ditched us to have a cigarette and never returned.. was really fun!

Amazing beaches in Lombok

Pantai Tanjung Aan
Mawun Beach
Pentai Selong Belanak (surfing)
Bukit Merese (viewpoint for sunset)
Gerupuk (haven’t been, but this is supposed to be a good surf spot)

Lunch spot:

Endless summer resort

Restaurants:

KRNK cafe
The bus bar
El Bazar
Kenza Cafe,
A fish restaurant (can’t remember the name, very helpful, I know)

Accommodation Kuta:

Relaxing Homestay, budget, basic, cozy and very friendly staff.

Day 4-6 Senggigi

First things first… if there is no specific reason you want to go here, don’t go. If you decide to go anyway, don’t spend too many days as it’s not much more than a coastal town full of resorts without pretty white beaches. We stayed here for 2 nights because we wanted to have a relaxing day and night in a fancy spa hotel and it was a convenient base for us to visit the Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep Waterfalls in the north the day after.

The route to the waterfalls was beautiful, partly along the coast and partly through the green lush rice fields. We were with a private driver who told us a lot about the island and culture and we stopped on the way at various viewpoints and a very local market where literally everyone stared at us, (ok mostly at Werner, who is like a giant to them). To get to the waterfall you’ll have to hike there and cross a few shallow rivers on the way, so if you bring flip flops or water shoes you won’t be overdressed. These waterfalls are one of the highlights of Lombok, so don’t expect to have it all to yourself for some shameless insta-shooting.

Accommodations

The Chandi Boutique Resort & Spa
Villa Karingal

Day 6-7-8 Gili Trawangan

After too much stress for a holiday, due to a never ending parade of dressed up children for the day of independence on the 17th of August, we somehow managed to catch the last boat to Gili Trawangan, the well known party island without proper roads. As we arrived in the evening we went straight to the food market and ended up drinking too many cheap cocktails, separated from each other and both lost on the island (yes, it’s tiny but very confusing to find your way back to your AirBnB in the dark).

Day 9 – 10 – 11 Nusa Lembongan & Nusa Ceningan

The day after was a bit tough (aka a hangover day). I biked around the island, we went snorkelling with turtles, watched an amazing sunset and had a delicious vegan meal. We followed our trip to Nusa Lembongan by taking a speed ferry, which was supposed to be the most reliable company, but it gave us a true hell of a ride. The majority of passengers was vomiting, sweating, there were huge waves, leaking windows and panicking people who thought their last day had come. We survived, mashallah. You can’t imagine how euphoric everyone was when we finally saw the island rising from the never-ending horizon. Most reliable… what a joke.

Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan are two lovely little islands connected by a yellow bridge, impossible to miss. The best way to explore is by motorbike/scooter, as not all places are reachable by car. There is a beautiful blue lagoon at the coast of Ceningan where you can enjoy the rough sea from above and even spot Manta rays. This is by far not as unique as snorkelling and getting eye to eye with these giant majestic animals. Our tour started quite early in the morning so the water in the bay was still in the shade and therefore pretty cold and dark, which had a bit of a scary effect. Nevertheless, it was an incredible experience!

Accommodation: The Taman Sea View

Day 10-11-12 Ubud, Bali

We started our time in Bali in the green heart of Ubud, an area you can’t miss when visiting Bali. Famous for its rice terraces, temples, sacred places, vegan restaurants, beautiful accommodations, spa treatments and stunning viewpoints, there is something for everyone. Despite the insane amount of motorbikes, family vacationers and a lot of Dutch tourists due to summer holidays, we really enjoyed Ubud. Although some people like to meet other Dutchies while traveling, I tend to get a bit annoyed when I hear too much of my mother tongue around me. It kind of destroys the feeling of being at the other side of the planet in a completely different world. But yeah, it’s hard to avoid since we Dutchies are all curious and traveling has become so “normal” these days. This does not mean I take it for granted, and I am very grateful to see all these places.

Nevertheless, I am happy we didn’t skip Ubud as I really loved driving around the rice fields, jungle and passing through little villages. We visited the well known Tirta Empul temple complex, is a cultural heritage site where both locals and foreigners go for a spiritual purification ritual. Another temple site we visited is Gunung Kawi, which is beautifully surrounded by rice terraces. Both of these sites are highly visited by tourists, but they were very different from one another and beautiful to see.

On our second day we did a guided tour on e-bikes, which was recommended by several other travellers on the way. I’m usually not a big fan of tours, but sometimes going on a tour is the best way to learn more about a culture or the area you are. Besides that it often brings you to places you may otherwise never have found. It was very interesting, the group was not too big and the guides were energetic and quite funny as well. Naturally, we had a look at the famous market, took a massage and had some jummy food before heading to the south.

Accommodation: Lotus Villa Ubud

Day 12 -13- 14 Canggu

Canggu is the place to be for surfers, yogi’s and lovers of cute, healthy hotspots and cool beach clubs (like me). Several of my friends recommended this little town and we were definitely not disappointed, except for the fact that we didn’t have enough time to try out more places to eat. There is not a lot of the Balinese culture to be found here anymore, but there is a very relaxed and western vibe, which makes it a popular place for full-time travellers to stay here for a while.

After a quiet afternoon at the pool of our accommodation, we went to the beach to watch the sunset accompanied with some cocktails and snacks at the Lawn. The night was continued in the famous Old Man’s bar near the beach and ended in a beach party where half of the crowd lost their flip flops to the wild waves of the sea, and W. took his chance to be the hero of the night by saving some of them.
PS. don’t forget to grab a corn on the cob before heading to bed.

The last day of this beautiful trip was spent tanning, drinking cocktails, watching surfers being one with the waves, while nearly drowning ourselves trying to jump over them, and enjoying our very last sunset from the pool at Fins beach-club.

Accommodation: