A Romantic Trip of Mr and Mrs Chang from Taiwan

As a travel mate that focuses on romantic and family trips, it's always been an honor to assist new wed couples whose desires are to have an ultimate romantic, yet adventurous, journey in Lombok.

We've been dealing with numerous couples and we'd like to share the romantic and adventurous journey of our latest clients, Mr and Mrs Chih Chang, from Taiwan.

They spent 5days 4nights, 2 nights in Gili Trawangan and 2 nights in Qunci Villas. We  had a great time discussing and arranging their trip. They shared their dreams and expectation and we did our best to make them happen and suggested an itinerary which they finally accepted after 2 months of discussion :-)

So here is a glimpse of their journey in Lombok. Enjoy!

PS. All pics are courtesy of Mr and Mrs Chih Chang

The awesome view from Airport to Kokomo's Private Harbour to Gili Trawangan

We arranged a speed boat transfer
to take them to KOKOMO in GTrawangan

KOKOMO - Gili Trawangan

KOKOMO - Gili Trawangan

KOKOMO - Gili Trawangan

KOKOMO - Gili Trawangan

sunset at cloudy Trawangan

Gili Trawangan

During The Glass Bottom Boat Trip around 3 Gilis

Moved to Qunci Villas
and stay at Ocean View Room

Gili Kesun Exploration

Gili Kesun

Lunch at Menega

Awesome Qunci

Romantic decoration at Qunci Villas

Romantic Dinner at Novotel Hotel

Our Valentine's Day Gift to them

Want to have your Romantic Getaway in Lombok?
Feel free to contact us:
Email: abbatourandtravel@gmail.com
Tweeter: @YourTripMate  
Whatssap: +6287878405640

XOXO

Your Trip Mate

Gili Trawangan - Up Close and Personal -

Gili means "little island" in Sasak (the native language of Lombok) and while there are "gilis" all around the circumference of Lombok, when people talk of "the Gilis", they're not trying to showoff their Sasak prowess, but rather they're referring to three little islands off the northwest coast of Lombok, Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air.

The Gilis feature regularly in "The next hot thing"-style travel articles you'll see in your Sunday newspaper and have (somewhat deservedly) a reputation for heavy partying. Not all that surprisingly, it's a little bit more complicated than that and it's a mistake to consider the three Gilis as being one and the same -- each has its own distinct vibe. Let's focus on Gili Trawangan as the most popular one and is well known for its party life.

Gili Trawangan

The hectic GTrawangan can be felt rite when you arrive at the Public Harbor

This is the largest and most heavily developed of the three islands. Affectionately referred to as Gili T, Gili Trawangan has the largest number of guesthouses, hotels and resorts (more than 100) and enough bars and beach shacks to keep even the most dedicated party-goer well satisfied.

Gili Trawangan has the greatest supply of cheap(ish) rooms (which are mostly in the village near the main boat landing) of the three Gilis. This combined with the oversupply of bars and party atmosphere make it the most popular among budget travelers and those out for a good time -- your typical "sun, sand and sex" crowd.

Bear in mind that when we say cheap, in most cases you're still going to be looking at at least 200,000 rupiah a night -- 300,000 in high season -- for a cheap room in the village. Elsewhere, really very mediocre bungalows are going for 600,000 and up -- at least double what you'd pay elsewhere in Indonesia.

Highly Recommended Accommodation in GT
-Vila Ombak-

Vila Ombak's cozy area

The party scene has two main flavors -- the immediate area around the boat landing has plenty of beach bars and pubs (often charging Bali prices) and then the northern tip of the island has more secluded beach shacks and bars, which may appeal to those looking for a more laidback scene. Be careful with "fee and tax" especially in "luxury" restaurants, most will charge 21% tax and service, however it can be written in very small font at the bottom of the menu and be from 5 to 25% or more.

Recommended Italian Resto

Vila Ombak's area

Our favorite is Scallywags

Trawangan has a huge range of eating options from simple local warungs up to fairly grand places serving inventive modern cuisine. Many of these are attached to hotels or dive shops, and are not independent restaurants as such.

Budget places are thinner on the ground that they used to be, but still not hard to find. If you really want to watch the pennies, do as the locals do and eat in the local warungs inside the village, or at the night food market near the beachwalk south of the jetty. These serve the usual range of Indonesian staples: fried rice, fried noodles and bakso (meatball soup); on the night market, you will also find seafood (marked up for tourists' wallets, though), pancakes, snacks, desserts, and even beer. The push carts and few "warungs" on the main beachwalk are overpriced as much as twice compared to Bali or Indonesian cities (for example, selling sate ayam on the street for Rp 20,000 or nasi padang for Rp 22,000).

Barbecued fish is excellent here and every evening many of the better restaurants fire up the charcoal. The deal is that you chose your fish - red and white snapper and trevally are especially good - and it is grilled on the spot.

Cheap sweets stuff at the nite market

Warung KIKI NOVI is highly recommended for some fresh BBQ seafood

Despite protestations otherwise, drugs remain commonplace on the Gilis, especially on Gili T. Mushrooms are often signposted and the dealers proffering (mostly pot and cocaine) along the walk down to the pier area can get downright tiresome. Bear in mind that pot and coke are absolutely illegal in Indonesia, and while there is a common meme that the Gili T authorities turn a blind eye, we'd advise not risking it.

There are regular party nights on Gili Trawangan - the various bars take it in turn to host the late night gig (up to 4AM), to ensure that everyone gets together in one place rather than being spread around. The island is small and it is easy to find everything; just ask around for where the party is going to be on any given night.

Be very careful with locally produced spirits, especially arak. It can contain methanol and has caused many cases of serious injury and even death (as recent as new year 2012/13) among tourists and locals alike. If you suspect that what you've been served is not what you ordered, take it back. Sticking to western owned and managed bars will reduce the risk.

Aside from boozing, the main activities here are riding around the island and doing a snorkeling trip. There is a turtle hatchery on the island and you'll have a good chance of seeing turtles offshore. If you're in the market for postcard white sand beaches, you're in the right place.

Despite the touristy and crowded atmosphere it has,
GTrawangan still offers quietness and peacefulness in some areas ^^

Turtle Hatchery

Enjoy the sunset at Sunset Point

1 Day Boat Trip From Senggigi Beach to 3 Gilis (Trawangan, Meno, Air)

Pic courtesy: Derrick Chang

We recommend snorkelling in Lombok as the island has better beaches and water conditions than Bali. The water is clear with visibility around 10-20 metres or so and with lots of coral reefs and marine life.  

The Private Boat 

cozy area of Vila Ombak Hotel in Gili Trawangan

Crowded Gili Trawangan

The Young Surfers are ready to hunt for some waves in Gili Trawangan

Gili Meno's water

Scallywags - Gili Air

Gili Air

Gili Air's water

We recommend island hopping to see Trawangan, Meno and Air if you have 1 day to spare. Among all the options, we highly recommend you to take the private one day trip which will be started from Senggigi Area. The day trip is preferably started at 09a.m (tho you can request to start later if you want to). It takes around 1 hour to reach Gili Trawangan which is the biggest and the most crowded island. We can spend around 1 hour so that you can explore this most developed gili. Anyeay, most clients prefer to skip visiting this gili and choose to snorkel around it.

Soon after Gili Trawangan, the trip continues to Gili Meno's area. This area is the favorite of divers and snorkelers for its beautiful corals and colorful fishes. Gili Meno is the smallest gili among the triplets. Some want to stop and explore this gili more to experience the natural peaceful atmosphere it has. 

The last spot we head to is Gili Air. This gili is the closest to mainland Lombok and the most popular after Gili Trawangan. There are some restos/cafes for you to have lunch here. Yet we recommend organic seafood Restaurant called Scallywags. 

After lunch, we can continue to explore Gili Air's underwater world which has outstanding view just like (or even more than) Meno.

We will head back to Mainland Lombok at around 3:30 PM (depends on the condition of the wave and weather) and you will be taken directly to your Hotel's private beach if you stay along the Senggigi Beach Area (e.g. Qunci Villa, Holiday Resort, Sheraton, Senggigi Beach Hotel) just in time for you to view the majestic sunset over Mount Agung - Bali.

Includes:

• Insurance 

• Full snorkeling gears 

• Mineral water

Excludes:

• Lunch 

• Other personal expenses

Feel free to contact us for further info and reservation.

Click here to get more details about the 3 gilis. 

3d/2n Romantic Package (Type B)

For beach lovers, this honeymoon/romantic package staying in Vila Ombak in Gili Trawangan will suit you well. 

This package includes 2 nites stay in Villa Ombak's romantic room called Lumbung Hut, 1 x Romantic Dinner by the beach and 3 gili snorkeling exploration.

Feel free to contact us for details.

love,

Abba Travel

@YourTripMate