My last destination in Bali and, therefore, Indonesia was Nusa Lembongan, a small island not far from Nusa Penida or Bali’s main island. From Nusa Penida, it takes less than 15 minutes to get by boat to Nusa Lembongan. The island is seen from Nusa Penida itself.
Once in Nusa Lembongan, I thought I would have several transport options to get to my hostel which was too far for a walk with my backpack on. There were some moto-taxis, but don’t expect a crowd to harass you as usual to try to sell their services. Surprisingly no one else on my boat was looking for a way to proceed except for this one guy who ended up helping me. He was also looking for a way to get to his hotel, but he decided to rent a motorbike just there at the pier. Yes, there is a rental spot right there which is very convenient. I wasn’t willing to rent a motorbike for the length of my stay because I ended up spending more than 4 days in Nusa Lembongan and the island is quite small. I wouldn’t need a motorbike all those days. So he offered to take me to my hostel on his rented motorbike. How sweet! The only problem was that combined we had too much luggage and the ride to my hostel was painful and hard on my back haha. Still, it was a nice gesture.
In Nusa Lembongan, I ended up spending some days walking and another day with a friend on a motorbike, but mostly, I walked. I had enough time to explore the island on foot.
Next to Nusa Lembongan is Nusa Ceningan. These two islands are connected by an iconic yellow bridge. Nusa Ceningan is smaller and very easy to access through Nusa Lembongan. I visited both. But to visit Nusa Ceningan, I think renting a motorbike is the best option. I went there on a day trip with a friend. The island is quite small and there isn’t that much to explore! I think we ended up not seeing much of all that was to be seen in Nusa Ceningan, but we definitely saw the major attraction. But basically, all that there is to be seen in Nusa Ceningan are different beaches. These were the places I have visited on both islands:
Nusa Ceningan
As I mentioned, I explored this smaller island on a motorbike with a friend. Our first destination was Blue Lagoon Nusa Ceningan.
Blue Lagoon Nusa Ceningan
This is a spot with a great view of the stunning shades of blue that Bali has to offer. The ocean is very powerful here lifting the waves up in the sky in a surprising water show. The sound of the waves crashing onto the rocks is powerful! Definitely a good spot to admire nature’s power. We stayed there for quite a while admiring the strong currents and even the shades of blue that look stunning under the sun.
Kevisato Viewpoint
Just next to this Blue Lagoon is Kevisato Viewpoint. A place where you can see some surfers showing off their skills while riding those big waves.
And, next to Kevisato Viewpoint is a beach where we stopped for quite a while. I can’t tell exactly what is the name of the beach, but there are several small beaches in this area. We stopped by this one because it had very easy access from the Blue Lagoon. There was a swing, not so many people, and topless girls, something I wasn’t expecting to see on this side of the world. We enjoyed the spot and then proceeded along the island deciding to stop when we thought the view could be worth it. We explored Ceningan more in a free-style manner and we didn’t explore all its corners. Basically, there are just smaller beaches to enjoy.
Maybe we could have dedicated more time exploring all the beaches in Nusa Ceningan that apparently are beautiful, but we decided to have a more chilled day. The island has stunning shades of blue and is beautiful. So peaceful wow. Might be worth more than half a day of riding around.
Nusa Lembongan
Devil’s Tears
In Nusa Lembongan, I have been to more places. I have been twice to the Devil’s Tears and it’s funny how I experienced it two different ways. The Devil’s Tears is a place where you get amazed with sea power. There is this hole in the rocks that spits the water back into the ocean with tremendous noise and pungence. It’s really the place where people are shouting WOW at once haha. Cool to see. Sticking near and watching this “spitting water dragon” take action is the best thing to do here.
The first time at the Devil’s Tears I walked to the spot and I entered without paying a ticket. I just kept walking and no one stopped me whatsoever… I didn’t even know there was a ticket counter… There are some guys sitting at the entrance. I’m not sure if this ticket is really official or not. God knows, everything seems to be a scam in Bali anyway haha.
But, the second time I was there I wasn’t as lucky. We were told to stop and buy the ticket. I don’t remember how much it was but not that much and I remember the man saying we could use it many times any day. If we went back another day we wouldn’t have to pay again if we showed the ticket. We gave our tickets away to two girls who were heading there so they didn’t have to pay for their tickets. That’s why this sounds like a scam, no? I can pass my ticket to anyone and they can use it… weird.
Dream beach
Just next to the Devil’s Tears, a few minutes walk away, is Dream Beach, a beautiful beach too. The waves here are strong and the sea is not calm or warm. Not really my favorite type of beach, but it is still beautiful and quite a few people were spending their day in this spot. There are some facilities nearby which help to keep the people here.
On another day I decided to walk to Jungutbatu Beach even though it is not necessarily that close to my hotel. I found a trail among houses so it was easy to access this beach.
Panorama Point
On my way to Jungutbatu Beach, I came across this viewpoint. WOW so beautiful. The beach is down there and looks beautiful. It is possible to have a wide view of the surroundings which was nice. In this spot is a fancy restaurant with a swimming pool. Out of my budget but it surely provides a nice view. There were also some locals selling seashells and other souvenirs.
Jungutbatu Beach
This beach is wide and pretty, but I didn’t find it that stunning. Saw some surf schools here and several souvenir shops. Seems to be a popular destination. There are no natural shades at all on the sand, so it wasn’t such a great spot for me. The water was nice and warm and very calm, my type hehe. It is also at this beach where you can see a shipwreck marked on the map as Stranded Wrack. It is possibly a snorkeling point but I didn’t try to figure it out.
I decided to walk from Jungutbatu Beach to Tamarind Beach because these beaches are connected by a trail next to the ocean and the views are stunning. I recommend a walk here. You will be surprised by beautiful shades of blue and will come across some smaller beaches like Song Lambung Beach which is very cozy and popular, apparently. There were many people hanging around at the beach restaurants.
Tamarind Beach
I didn’t find this beach that amazing. It is small, not a lot of sand to lay on during high tide. You better choose another one to spend a day. Or this one seems to be pretty chilled if that’s what you are looking for.
Pantai Mushroom Bay
This is a popular one, also because the boats to Bali depart from here. It is quite wide and beautiful. The water is very refreshing and there are some shady spots. I ended up spending an afternoon in this one and then walked to Hidden Beach.
Hidden Beach
This beach is right next to Pantai Mushroom Bay but there is no access between both of them as they are separated by a rock formation. I had to find a way around which took a 15-minute walk. I followed a trail marked on “Maps.me” that led me nowhere so I was around trying to find the right shortest path haha. This beach is not that hidden. There were some people here actually. I visited it kind of late, but from the rock that separates both beaches, there is a good view of either Hidden Beach or Mushroom Beach. Was nice to see the beautiful shades both beaches offer. Hidden Beach has some shady spots, but not many. It got way busier for sunset time. It was a pleasant beach but not that amazing either.
Mangrove point
This spot was far from my hostel so I visited it on a motorbike with a friend. We just rode along the main street nearer the ocean until there wasn’t a proper street to follow. At the end of the street, we found a very quiet place surrounded by mangroves where we could have gone for a boat ride among the mangrove trees or even rented a paddle to enjoy the silence of the place. It was kind of late when we got there so we just walked around a bit and set off.
Sea farms
Separating Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan is a small stretch of ocean that locals use to grow seaweed, but I assume not only that. The views of this area are quite particular and very interesting. There will be views of this landscape along the street on both islands, so it is really just a matter of stopping anywhere and admiring it.
View from a different place:
And another view:
Cultural Festival
I visited Nusa Lembongan at the beginning of September. I had no idea that this was probably the most interesting time of the year to visit the island, and I ended up learning it while there. Why do I say this? Because once every 3 years, in Nusa Lembongan only, there is this cultural event that seems to be so unique and culturally rich, where people are doing things that Western society can’t comprehend. This event happens every 3 years and I can’t tell you much about it. Only the things I saw and friends told me.
I was very pissed at myself because I didn’t discover these events before so I ended up not witnessing something I have never seen in my life. During this tradition that happened for days in a row, Balinese people are doing weird things to my eye.
I met a girl who witnessed something awesome and I was so annoyed that I didn’t see it: the disentombing of the dead. I have noticed while roaming around the island that the cemeteries are particularly poor. Usually the tombs I see in Asia are very beautiful and noticeable with beautiful architecture. The Balinese tombs I saw in Nusa Lembongan were just holes in the dirt with an umbrella and a few more things. During this event, I understood why such poor tombs.
One of the days during this tradition, they proceeded with the unearthing of the dead. YES. They unburied the dead, washed the bones and all, everything in front of everybody’s eyes. I remember seeing an agglomerate of people in the cemetery area, but I had no clue what was going on and didn’t dare try to find out. Bad move. Later, I met a girl who joined the festivities and saw it all. She showed me the videos, it was impressive! WOW. What a thing to witness. From what I learned, these ceremonies happening at this time of the year are for these dead people. I heard that all the bones are put into these beautiful structures that they build by hand and then burn. This is a very expensive ceremony, so the “bodies” of the last 3 years are gathered to split costs. I believe people split costs as there is a massive ceremony for all the dead at once.
I managed to see other weird things going on the next day. So, this unearthing of skeletons happens only for 1 day. The following day they do different rituals. I didn’t miss these ones. I sat among them as all the locals gathered in the same spot. There was some sort of Chaman singing and making weird sounds and all these people very well dressed in typical Balinese clothes had offerings in their hands. They were being blessed by men wearing special outfits and doing some special rituals. There was an ugly doll on an altar- possibly representing something important, and some kids dressed up as Asian kings and queens, so stunning OMG. I just sat among the crowd admiring all the things I had never seen before. Trying to make my guesses on what was going on cause no one was there to explain to me. They don’t really speak good English so yeah, all I could do is observe.
I was happy that I could witness a bit of this event even though the next day more things would happen. I couldn’t stay. My flight out of the country was from Bali and I had to leave Nusa Lembongan in time to catch my flight without any possible way for things to go wrong. I couldn’t bear missing this flight haha. So unfortunately, I didn’t see more of this unique event, but at least I saw something. Could have been worse haha. Was very interesting to witness and see how different their culture and beliefs are. This was in September 2023.
Check out Nusa Penida which is a short trip away.
