NUSA LEMBONGAN: Top Things To Do In This Island Near Bali
July 28, 2019/
Nusa Lembongan : great diving, sandy beaches, awe-inspiring Devil’s Tear, relaxed yoga, romantic sunset dinner, mangrove forest, massages, bars, coffee, movies and more!
Nusa Lembongan is a must-visit island a short 45 min speedboat ride from Sanur, Bali. It is an ideal place for singles, couples and families to holiday at.
Nusa Lembongan has stunning sunset views.
You can do all the above activities within a week at a leisurely pace.
We booked a 7 day 6 night stay with World Diving Lembongan at a good deal from Singapore’s ADEX that included:
10 dives with equipment and additional refresher course
Beautiful Pondok Baruna beachfront accommodation with breakfast (the sound of waves lulled us to sleep)
Transfers from airport (minivan to Sanur, speedboat to Nusa Lembongan, taxi truck to resort)
We stayed at the beachfront Pondok Baruna accommodation by World Diving Lembongan. At the far end of the photo is a little white hut where our pre-dive briefings and post-dive meetings take place. The diving gear is stored in a room near the hut, and the office + shop is at the same area too.
Each unit has a room, attached toilet with shower, a porch with 2 chairs and a table for breakfast, and a deck chair and beanbag to chill.
Enjoying tea and the sea at our Pondok Baruna porch.
You can read my review about World Diving Lembongan here.
My favourite food at World Diving Lembongan: a bowl of fruits.
We visited Nusa Lembongan in December which was perfect as it was off-peak season and less crowded.
What is Nusa Lembongan’s main attraction?
Nusa Lembongan is an ideal place to explore numerous dive sites not only at this island, but also those at Nusa Ceningan and Nusa Penida.
Boats depart from and arrive at Jungutbatu Beach, a long beach that has multiple accommodations and cafes along its coast.
World Diving Lembongan planned two morning dives a day based on the tides, leaving around 7 or 8am and arriving back around 1230 to 1pm. We also went for one afternoon dive and one night dive.
We dived at:
reef walls (current is strong but it is an amazing reef wall)
manta dive site (where we saw several manta rays and sting rays)
mangrove corals (current was weak for a leisurely dive)
a shallow beach floor (exploring rocks, moray eels and orang utan crabs on a night dive)
As we hadn’t dived for 10 years, we paid for a refresher course at World Diving Lembongan’s resort pool before we started our dives.
The resort swimming pool is a very short walk behind Pondok Baruna which we did our diving refresher course in the morning right before heading out for our first dive.Life on Nusa Lembongan can be hectic if you dive often, or as chill as this cat.
All equipment, including wet suit, BCD, regulator and torch, were provided by World Diving Lembongan as part of the customised ADEX package we discussed with them.
Being a female, I had concerns about my period arriving during our holiday. But World Diving Lembongan has a Big Boat with an attached toilet, a lifesaver!
World Diving Lembongan’s Big Boat has beanbags on the roof (great for sleeping on when travelling to dive sites) and an attached toilet.
What else can I do at Nusa Lembongan?
If you have time in between dives or you’re not interested in diving, there are many other activities in Nusa Lembongan for your holiday preferences.
First let’s talk about location and transportation.
You can either walk around, rent a motorcycle (we rented one from the resort) or hire a taxi truck to take you around the island.
Jungutbatu Beach
We liked World Diving Lembongan’s location as it is situated at Jungutbatu Beach, the most happening beach in Nusa Lembongan.
Long walks along the beach
Great for long beach walks with families or loved ones.
Enjoy long walks along Jungutbatu Beach.
(The white sand can be coarse so our little ones should wear footwear.)
Beach chairs at Mahagiri Resort, Jungutbatu Beach.
You can admire the architecture of various resorts, play in the sea and chill at any of the beach bars lining the beach.
Accommodation along Jungutbatu Beach.
Romantic sunset dinner
We enjoyed a romantic dinner by the sunset at the affordable 99 Meals House.
You can simply order a hot ginger tea at 99 Meals House and sit by the bar counter overlooking the sea.
Sometimes you can see people lighting firecrackers along the beach.
Yoga by the beach
As we had to have a 24 hour break between our last dive and flight home, we spent our last morning at a one hour yoga session in a building right next to the beach. The sound of waves was very calming.
Nusa Lembongan also has yoga teacher training where participants spend 200 hours learning and practising yoga.
JFC is the only fast food outlet on Nusa Lembongan. It frequently runs out of food options towards evening time.This was our dinner one evening when we arrived at JFC a bit too late. The fried chicken and burgers were sold out.
Swings, beaches and a mangrove forest
On your way to the mangrove forest, you’ll pass by a long beach which has a few swings here and there for photo-taking.
Swings are not uncommon in Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan.
You can hire a boat to take you through the mangrove forest but we did not have time.
Devil’s Tear
Devil’s Tear is an amazing rock formation created by sea waves crashing against Nusa Lembongan’s coastline. You can see infinity pools, blowholes and spectacular waves which may make you wet when the wind blows in your direction.
Sea spray at Devil’s Tear making China tourists wet. Come in the morning for a quieter experience.
Try to go in the morning before truckloads of tourists arrive. Be careful especially near the edges of the coast as there is no barrier to prevent you from falling over.
An infinity pool near Devil’s Tear. Waves frequently crash against rocks and fill up these infinity pools.
There are little shops selling drinks and food but there aren’t that many places to sit.
Other attractions in Nusa Lembongan
You can visit other beaches such as Mushroom Bay Beach, Sandy Bay Beach and Dream Beach.
There are many western and local eateries in Nusa Lembongan so you will not go hungry.
The food may be a bit too sweet or salty so drink lots of water.
BBQ ribs at Nick’s Place.
We visited Nick’s Place for their BBQ ribs (delicious but pricey).
One of our favourite places is Mushroom Espresso for coffee (very nice for families with kids as there is a sandpit inside).
You’ll find Mushroom Espresso on the way to Mushroom Bay Beach.Your children can play at this sand pit while you enjoy coffee nearby at Mushroom Espresso.
We also had a quiet meal at Warung Sunrise (where you can admire views of Nusa Ceningan).
Enjoying a mee goreng with sunny side up at Warung Sunrise.Our cute companion during our meal.
Visit the Yellow Bridge that connects Nusa Lembongan to Nusa Ceningan. It is passable only by motorcycle, bicycle and on foot.
View of the Yellow Bridge from Warung Sunrise.
Massages are popular at Nusa Lembongan but we were too busy diving and riding around to have time for a massage. There is also a Gala-Gala Underground House but we didn’t have a chance to visit it either.
Most of the main roads in Nusa Lembongan are paved roads, but you do get dirt roads if you go off the main road. Some roads can be narrow and you have to look out for trucks, other motorcycles and pedestrians.
How to get to Nusa Lembongan?
World Diving Lembongan arranged for Rocky Fast Cruise to pick us up from Bali Ngurah Rai International Airport. We took a mini van to Sanur to collect our tickets from Rocky Fast Cruise counter next to the beach.
As we had a few hours to wait for our boat, we took a stroll along Sanur Beach which is very popular with families on weekends.
Sanur Beach in Bali is happening on weekends.
Lunch was mee soto at one of the roadside stalls and we hung out at Dunkin’ Donuts to pass the time.
If you’re easily sea sick, do take your motion sickness pills before taking the speedboat to Nusa Lembongan.
Speedboats at Sanur Beach waiting for their designated departure times to ferry passengers to different destinations in Indonesia (such as Nusa Lembongan).
You will have to wade in the sea water (around knee level) to embark the speedboat so try to wear slippers and shorts. Staff will help you carry your luggage onto the speedboat and collect your slippers in a container.
After arriving at Nusa Lembongan, you also have to disembark the speedboat directly into sea water (around knee level) and wade up to shore to collect your slippers and luggage.
You’ll walk to a little parking area with taxi trucks and inform the driver of your resort name. The taxi trucks are built for Asian height so taller people have to mind their heads when getting on the taxi truck.
It will be a squeeze but you’ll get to your destination. The roads in Nusa Lembongan are not great. The main road along Jungutbatu Beach is paved, but the side roads are bumpy dirt roads so get used to bumpy rides.
The side roads can be rocky, uneven and poorly lit at night, take note to bring along a torchlight especially if you have young children or elderly in your group.
Nusa Lembongan is a gem of an island, easily accessible from Bali and definitely worth a trip if you’re planning to visit Indonesia.
You can choose to stay at a resort on Nusa Lembongan or Nusa Ceningan, then hop over to stay at Nusa Penida before heading back to Bali.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my wonderful experience at Nusa Lembongan.
Do check out my other travel posts near Indonesia and surf the Related Posts below 🙂
