Turquoise lagoons and coral island bliss
Picture yourself on pristine white sand, the turquoise water stretching to the horizon, a gentle breeze keeping you cool. Indonesia's beaches are waiting to deliver the ultimate sun-soaked holiday. Dive in, relax, and let the ocean wash your worries away.
Discover the wonders of Indonesia, a captivating destination that offers unique experiences, rich culture, and memorable adventures. Whether you're seeking relaxation, adventure, or cultural immersion, Indonesia promises to exceed your expectations with its warm hospitality and stunning scenery.
7 nights in Indonesia — day by day, fact-checked
Land at Lombok International Airport, clear immigration, and take your included road-and-boat transfer to the beach villa, settling before dark.
Clear immigration with your Visa on Arrival and pre-filled All Indonesia card ready. Your package transfer runs by road to the harbour, then a short speedboat to the island. The airport-to-Gili leg is roughly two hours door to door, so check your arrival time and aim to reach the villa in daylight.
Lombok International Airport (LOP) at Praya is the arrival hub; your package handles the road-and-boat transfer. The airport-to-Gili leg is roughly two hours door to door, so it is not a quick hop.
Complete the free All Indonesia arrival card online or via the app within 72 hours of arrival; do it before you fly.
The 30-day Visa on Arrival costs 500,000 Indonesian rupiah, single-entry, payable in cash or by card at the airport, so you need not carry the full fee in rupiah before landing.
Draw and carry rupiah cash here on the mainland; the Gili Islands have few, unreliable ATMs and many warungs are cash-only.
On the mainland the sun sets at roughly 18:15 in August. Reaching your villa before then makes the first boat leg and unpacking far easier.
Do not accept a lift from someone claiming to be an app driver outside arrivals; use your package transfer or a registered firm such as Bluebird, Silverbird or Express and check the driver's identity.
Change money only at licensed exchanges showing a Bank of Indonesia logo and a QR code, and never call a help number stuck on an ATM.
Your first full day on the car-free island: a loop by bicycle, calm-water snorkelling with the included gear, and the west-side sunset.
After the villa breakfast, put the included snorkelling gear to use in the calm morning water, when visibility is best. Gili Trawangan sits in a marine conservation area with snorkelling at Turtle Point, Coral Garden and Shark Point, and green turtles among the reef fish. Enter from the beach and keep off the coral.
Snorkelling with sea turtles is a headline activity here; check with your hotel for the best current spots to find them.
Bring the included mask and fins, reef-safe sun cover and rupiah cash for a beach warung; card acceptance is patchy outside villas and dive shops.
A full loop of the island takes about an hour by bicycle, the main wheeled transport for visitors, so a bike is the easy way to reach the quieter snorkel entries.
Do not stand on or touch the coral to rest; this is a marine conservation area and the reef is the reason the turtles are here.
Named snorkel spots off Gili Trawangan within the marine conservation area, reached on foot or by bicycle with your included gear.
Ride or walk to the west side, the classic sunset spot, where the beach bars face the sun setting behind Bali's Mount Agung. For a wider view, the hill at the southern end is about a thirty-minute walk. On the mainland the sun sets at roughly 18:15 in August, so time your ride for the hour before.
Sunsets are best from the west side of the island, with the sun setting behind Bali's Mount Agung, and from the hill at the southern end, about a thirty-minute walk.
In August the sun sets at roughly 18:15 with about 11 hours 50 minutes of daylight; plan the west-side ride for the hour beforehand.
Beachwear is normal on the Gilis, but cover up when you walk back through the village or into shops.
Scallywags on the southern shoreline is cashless and takes cards with no surcharge, a useful exception where most small operators are cash-only.
On the nightlife strip, watch your drink being prepared and do not leave it unattended; the FCDO warns of drink spiking, and reported assault cases in Lombok are high.
A beachfront restaurant directly on the sand at Pearl of Trawangan, with tapas, cocktails and an on-site bakery, facing the water toward Lombok's Mount Rinjani.
A southern-shoreline spot with a nightly beachside seafood barbecue and Mount Rinjani views, and it is cashless with no card surcharge.
A slower island day built around the water: a guided dive course with a credentialed operator, or more snorkelling with the included gear.
If you want to dive, book direct with a credentialed operator rather than an unnamed beach boat. Blue Marlin Dive, the original Gili dive centre and PADI five-star, runs from Trawangan, Meno, Air and Senggigi. If not diving, the included gear covers another calm morning of snorkelling from the beach.
Dive courses here are direct-booked with the dive shop by contact form, WhatsApp or email; no online travel agent is needed.
For any dive, check the operator's credentials and confirm safety equipment, particularly oxygen, is on the boat; the FCDO notes dive-school standards are not always as high as in the UK.
Dive prices exclude Marine Park fees, and the Gilis are cash-scarce, so carry rupiah cash for fees and extras.
A PADI Open Water course runs 6,900,000 rupiah at the Gili Meno centre and 6,400,000 rupiah at the Lombok Senggigi centre; the Trawangan centre's Open Water price shows as unavailable, so confirm before booking there.
Do not book a cut-price course from an unnamed touting boat over a credentialed centre; the saving is not worth an operator with no verifiable safety record.
The original Gili Islands dive centre, a PADI five-star operating on Trawangan, Meno, Air and Senggigi, with published course prices and a live multi-location booking site.
The island is tiny, about three kilometres by two, and fully walkable and cyclable, so you rarely need the cidomo horse-carts. Horse welfare on the Gilis has long been a concern, some animals well kept and others overworked. If you use one, check the horse for visible ribs, sores or lameness first, or simply walk.
Get around on foot, by bicycle or by cidomo horse-drawn cart only; there is no motorised transport on the island.
You can skip the cidomo entirely: at roughly three kilometres by two, Trawangan is small enough to walk or cycle everywhere.
Bicycles are the main visitor transport and a full island loop takes about an hour; a day's rental is a small cash cost.
Do not hire a cidomo without checking the horse's condition first; welfare varies and the Gili Eco Trust runs programmes because some horses are overworked or underfed.
A boat hop to Gili Air, the closest island to the mainland and calmer than Trawangan, for a slow beach day and a west-facing sunset lunch.
Your included boat transfer links the islands on short wooden-boat hops. Gili Air is the closest of the three to the mainland and quieter than Trawangan, still car-free. Snorkel the shallows with the included gear, cycle the lanes, and keep to walking or bicycle as on every Gili.
The three Gilis are linked by traditional wooden boats on short five-to-ten-minute hops; your package covers the transfers, so you are not self-arranging them.
Bring the included snorkel gear and rupiah cash; Gili Air, like the others, is cash-heavy with few ATMs.
Gili Air is car-free like its neighbours, so get around on foot, by bicycle or by cidomo, and no Grab or Gojek operates here.
Do not expect a ride-hailing app to work on the island; Grab and Gojek run only on the Lombok mainland, not on the car-free Gilis.
Gili Air's west beach faces the sunset. Mowie's, the island's well-known west-facing spot, serves fresh fish, wood-fired pizza, poke bowls and long lunches, with breakfast running all morning. It is open year-round. Time a slow lunch there before an afternoon in the water.
Mowie's is on Gili Air's west beach, the island's sunset side, and its own site states it is open year-round.
Snorkel in the calm morning or midday water when visibility is best, as on Trawangan.
Mowie's runs breakfast all morning and describes long lunches, so it works as a slow midday base on the west beach.
Do not rely on card payment across Gili Air; card acceptance is patchy outside the larger venues, so carry cash.
Gili Air's well-known west-facing beach restaurant, open year-round, with fresh fish, wood-fired pizza, poke bowls and all-morning breakfast.
A boat and road trip to the mainland for the Senggigi coast and, near Mataram, the island's signature grilled chicken.
On the mainland, use Grab, Gojek or a registered taxi firm; do not self-drive or hire a scooter. Mataram, the main town, is the home of ayam taliwang, chilli-rubbed char-grilled chicken, eaten with plecing kangkung water spinach. The tourism board names long-standing eateries for it in Cakranegara and Pejanggik.
On the mainland use Grab, Gojek or a registered taxi firm such as Bluebird, Silverbird or Express, and check the driver's identity; the Senggigi and Mataram area is a road journey from the coast.
Cards work more widely on the mainland than on the Gilis, but keep rupiah cash for warungs and small eateries.
Ayam taliwang is the island's signature dish, char-grilled with a chilli, shallot, garlic and palm-sugar paste; its usual partner is plecing kangkung, blanched water spinach with Lombok sambal.
Do not rent a scooter to get around Lombok; the FCDO reports a large increase in moped and motorbike accidents, some fatal.
A long-standing ayam taliwang eatery in Mataram named by the Indonesian tourism board for the island's signature grilled chicken.
An established Mataram ayam taliwang restaurant listed by the official tourism board.
The mainland's headline local food, char-grilled chicken with a chilli-shallot-palm-sugar paste, eaten across Mataram; cash-only, walk-in.
Senggigi and neighbouring Mangsit sit on the northwest coast, a road journey from the airport and the Gili harbours. Cover your shoulders and knees away from the beach here, as this is conservative mainland Lombok. Qunci Villas at Mangsit has several dining venues; Square in Senggigi does Indonesian and Western food.
On the mainland dress modestly away from the beach and cover shoulders, elbows and knees at mosques and villages; there are no fines, but immodest dress causes offence and may mean being turned away from a religious site.
Calls to prayer punctuate the day on the mainland; if you travel during Ramadan, many daytime eateries close or are subdued.
Qunci Villas at Mangsit Beach names four dining venues on its site, including an Italian trattoria and sunset bar; confirm whether outlets take non-resident walk-ins.
Do not treat Senggigi like the Gilis for dress; it is conservative mainland Lombok, so cover up away from the sand.
A Mangsit Beach resort with four named dining venues on its official site, from an Indonesian-Asian kitchen to an Italian trattoria and a beachfront cocktail bar.
A casual-and-fine-dining Senggigi venue serving Indonesian favourites alongside Western dishes, with an extensive wine and cocktail list.
The south coast near the airport: a Sasak weaving village, then Kuta Lombok's clifftop and evening dining.
On the airport-to-Kuta corridor in south-central Lombok, Sade and Ende are trading traditional Sasak weaving villages, a genuine cultural half-day. Dress modestly and remove your shoes in homes. Any guide donation is informal and not fixed, so agree the amount at the start of the visit, not the end.
Sade and Ende sit on the LOP-to-Kuta corridor in south-central Lombok, near the airport; reach them by Grab, Gojek or a registered taxi firm.
Dress modestly, cover shoulders and knees, and remove your shoes when entering homes.
Guide donations and fees at the village are informal and not fixed; clarify any amount at the start of the visit.
These are working weaving villages, so buying a length of cloth directly supports the household and is the natural way to thank a guide.
Do not leave the guide payment open to the end; amounts are informal, so agreeing the figure up front avoids an awkward exit.
Trading traditional Sasak weaving villages on the airport-to-Kuta corridor, a genuine cultural half-day near the south coast.
Kuta Lombok on the south coast is a short drive from the airport. Ashtari, on a hillside about three kilometres west, is a slow-food restaurant with south-coast views. In the centre, El Bazar serves Mediterranean food from 16:00, a dinner-only room, with the kitchen closing at 22:30 and walk-ins welcome.
El Bazar is open daily 16:00 to 23:00 with the kitchen closing at 22:30; table reservations are taken until 17:00 and walk-ins welcome anytime.
El Bazar is a dinner-only evening venue, not an all-day lunch spot; plan it for the evening.
Ashtari sits on a hillside roughly three kilometres west of Kuta with panoramic south-coast views and a slow-food kitchen; it doubles as a yoga and wellness venue.
Do not turn up at El Bazar for lunch; it opens at 16:00, so it only works as a dinner plan.
A central Kuta Lombok Mediterranean room serving Spanish and Moroccan dishes, from grilled octopus to Sumbawa prawns, with clear published hours.
A hillside slow-food restaurant west of Kuta with panoramic south-coast views, locally sourced seasonal cooking and an attached yoga loft.
A free day: more time in the water with the included gear, or an optional mainland trip weighed against its season and distance.
Spend a last calm morning snorkelling from the beach with the included gear, or take a bigger mainland trip. Note the seasons: Mount Rinjani trekking is closed 1 January to 31 March each year and reopens 1 April, and a trek is a multi-day expedition needing an official e-Rinjani permit and a compulsory licensed guide.
Mount Rinjani National Park trekking is closed every year from 1 January to 31 March for rainy-season safety and reopens on 1 April, so a trek is impossible in that window.
A licensed guide is compulsory on Rinjani; all foreign hikers must trek with a licensed guide and a registered operator, and every trekker needs an official e-Rinjani QR-code permit booked through that system, not a generic travel agent.
The Rinjani foreign-visitor park entrance permit is 250,000 rupiah per person per day; this is the park permit only, not the guided-trek package price.
Rinjani runs a strict daily quota via the e-Rinjani system, and in the July and August peak permits sell out weeks ahead, so do not assume a same-week slot; book early.
A Rinjani trek is typically a two-to-five-day expedition with overnight camping, though shorter one-day treks are also offered, and licensed operators include private pick-up from the airport, Senggigi and Kuta.
Do not try to trek Rinjani independently; solo foreign trekking is not permitted, so a licensed guide and e-Rinjani permit are non-negotiable.
A locally-owned, licensed Rinjani trekking operator based in Senaru since 2011, with published trek packages and airport, Senggigi and Kuta pick-up included.
For a non-trek mainland option, the Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep waterfalls at Senaru sit in the Rinjani Geopark. Pink Beach in the far south is a full-day trip, remote from the villa bases with a rough final road. Weigh either against the distance before committing an afternoon.
Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep waterfalls are at Senaru on the north Rinjani side; Pink Beach (Pantai Tangsi) is in the far southeast of Lombok, a full-day excursion with a rough, unpaved final stretch of road.
At the waterfalls, expect touts pushing paid local guides at the entrance; agree any guide fee before you set off, as amounts are reported inconsistently.
The Senaru waterfalls are a viable half-day option in the January-to-March window when a Rinjani trek is impossible, as they sit in the Geopark rather than on a closed trail.
Do not treat Pink Beach as a quick stop; it is remote from the villa bases and a full day out, not a detour.
Trading natural attractions at Senaru within the Rinjani Geopark, a viable non-trek option including in the Rinjani closure window.
A pink-sand cove in the far southeast, best reached on a boat trip that also takes in nearby snorkel spots.
Your included transfer runs from the island back to Lombok International Airport, timed around your return flight home.
Your package transfer runs by speedboat and road back to Lombok International Airport. Count back from your departure and allow generously for the roughly two-hour island-to-airport journey. Settle any villa bills in rupiah, keep small notes for final tips, and carry your passport as always.
The island-to-airport journey is roughly two hours by boat and road; your package handles it, so count back generously from your departure.
Settle final bills in rupiah and keep small notes for tips; break any large notes before you leave the island, where cash is king and ATMs are scarce.
You must always carry your passport in Indonesia, so keep it accessible for the transfer and airport, not packed in the hold bag.
Do not carry any cannabis or CBD product in any form through the airport; Indonesia has a zero-tolerance policy with long prison sentences or the death penalty.
Practical details verified 23 July 2026. Prices and opening hours change — we re-check them monthly, but confirm anything critical before you travel.
Real-time hotel prices for Gili Trawangan and Lombok (Senggigi). Upgrades are shown over each location's included hotel.
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