The Party Island - Gili Trawangan

Tripoto
24th Jul 2019
Photo of The Party Island - Gili Trawangan by Offbeat Voyagers

The time had finally arrived to get off the island of Bali and explore the neighboring beauties. The islands in question were: Gili Trawangan, Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida. Having heard a lot of them and being completely mesmerized by the photos, we began our island hopping journey.

Day 1

After spending an amazing night at Villa Kami in Candidasa, we were ready to leave for Padang Bai port to catch our boat to Gili Trawangan. The caretaker of the villa turned out to be a very resourceful man who hooked us up with boat tickets from Padang Bai to Gili Trawangan, Gili Trawangan to Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Lembongan to Padang Bai. These tickets were not cheap as they costed us IDR 1 million which we had to pay in cash at Padang Bai at the Eka Jaya's counter. Since we were unaware of the payment mode, we lost time in finding an ATM and in turn lost the boat that was scheduled at 9:15 AM. Due to this, we had to book tickets on the next boat which costed us IDR 50,000 per person more but since we had further plans which could not be delayed, we payed it. The next boat was scheduled at 11 AM which we got into and were on our way to Gili Trawangan. The boat has an air conditioned seating area where most of the passengers sit and the other seating area is on the top deck where it gets very hot and sunny. One thing to remember is that it gets very cold inside the boat and it is strongly advised to carry a sweater for the journey which roughly takes 2 hours.

Gili Mansion

Photo of Padang Bai, Karangasem Regency, Bali, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

The Party Schedule

Photo of Padang Bai, Karangasem Regency, Bali, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

We got to Gili Trawangan by 1 PM and rushed to Gili Mansion, our accommodation for the night. Since the island is small, we walked to the hostel, checked in and dropped our bags. The next thing on our itinerary was the Jiggy Boat Party hence we quickly changed and headed to the assembly point of the boat party which was in front of Jiggy Bar. On getting to the spot, we were handed bands after we checked in and were informed that the boat would take some time so we could wander around until then. We had been hungry for quite a while and decided to try the local food being sold by the street vendor right in front of the place. The meal consisted of Rice, Boiled eggs and some local curry and costed us IDR 25,00 which was well worth the money. Post that we went to the swings in front the bar and relived some childhood memories.

Never did a swing provide such a view

Photo of Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

The boarding for the boat party finally started at 2:45 PM from the harbor. We were taken on a small boat towards the boat where the party was going to be held. After getting there, we went and got ourselves a table which can be obtained on a first come first serve basis. As soon as the boat set sail, the drinks menu was passed around and unsurprisingly they were overpriced. The music had already started and people started hitting the dance floor which was enough for us to do the same. After dancing for quite a while, free shots were announced for everyone on the dance floor which is when everybody got there. The shots were poured directly into our mouths after which we got back to dancing and interacting with other people. Around 2 hours and a few shots later, the boat came to a halt near Lombok which was the swimming spot. People started jumping off the first floor of the boat as well as the deck. There were life jackets provided in case anyone needed it. The dives were supervised so that no one got injured. After swimming for around half an hour, the boat turned back and started sailing towards Gili Trawangan. The journey was a mesmerizing one as we were sailing towards the sunset with beautiful hues in the sky. By the time the sun went down, most of the people were tired and retired to the nets in the front of the boat. At 8 PM we got back close to Gili Trawangan and were transferred onto the shuttle boat and headed back to the harbor.

Sailing has never been better

Photo of Jiggy Boat Party I Jiggy Bar I Jiggy Island, Jalan Pantai Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Some parties are just better

Photo of Jiggy Boat Party I Jiggy Bar I Jiggy Island, Jalan Pantai Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Swimming wasn’t everyone's cup of tea

Photo of Jiggy Boat Party I Jiggy Bar I Jiggy Island, Jalan Pantai Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Mesmerizing Sunset

Photo of Jiggy Boat Party I Jiggy Bar I Jiggy Island, Jalan Pantai Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

The Relaxing Nets

Photo of Jiggy Boat Party I Jiggy Bar I Jiggy Island, Jalan Pantai Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Since we were a part of the party, we were entitled to a free shot at Jiggy Bar which we obviously utilized. In order to find dinner, we started wandering around on the streets and came across many street vendors selling local food including Chicken Satay and Nasi Goreng. We enjoyed most of these delicacies and started scouting for potential boats to take us to the famous spots the next day. A few enquiries later we settled for IDR 600,000 for a boat to take us around. Post that we headed to the beach which had chairs set up by restaurants which were closed for the day. We lay there staring at the night sky, enjoying the stars. After spending quite a while stargazing, we walked back to the hostel which had gotten silent by then as it was 1 AM. On arriving there, we again felt the need to eat and left for Le Petite Gili which is open 24X7. Having heard a lot about the restaurant, we had high hopes and were blown away by the food. Having filled our stomachs we started walking back to the hostel and found a crepe vendor by the street and stopped by for a crepe which again was finger licking good. Finally after a short 10 minute walk, we got back to the hostel and passed out since we had things planned for the next day.

Motivation for Diving

Photo of Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Random Installations by the sea

Photo of Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers
Day 2

The next morning we woke up and headed to the harbor to board our boat to visit the famous points around Gili Trawangan. We started off with the corals near Gili Meno which are a home to a large number of fishes. After swimming for a while, we got back onto the boat and started moving towards the famous statues called Nest which are located close to the coral reefs. The 48 human like statues are arranged in a circular formation to represent the circle of life. Since there were currents when we were there, the boat dropped us a little away from the statues and the currents carried us to the statues. The problem with this though was that staying near the statues took quite a lot of effort. In order to get a closer look at the statues you will need to dive in as the statues are about 4 meters deep. This should not be a problem if you are a seasoned swimmer.

NOTE: The boat will have snorkeling equipment so won’t have to pay for it. If you choose to use the life jacket, you won't be provided with the fins.

Onboard Equipment

Photo of Gili Meno, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

The Nest

Photo of Gili Meno, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Casually floating around

Photo of Gili Meno, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

Swimming beside turtles was a whole new experience

Photo of Gili Meno, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

The boat did have a glass bottom

Photo of Gili Meno, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers

After spending some time around the statues, we moved to the next point to watch turtles which was near Gili Trawangan. The guys on the boat spotted turtles for us and we swam towards them to get a closer look which was quite some effort. We swam beside the turtles for a while before heading back to the boat. Once back on the boat, we started moving towards the harbor and got off there. Post that we went to the hostel and freshened up as we had to catch the boat to Nusa Lembongan at 12 PM. We got to the harbor by 11:50 AM, visited the Eka Jaya office which is right across the street and got our boarding passes. The boat arrived at 12:30 PM and we were on our way to the other islands on our list.

The pristine water made it hard to say goodbye

Photo of Gili Trawangan, Gili Indah, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia by Offbeat Voyagers