Bali is Indonesia’s tourism golden child, with the popular holiday hotspot attracting seekers of an ‘eat, pray, love’ spiritual experience at the island of the Gods to a sweaty party of cheap Bintangs and pirate DVDs (Does anyone even have a DVD player anymore? I don’t think so because those shops are few and far between now).
While Bali has come a long way over the last few decades, with new haunts and trends transforming it into a place where you can have almost any style of holiday you want, many long for the nostalgic “back in my day” experiences told about Bali before it was home to Instagram’s digital nomads with floating breakfasts #livingmybestlife.
Cue, Lombok! The island is directly east of Bali and the tourism industry there is only just getting started, giving it that feel of an undeveloped holiday island where in some areas it’s just you, the sun, waves and nasi goreng. My ideal place! I shot a three-part travel series there on my last trip so keep scrolling down to see it for yourself.
I’ve been to Lombok many times now and really love the relaxed vibe of this neighbouring island where it’s common to see cows walking the streets and perfect coconut palm tree photo locations without a single person around!
The first time I went there I stayed in a resort in Kuta Lombok on the south coast (it was a chain hotel that had managed to retain a wonderful local vibe at the heart of it) and visited the popular tourist spot Senggigi on the north west coast.
Since then, there are many more places opening up offering the chance to get off the beaten track and discover authentic Indonesian culture and beautiful landscapes.
Kuta Lombok beach is better than Bali
Kuta Lombok is quickly being developed so I’d recommend getting there sooner than later. There is still a rustic vibe there with bamboo huts selling local wares and a few of the same Bali souvenirs and beaches lined with local fishing boats or no one at all.
In this first episode, I explored the beach town of Kuta Lombok and visited traditional Sasak villages where you can see local women weaving and visit people living in mud houses.
The secret Gili islands of Lombok
If you’ve been following my content for a while, you’ll know I LOVE the Gili islands. Gili actually means ‘small island’ so saying ‘Gili islands’ is a bit of an overkill, just Gilis is fine, but I’ll go with what the cool kids say.
The popular Gilis most people know are Gili Trawangan, Gili Air and Gili Meno, the three north west islands easily accessible from Bali. But I’d always heard about the ‘secret’ gilis all around Lombok that hardly anyone visits, just because they’re not advertised as much and it takes a little more than a sweaty ferry ride from Bali.
So I finally had the chance to go there to shoot this series. I travelled to Sekotong on the south west tip of Lombok which is a perfect base to visit the next main cluster of gilis.
You can hire a private boat driver through your accomodation for IDR 350,000 for the day to go on an island tour so if you meet a few other travellers to share the ride, this can be crazy cheap! Nowhere in Bali could you get a private boat for anywhere near that price!
Trying local Indonesian food in Lombok
The incredible thing about Indonesia is that every island has its own signature dishes and they all have their own recipes for the famous spicy sambal.
I’ve always loved the local food at Gili Trawangan so I was excited to try the food on the mainland so the capital city Mataram was the perfect place to try the local street food from little warungs with fluorescent lights.
One of my Instagram friends Julia, who I’d met briefly once on holiday in Gili Trawangan and had kept in touch every now and then on Instagram and WhatsApp, offered to show me around her home city Mataram.
She picked me up on her scooter and handed me a helmet. We were off! The back of her black headscarf flapping in the breeze like a black cape as we darted through the busy city streets that she navigating with ease.
First we went for bakso which is a noodle soup. Julia helped me order a vegetarian version because this normally comes with meatballs!
Then it was time to check out the local mall. Unlike in Australia, the shops are open really late! So after dinner we went to the biggest shopping centre in Mataram city.
Now these moments are the ones I treasure most from my travels. Just talking about our different cultures and the similarities. We’re both trying to learn each other’s language so we refined our skills and practiced some tricky pronunciations!
Lombok’s tourism drive
The Indonesian government is working hard to boost the profile of Lombok as the next biggest tourism destination. The Ministry of Tourism has partnered with Air Asia to offer cheap flights from Perth, Australia (my home city) in an attempt to divert a few from the hordes of tourists who flock to Bali each year to try out the island next door.
There is so much authentic culture to experience and plenty of local dishes to try for as little as 30 cents a pop!
The Lombok culture is different to the Hindu island of Bali. In Lombok, the main religion is Islam (like the rest of Indonesia) and in Lombok there are thousands of beautifully tiled mosques.
The Islamic Centre offers tours inside but you can visit most mosques if you’re appropriately dressed (covered up and wearing a headscarf), although if you’re not Muslim I’d recommend asking a local to take you to make sure you’re following the correct protocol, like washing your feet and arms before entering and going in separate areas for men and women.
But if you prefer to stick to the beach holiday vibe with a cocktail in hand, there are plenty of hidden beaches and lush resorts calling your name. Just get in quick if you want to enjoy it without the crowds because this place will surely take off soon.
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