Lombok snorkelling mid Jan

Hi. Sorry if this is a regularly asked question... I will be in Lombok mid Jan and would like to go snorkelling with my teens. Basic losmen with mandi ok, and I'm not really after resort ac/tv type accommodation. I did the Gili Trawangan thing in the early eighties, stayed at Pak Majid's and am a bit unsure about going back. Any island suggestions appreciated!

A couple of years ago I would have recommended Sunrise Cottages on Gili Air, which is on the East coast of Gili Air where the best snorkelling is. However, it has become very expensive for what it is. Unfortunately that is a trend on all of the Gilis, especially in high season. Expect to pay double or even triple what you would pay on Lombok for similar accommodation.

I would still recommend Gili Nanggu for a snorkelling trip. The coral there is less damaged than on the 3 famous Gilis. The accommodation is reasonable. It is pretty hard to find cheap losmen style accommodation on any of the Lombok Gilis these days. The only down-side for Gili Nanggu is that there is nothing else there other than the accommodation and nature, so not sure if it would be enough to keep your teens entertained.

Otherwise consider staying on Lombok itself. Somewhere like Santai Beach Inn would suit. Then do day trips to both the famous Gilis and Gili Nanggu. Also you could do a trip up to Senaru to see the waterfalls (If you walk into the second waterfall, about 40 mins, you can swim in the water at the base of the waterfall). You could also do a trip over to Kuta Lombok to experience the beautiful beaches there (some snorkelling, but mostly good for surfing and swimming).

Thanks Freogirl.

Wow! I've just been looking at a lot of the accommodation in Lombok. Not a mandi to be found!!

That's a great idea about basing ourselves on the mainland. That may be the way to go for us!

Flatcanetoad wrote:

Thanks Freogirl.

Wow! I've just been looking at a lot of the accommodation in Lombok. Not a mandi to be found!!

That's a great idea about basing ourselves on the mainland. That may be the way to go for us!

There are still budget places that offer basic fan room and mandi, but less so in tourist areas. And you won't find them on the internet. Plenty around Mataram and Ampenan for example, and pretty cheap too. BUT you are on holiday, so something on the beach is nice. Santai doesn't have hot water (except in a couple of rooms), and the mandi is a large pot of water with a stopper in it. You pull out the stopper and the water is released. They also have a large bucket and chadock in the kamar mandi, so if you prefer that it is available. The bathroom is outside with a western toilet, which I like.

Forgot to say, welcome to Lombok Lovers. With a nic like yours, I'd guess you are from Queensland?

Woops!Not all of Lombok would be advertising on the net - I forgot about that! You're right, a nice losmen on the beaches would be good.

Naaah mate, I'm from Sydney, and I just uploaded my photo then!

Hey Freo... do you know about the volunteering work that's via Bangsal Harbour - it looks very interesting and for a good cause!
http://experiencelombok.weebly.com/

Thanks for your wisdom,
Matt

Freoogirl:

Wants to be free from all the hassles when visiting Lombok?

Then what is the second part for?

Have a fabulous 2011.

Josi

Josi, your unique sense of humour strikes again. I can't tell if you are referring to the volunteer program or some other part of Matt's post, or something I said. It would be lovely to be free of hassles when visiting Lombok, but unfortunately a large family precludes that option
And you're one to talk anyway - not one single trip to Lombok that didn't involve a large amount of time dedicated to improving the life of the local poor children.

Hey Matt, I hadn't heard of Brata Yuda, but thanks for the link. It looks like a great way to experience some real Lombok culture. My husband has quite a lot of family near that area (a little further north around Gondang). Getting to spend some time with locals in a setting like that would be a very memorable experience, and well worth doing.

I have always thought I would love to get some of the teens I know here in Australia and have them spend a week at my sister-in-law's house on the slopes of Rinjani - living and working with them. I'm quite sure it would open their eyes to the world and perhaps be a life changing experience.

I say go for it!

(p.s. not too many cane toads around Sydney I thought, flat or otherwise... horrible things)

Karen,

I was just thinking aloud about how you picked "Freogirl" as your nick.

Downunder folks can get to your destination of choice without too much hassle. My Niece and family spent last 24 hours at New York Kennedy airport and just got on their flight. It was all because of a blizzard that dumped more than 25 cm of snow.

We are closely watching the situation at London Heathrow which was paralysed few days ago. We will be going through that airport on Friday en route Chennai, India.

I wish I can speed forward the next 11 months for my trip to Lombok. The 85*F Lombok weather seems lot more preferable than today's wind chill index of -2*C here.

Everytime I visit Bali and Lombok, I am meeting more and more Aussies and discovering you live in a large continent.

Happy New Year

Josi

Josi wrote:

Downunder folks can get to your destination of choice without too much hassle. Josi

That depends Josi. In the last few weeks various parts of the country have been declared disaster zones with flooding, and cyclones or tropical lows have hit on both the east and west coasts. If you live in Carnarvon (Tropic of Capricorn, west coast) you would have had a miserable Christmas as the town is devastated after receiving the entire annual rainfall in 24 hours. Food is being air-dropped. No flights out or in. Or cars. Or trucks.

Those north of Carnarvon couldn't get south to fly out because the roads are cut. There are small domestic airports north of Carnarvon, and even some international flights to Bali from Port Hedland, but no other international flights, or flights across country (except the private mining company flights). Same goes for Queensland, roads are currently cut between Cairns and Townsville. Northern NSW have been hit by floods for the nth time in the last couple of years. In the remainder of Western Australia we are experiencing our worse drought for 10 years, doesn't affect airports, but just mentioning to highlight the differences.

Yes, Australia is big. Perth is located on the southwest corner of Australia, yet it is closer to Bali & Lombok than our new member living 3300kms (2050 miles) East in Sydney. The distance between the two cities is just a bit shorter than LA to New York, which I believe is around 2400 miles.

Being positioned where we are, and not having a large amount of elevated country, we don't have any major population centres in the places that snow. So in our winter, snow does not affect flights, except maybe in Hobart - but you would have to have the extreme conditions being experienced in the northern hemisphere for that to happen.

My nic comes from living in Fremantle, a place also known as Freo.

Matt, apologies for the off-topic convo

Really feel for all the people in Oz at present with the Carnarvon thing; also the North Qld and now NSW!!!! Have friends in all three!