Gili Trawangan : The Perfect Escape

Gili Trawangan (Terawangan), or simply Gili T, is the largest and most visited of the three Gili Islands off Lombok.

This is the largest of the three Gili Islands with an estimated permanent population of about 800.

Trawangan was the first of the three islands to attract visitors in any numbers, and it was backpackers who led the way. In the 1990s the island developed a reputation as a wild party destination with cheap accommodation, no police, plentiful weed and mushrooms, and readily available harder drugs. Whilst that is still partially the case, Trawangan has matured into a destination that has a far wider appeal.

The thriving dive industry of the Gili Islands is centred here (although some operators have outposts on the other two islands), and since about 2005, the island has gone through a massive development boom, and a number of upscale sleeping, eating and drinking establishments have opened. Any visitor to Trawangan should be prepared for a real mish-mash of fellow travellers; some will be ensconced in US$400 per night, unashamedly Bali-style villas, while others would be quite happy to kip on the beach after a tough day on the mushies.

Gili Trawangan is the centre of a thriving dive industry for the Gili Islands. All of the operators have their main dive shops located here. There are about a dozen active dive sites, and all of the shops run a regularly rotating program of daily fun dives to one of more of these.

Fun dives, muckdiving, technical diving and wreck dives are a staple and Gili Trawangan is well known as a world class teaching centre. The operators are very professional, the warm waters offering a wide range of easy to challenging dive sites (including some with fairly strong currents), and the visibility usually good. Gili T makes for an ideal teaching environment, whether you are a first timer, or a diver looking to extend your qualifications.

Freedive Gili is located close to the harbour on Gili Trawangan, and offers freedive and apnea (breath holding) courses for beginners to advanced. It is the only freedive centre in the region and is owned and operated by British freedive record holder Mike Board.

Gili Yoga center shares an office with Freedive Gili and boasts its very own Yoga pavillion. Daily Yoga classes are given in the warm open air, surrounded by a tropical garden and the sounds of nature. Gili yoga offer services including: Daily meditation and pranayama, twice daily yoga practice, luxury accommodation, group activities (snorkeling, sunset boat ride) and gourmet vegetarian food.

Snorkelling

The easiest spot to find some productive snorkelling is off the main beach, north of the boat landing. Enter the water approximately in front of the Almarik hotel. If you start north of the beach (about where you can see seaweeds growing at low tide roughly level with Gili Meno's northern extent), and go with the current back towards to the most crowded sunbathing area, you will likely need to kick only when you want to stop to look at something. The healthy corals are around the area where the wall drops off and the deeper water begins. Nearer the shore you will find only dead coral. Turtles can be seen often, and also the occasional trigger fish amongst the more common reef inhabitants. At low tide it is difficult to get in without reef shoes. Always watch out for potential waves that can push you into the coral that are just below water level.

A better coral reef is off the northwest coast, but you have to be very keen to go through the hardship of getting out there. The only access to the reef involves walking over a substantial area of dead, sharp coral, and back again when you have finished. If you are a keen snorkeller the effort is worth it, and you are very likely to have the waters to yourself.

Small, purple jellyfish are sometimes plentiful around the island, and they seem to love stinging snorkellers. The reaction is one of considerable irritation, but the stings cause no serious harm.

Boat Trips

There are a few companies based on Gili Trawangan that offer boat trips to the surrounding islands of Lombok, Sumbawa and to Komodo.

Blue Water Cruises are based just north of the harbour and run trips around the 3 Gilis, to Lombok and Komodo.

South Sea Nomads South Sea Nomads have 2 bases on Gili T, one at Gili Hostel and another at Manta Dive. They offer Sunset Party Boats around the 3 Gilis, 2 night trips to Sekotong and Desert Point for island hopping, snorkelling, diving and surfing Lomboks most famous break, Desert Point. They also run a 5 night trip to Moyo and Satonda where they visit waterfalls, a sunken volcano, caves, a crater lake, deserted beaches and uninhabited islands, stunning reefs and a WW2 wreck. Their boat is also available for private sunset charters and private day charters around the 3 Gilis for groups of up to 30 people.

Perama are based near the art market on the main beach road. They offer trips all around Indonesia as well as trips from Bali to the Gilis and Komodo.

Surfing

Gili Trawangan has a fast right hander which can really pump with the right conditions. The best waves are at high tide, and the underlying reef can be sharp so booties can come in handy. The surf break is off the south coast - just follow the locals who will be out and jogging with their boards whenever the surf is decent. You will find no shortage of locals eady, willing and able to rent you board. There are a few breaks off Gili Air and Gili Meno, but they are more difficult to reach and smaller. The best season is the January-June wet season, with swells from 1-2 m. Daily conditions can be checked out at Magic Seaweed

Walking

There are some lovely walks to be had on the island, although the perimeter coastal track is perhaps not as scenic as those on Gili Meno and Gili Air. A leisurely stroll all the way around will take 90-120 minutes, depending on just how leisurely you are.

The hill in the south can be easily reached by taking one of the tracks that lead west or southwest from the back of the village. Dawn and dusk are the best times to climb up here. The sunset views back towards Bali are quite lovely, and in the mornings the sun rises over majestic Mount Rinjani on Lombok. On the top of the hill lie the remains of a World War II Japanese gun bunker.