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Lombok
Bali's quieter neighbor (Islands)
About Lombok
Lombok offers a more rugged, less developed alternative to Bali with stunning beaches, the towering Mount Rinjani volcano, and the paradise Gili Islands nearby. The island is known for its Sasak culture, traditional weaving villages, and world-class surf.
Best for: Adventurers, hikers & those seeking off-the-beaten-path
- Mount Rinjani
- Gili Islands
- Sasak culture
- Pristine beaches
Lombok at a glance
- Beach: Excellent (5/5). Some of the region's finest white-sand bays (Tanjung Aan, Selong Belanak), many almost empty.
- Nightlife: Fair (2/5). A few bars in Kuta Lombok and Senggigi; quiet elsewhere.
- Prices: $ · Budget. Cheaper than Bali for food, drivers and mid-range stays.
- To the airport: 35 km · 30–90 min. From Lombok's own airport, a 40-minute flight from Bali
- Climate: Hot & humid · coast
Ratings
- Calm-water swimming: Good (3/5)
- Surfing: Excellent (5/5)
- Diving & snorkeling: Good (3/5)
- Sunsets: Very good (4/5)
- Restaurants & cafés: Fair (2/5)
- Culture & temples: Good (3/5)
- Nature & landscapes: Excellent (5/5)
- Yoga & wellness: Fair (2/5)
- Family-friendly: Good (3/5)
- Peace & quiet: Very good (4/5)
- Remote work: Fair (2/5)
- Walkability: Poor (1/5)
Rated from 0 (none) to 5 (excellent), compared with Bali's other areas.
Resorts in Lombok
- Tampah Hills Villas: Lombok, from about $600 a night
- Pearl of Trawangan: Lombok, from about $100 a night
- Seven Secrets by Hanging Gardens: Lombok, from about $250 a night
- Tunak Resort Lombok: Lombok, from about $150 a night
- Kuno Villas: Lombok, from about $200 a night
- BASK Gili Meno: Lombok, from about $300 a night
- Katamaran Hotel & Resort: Lombok, from about $100 a night
- Amber Lombok Beach Resort: Lombok, from about $60 a night
- Aston Sunset Beach Resort Gili Trawangan: Lombok, from about $50 a night
- Cocana Resort Gili Trawangan: Lombok, from about $120 a night
- Hotel Lumi Gili Trawangan: Lombok, from about $80 a night
- Merumatta Senggigi Lombok: Lombok, from about $45 a night
- Pullman Lombok Merujani Mandalika Beach Resort: Lombok, from about $110 a night
- Royal Avila Boutique Resort: Lombok, from about $95 a night
- Selong Selo Resort & Villas: Lombok, from about $130 a night
- Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort: Lombok, from about $75 a night
Sights in Lombok
- Mount Rinjani (nature). Mount Rinjani is the active volcano that rises over northern Lombok to 3,726 meters, above a caldera that holds the crescent lake Segara Anak and a younger cone, Barujari. Treks to the crater rim and summit start from Sembalun or Senaru and take two to four days with a licensed guide and porters. The trails close in the wettest months, usually January to March.
- Tiu Kelep Waterfall (waterfall). Tiu Kelep is a broad waterfall that drops in several streams into a pool in the forest below Senaru, on the northern slopes of Mount Rinjani. The path from the village passes the Sendang Gile waterfall after about 15 minutes, then follows an irrigation channel and crosses the river for another half hour or so. Wear shoes that can get wet; local guides offer to lead the way.
- Sade Village (traditional village). Sade is a Sasak village in central Lombok where families still live in thatched houses of bamboo and wood, with earth floors smoothed with buffalo dung. Village guides lead visitors along the lanes past rice barns and looms, and women weave and sell the cloth the area is known for. It lies on the road from the airport to Kuta, about 15 minutes north of the coast.
Beaches in Lombok
- Kuta Mandalika Beach (beach). Kuta Mandalika Beach is the main beach of Kuta on Lombok's south coast, a wide crescent bay framed by green hills, with pale, coarse sand of round grains like peppercorns. Waves at the shore are usually small, and boatmen take surfers out to a break on the outer reef. A beachfront park and promenade, part of the Mandalika development, line much of the shore, and its motor racing circuit lies just east of the town; Lombok International Airport is 20 to 30 minutes' drive away.
- Tanjung Aan Beach (beach). Tanjung Aan, about 15 minutes' drive east of Kuta Lombok, is a pair of curved bays split by a small rocky headland: one has fine white sand, the other coarse, round grains likened to peppercorns. The water is clear, shallow and mostly calm, with reef showing at low tide, and boats take surfers out to a reef break in the middle of the bay. Bukit Merese, the grassy hill at the western end, is a short climb for the sunset view.
- Pandanan Beach (beach). Pandanan Beach is a curving bay of pale sand at Malaka, on the coast road north of Senggigi in North Lombok, looking out across the water to the Gili Islands. The sea is usually calm and clear, good for swimming and snorkeling, and canoes can be rented to paddle around the bay. The beach stays fairly quiet; simple warungs along the sand grill fresh fish, and there are gazebos to rest in.
- Senggigi Beach (beach). Senggigi Beach, a bay of mixed pale and dark sand, lies in the center of Senggigi, the resort strip on Lombok's west coast about half an hour's drive north of Mataram. Its clear water over a gently sloping shore is good for swimming and for snorkeling over nearby coral while the sea is calm, as the waves can pick up, and boards and instructors are on hand for beginners on its small surf. It faces west toward Bali's Mount Agung, a backdrop for the sunset.
- Selong Belanak Beach (beach). Selong Belanak is a long crescent of fine white sand on Lombok's south coast, west of Kuta, in a sheltered bay framed by green hills and rocky headlands. Its small, slow waves over a sandy bottom make it a popular place to learn to surf, and the warungs along the shore rent boards, give lessons and set out sun loungers; the calm water also suits swimming. In the late afternoon, farmers often walk their water buffalo along the sand.
- Mawun Beach (beach). Mawun is a horseshoe-shaped bay on Lombok's south coast, about 8 km west of Kuta, framed by two high green headlands, with soft white sand and clear turquoise water. The middle of the bay is usually calm enough for swimming and snorkeling, and reef breaks near either end draw surfers. A few simple cafes and shade trees back the sand, and the beach is seldom crowded.
- Gerupuk Beach (beach). Gerupuk Beach is the sandy shore of a fishing and seaweed-farming village on Gerupuk Bay, a 10- to 15-minute drive east of Kuta Lombok. It is the launch point for the bay's surf: local boatmen ferry surfers to several reef breaks, from Inside Gerupuk, a soft reef break popular with beginners and busy with surf schools, to bigger waves for experienced surfers in larger swells. Simple cafes, guesthouses and surf camps sit nearby.
- Seger Beach (beach). Seger Beach lies about 2 km east of Kuta Lombok, at the foot of Seger Hill (Bukit Seger), a group of small green hills next to the Mandalika racing circuit. Its white sand faces a coral reef that is partly exposed at low tide, with a surf break offshore, and the hills are a short climb for views that are popular at sunset. It is a main site of the Bau Nyale festival, when crowds gather each February or March to catch sea worms linked to the legend of Princess Mandalika.
- Pink Beach (beach). Pink Beach, also called Pantai Tangsi, lies in Sekaroh on Lombok's remote southeastern tip, near Tanjung Ringgit, and owes its color to fragments of red coral mixed into white sand. The clear, calm water suits swimming and snorkeling, and a grassy hill beside the beach gives a wide view. The last stretch of road is rough, and many visitors come instead by boat from Tanjung Luar, stopping on the way at small islands such as Gili Petelu and Pulau Pasir.
- Mawi Beach (beach). Mawi Beach is a bay of white sand framed by green hills on Lombok's south coast, between Selong Belanak and Mawun, a 30- to 45-minute drive west of Kuta; the last 3 km is a rough side road. It is known for its surf: an exposed reef break with an A-frame peak that breaks left and right and can barrel, suited to intermediate and advanced surfers, over a reef that is sharp and shallow at low tide. Strong rip currents make swimming risky, and a few snack shacks and parking sit behind the beach.
- Nipah Beach (beach). Nipah Beach is a quiet bay of white sand backed by coconut palms, a short drive up the coast road north of Senggigi in Malaka village, North Lombok. Fishing boats are pulled up on the shore, and warungs along the beach serve fresh grilled fish and seafood. The water is usually calm and clear for swimming and snorkeling, and the bay is a good place to watch the sunset.
- Mangsit Beach (beach). Mangsit Beach is a long, quiet stretch of sand a few kilometers north of central Senggigi on Lombok's west coast, lined with resort hotels and villas, with fishermen's outrigger boats pulled up on the shore. Its modest waves suit beginner surfers, with boards and lessons offered on the beach, and boats can be hired to snorkel the reef offshore. On clear evenings, the sunset view takes in Bali's Mount Agung across the Lombok Strait.
- Semeti Beach (beach). Semeti Beach is a short, curved strip of white sand next to Mawi Beach on Lombok's south coast, about a 45-minute drive west of Kuta; the last stretch is a rough, rocky road. The main draw lies past the rocky hill at its southern end: volcanic rock split into columns and crystal-like blocks, nicknamed Kryptonite, with rock pools and blowholes that draw photographers. Big waves break over these rocks, and visitors taking photos on the cliffs have been swept into the sea and killed.
- Sira Beach (beach). Sira Beach, also spelled Sire, is a strip of soft white sand several kilometers long that wraps around a cape on Lombok's northwest coast near Tanjung, facing the Gili Islands across the strait, with Mount Rinjani rising inland. The sea is usually calm and the clear water is rich in marine life, good for swimming and snorkeling. An 18-hole golf course, resort hotels and villas share the cape, and local warungs along the beach grill fresh fish.