The locals say Nusa Lembongan is what Bali was 20 years ago: laid back, quiet, and full of natural beauty. This small 8km*2 island has enough places to explore, delicious restaurants, and beautiful beaches. It’s a perfect combination of Bali and the Gili islands. 30 minutes boat ride from Sanur (Bali) to Nusa Lembongan. The ride isn’t very long but can be bumpy, read more about the boat rides here.
We have compiled a list of things to do on these lovely islands. Note: we didn’t go to Nusa Penida due to lack of time but we hear amazing things about it and will visit it next time we are in Indonesia.
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Snorkeling/diving
Bali, Gili islands, and Nusa islands have some of the best sites to see the colorful world underwater. It’s also fairly inexpensive compared to the rest of the world so take advantage of that! Off Nusa Lembongan you can go diving at some Manta Ray sites. Mushroom beach is a good place to go to get more information.
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Scooter around the islands.
It’s about $8 a day to rent the scooter. Heads up: the roads aren’t that great (lots of pot holes and loose gravel) so be cautious going around. Nusa Lembongan is connected to Nusa Cenigan with a yellow walking/scooter bridge. It has been rebuilt since it’s tragic collapse in October 2016. We loved exploring the islands, stopping at delicious cafes, and discovering Instagram worthy sites/beautiful vistas. Our hotel had scooters to rent but we saw places around the islands where you can rent them if your hotel doesn’t offer a rental service.
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Sunbath/relax/read at the beach clubs
One of our favorite things to do was go to the beach clubs to relax, sun bathe and take in the natural beauty around us. We absolutely loved the Sandy Bay Beach Club. It was situated in a cove overlooking the ocean which would crash on the cliffs surrounding the cove. We couldn’t believe how beautiful it was! The food was delicious here, the service was top notch and the beautiful decor was a nice touch. You can lounge on their chairs or sand bags and swim in their pool for free. We kept saying this place looks like it could belong on the coast of California. Tip: you can’t swim in the ocean here due to the sharp coral but there is a little natural pool on the south side of the beach where you can “swim” in.
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Visit Devil’s Tear
The cliffs create a tear shape cove, so when the waves come crashing in, the water splashes up sometimes creating a rainbow. It’s so beautiful! A must visit when on Lembongan.
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Visit the Blue Lagoon
Some of the bluest water we’ve seen surrounded by beautiful cliffs. This is on Nusa Cenigan. There is an official cliff to jump of near here if you are looking for some thrills! (50 feet high!)
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Zip lining on Nusa Cenigan
One of the resorts has a zip-line that zips over the cove. I (Liana) didn’t do it because I’m a wuss but Alex did and he said it was really cool.
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Check of out seaweed farms
On the south coast of Lembongan you can see the seaweed farms in the water. We’ve never seen them before so it was really cool to see how they do it.
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Try out the yummy natural cafes
Lembongan and Cenigan have some really delicious cafes that we kept going back to. Check out our favorites in the list below.
The Nusa islands were our favorite from our trip to Indonesia. We hope they stay the same for when we come back. We doubt it though, there is a lot of construction going on so go there before it gets too busy!
Where to stay:
Stay on the west side of the island. You’ll be able to catch the sunset and it has more things to do. Even though the island is small, it’s good to stay where it’s populated a little bit more than the other sides.
Where to eat:
Lembongan
The Deck- beautiful setting with good food
Tigerlilys- this was our favorite! Super cute place with delicious food
Bali Eco Deli-really cool place with yummy food. Can get busy due to the best WiFi on the island
Sandy Bay Beach Club- we had breakfast, lunch, and dinner here and it was all good! You need reservations for dinner
Nicks Place- we didn’t have a chance to eat here but we hear they have amazing ribs
Blue Corner Bar- cool spot to watch the sunset
Cenigan
Le Pirate Beach Club- cute place for food and lounging
Next Level Cafe- delicious food with cool views of the seaweed farms
To learn more about the travelers, click here.
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