The start of the Hindu New Year – Nyepi – will be celebrated in Bali on 16 March this year. Nyepi is the traditional “day of silence” when, from sunset on 15 March until sunset on 16 March, people on the island are required to stay inside, make as little noise as possible and avoid all light. To show respect for local customs, visitors are also required to stay within their hotel and avoid light and noise.
For many this is a unique opportunity to witness authentic Balinese-Hindu traditions, but for others it is time to find somewhere else to go to for a few days and Lombok, just 25 minutes east of Bali, has become a popular “Nyepi Escape”.
While Lombok has a large Balinese community and Nyepi is an important local event, unlike in Bali, Lombok does not come to a halt for Nyepi. Being a multi-cultural island made up of many ethnic and religious mixes, Lombok recognises Nyepi as a Hindu holiday, but all the hotels, restaurants and bars operate as usual.
However, everyone loves a celebration and the Ogoh Ogoh parade on the day before Nyepi is a popular tradition in Lombok. In Hindu villages across the island, people are busily constructing huge fantasy monsters to compete against each other in the parade. Early in the afternoon on 15 March, hundreds of participants and spectators will gather along Jalan Pejanggik, (the main street in Mataram, Lombok’s capital city), for the Ogoh Ogoh parade. Join the crowd in Mataram to witness the awesome spectacle of hundreds of giant monsters and other weird and wonderful creations parading through the city! As we say in Lombok: we celebrate the best of Nyepi without the down time!
In the past, transport to Lombok was largely dependent on unreliable flights by domestic airlines such as Merpati. However, things have changed dramatically over the past year and there are now a number of different options for people travelling to Lombok.
Fast boats have become the popular alternative to flights, with many of the boats providing transfers between Bali and Lombok, or the most popular of the Gili Islands: Gili Trawangan. Fast boats generally make the crossing between the two islands in around one and a half hours and the trip itself is enjoyable, with wonderful views and the chance to see the dolphins that often follow the boats across the Lombok Strait. Redline, Gili Cat, Island Getaway and Blue Water Express all have daily services between Lombok and Bali and are the most popular fast boat options.
The number of domestic airlines serving Lombok has also grown, with Merpati Airlines, Trigana Air and Indonesia Air Transport each offering flights every day from Bali’s domestic airport. Flight time is 25 minutes and the fare is only around Rp 300 000 one way. More comfortable for those who dislike small aircraft is the flight with Garuda Airlines every evening. Garuda operates a 737 jet, with 92 economy seats and 16 business class seats, and flight time is around 15 minutes.
Those who haven’t visited Lombok before are often surprised at the range of accommodation options available on this “undeveloped island”. While Lombok is nowhere near as crowded as Bali, the standard and quality of hotels and resorts is certainly as good.
The Oberoi and Tugu Hotels are both luxurious resorts in the north of the island, while the tourism centre of Senggigi has a wide range of options, including quality resorts such as the Sheraton Senggigi Beach Resort and Santosa Villas and Resort, and the popular Qunci Villas and Holiday Resort in Mangsit, just to the north of Senggigi. The south coast resort town of Kuta has a number of places catering to the surfing crowd as well as the architecturally stunning Novotel Resort on the beachfront at Mandalika.
The Gili Islands are a popular escape for the Seminyak crowd, with Gili Trawangan now sporting some of the finest resorts and villas in Lombok. Ko ko mo Resort, Kelapa Villas, and Gili Villas are upmarket villas with private swimming pools, while Hotel Vila Ombak, The Beach House, Scallywags, Pesona Resort and Gili T Resort are some of the best hotels on the island. The middle island of Gili Meno offers a much quieter option for those seeking to escape the crowds and unwind on deserted white sand beaches; while Gili Air provides a balance between the two, with a lot of mid-range accommodation, beachfront cafes and superb snorkelling.
While this article lists some of the more upmarket accommodation choices in all the main tourist centres on Lombok, there are many more options available, from back-packer budget to family oriented hotels to small, boutique hotels. Accommodation prices are generally much cheaper than hotels in Bali.
