I first heard of Lombok from an Indonesia colleague about 20 years ago. He told me Lombok is a laidback island that could be even better than Bali, an Indonesian island that is rated regularly as one of the best travel destinations in the world.
I did not take him seriously that time. It was last year that I became interested in Lombok again. That was when my son took up the challenge to scale Mount Rinjani. Mount Rinjani is an active volcano that rises to 3,726 meters, making it the second highest volcano in Indonesia and a magnet for hikers and adventure seekers.
Besides Mount Rinjani, Lombok is famous for its beautiful beaches and has many natural wonders to explore and unique wildlife to see. After some research, I made up my mind that Lombok would be worth a visit and suggested a trip there with my friends who have also not visited Lombok before.
No, we are not doing trekking to Mount Rinjani. We are too physically unfit for that now. Instead, we planned to visit the Gili Islands for some snorkeling, trek to see some waterfalls and spend some time relaxing in a beach resort.
Lombok is less than 3 hours away from Singapore via direct flight using Scoot. Scoot flies to this island only 3 times a week, so we had to work with this constraint to plan a 5D/4N itinerary.
Where we stayed
There are numerous beach resorts in Lombok. We decided to book our stay at the Jeeva Klui Resort, a beach resort located in Senggigi. The resort is set in a spacious tropical garden on Klui Beach, overlooking the sea and the island of Bali in the horizon. Each couple booked a suite room; some with Ocean facing rooms and some with Pool facing views.
Senggigi is about an hour by car from the airport. Located on the north-western part of the island, Senggigi is the best place to stay for those wanting to visit the 3 Gili Islands (Gili Trawangan, Gili Air and Gili Meno) and waterfalls in the northern part of Lombok (near the village of Senaru). It also offers good views of the sunset.
With a draft itinerary in mind, I contacted a local guide named Omar (Mobile: +62 81907623594) to make arrangements for transport and activities for the 8 of us. Omar was very responsive and we agreed on the itinerary and services to be provided at a reasonable price.
The services include the following:
Day 1 – Arrival and travel to Senggigi
We took the morning flight from Singapore, arriving in the late morning. Omar (our guide) and Andie (our driver) picked us up as planned.
On the way to our hotel in Senggigi, we stopped for lunch at Lesehan Taliwang Nada, a restaurant in Mataram that specialises in a local dish called the Ayam Taliwang. Ayam Taliwang is a spicy Indonesian ayam bakar (grilled chicken) dish from Lombok.
Omar then brought us to a beach to see sunset. We had dinner at a beachside restaurant called the Yessy Kitchen.
Trip report: Makan, Massage and Sunset at Senggigi, Lombok.
Day 2 - Day trip to the Gili Islands
After breakfast at the resort, Omar and the driver picked us for a snorkeling trip to the Gili Islands (Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air). Situated only a few kilometres off the northwest coast of Lombok, the Gili Islands is a hugely popular tourist destination.
A day out to these islands by private chartered glass bottom boat was the highlight of my first trip to Lombok.
Trip report: Boat Trip to the Gili Islands of Lombok.
After returning from the boat trip, we had time to shower back at the resort and enjoy evening cocktails by the sea before dinner.
Omar brought us to the Yessy Restaurant which is owned by the same owner as Yessy Kitchen.
Day 3 – Explore Lombok’s waterfalls at Senaru Village
Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep Waterfall are two incredible waterfalls in the north of Lombok. The waterfalls are located in the town of Senaru, about 77 km from our hotel in Senggigi.
We took the chartered van with driver and guide for the day trip to the Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep Waterfalls. It took us about 2 hours to get to Senaru. On the way, we saw plenty of villages, countryside, beaches and padi fields.
We had lunch at the Rinjani Lodge before trekking to the waterfalls. The first waterfall, Sendang Gile, is easily accessible from Rinjani Lodge.
The trek to the Tiu Kelep waterfall was more challenging and interesting. We went through lush tropical jungle, rocky trails and had to cross the shallow river that leads to the Tiu Kelep waterfall.
Tip: bring aqua shoes or hiking sandals if you do not want to wet your hiking shoes.
Trip report: Day trip to Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep Waterfalls from Senggigi.
Day 4 – Free and easy at the Jeeva Klui Resort
This is the day where we made use of the resort’s facilities and chilled by beach.
We gathered as usual for our morning breakfast at the resort’s restaurant. The restaurant serves cooked to order breakfast and we took our time to savour the various items in the menu.
Chilling at the beach next to the resort.
After breakfast, some went to the gym while the rest of us took a stroll on the beach and went for a swim in the resort’s pool.
In the afternoon, we took taxis to the Orchid Spa for massage before returning to chill at the resort again.
We had dinner at the resort’s restaurant. It happened that there was live music at the restaurant on Saturdays. We enjoyed a night of excellent food and live entertainment.
Trip report: Free and Easy at Jeeva Klui Resort in Senggigi, Lombok.
Day 5 – Travel to airport
Our return flight was scheduled for 11 AM. Our guide Jali and driver Andie picked us up from Jeeva Klui Resort as planned.
Overall our first trip to Lombok has been fun and a little too short to fully appreciate what Lombok has to offer.
During our ride to airport, our guide Jali shared other areas in Lombok that are worth visiting for our next trip. This includes the beautiful beaches in the south of the island such as Kuta Beach or Pink Beach, and also the many other small islands (e.g. Gili Asahan, Gili Gede, Gili Nanggu) off the south western coast of Lombok.
I think this travel destination has a lot of potential and worth coming back again. Our guides (Omar and Jali) and driver had been excellent and I would likely engage them again.
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