I had heard good things about the Gili Islands – Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air – and while I knew we were pretty short on time – I still wanted to squeeze in a visit – even if it was only for a day.
We had heard horror stories from people who’d spent the better part of a day trying to get to the Islands and so I hit the internet to find our best options. Lots of hotels and travel agents were eager to recommend various companies but we were weary of the difference between what people promised and what they could actually deliver.
In the end we decided to go with Gili Gili Fastboats. We heard nothing but positive feedback, and we weren’t disappointed with our experience.
For about $100 return each, we got transfers to and from Padang Bay from your accommodation in Bali, as well as your fast-boat service to the GIli Islands. It took us about five hours to get there and about three-and-a-half to get back.
When the day rolled around a pretty battered looking bus rocked up at our hotel at 0730 (we were told to be ready between 0715-0730).
It was far from luxurious but the airconditioning was pumping and the bus was moving.
There was a young couple already in the van (she was sick, he was being unhelpful) and we had to make one more stop on the way to pick up a few other passengers.
By now the air conditioning was losing its thrust and with a bus now brimming with four, fat, middle-aged Dutchies and the sick couple – things were starting to heat up.
Thankfully it wasn’t a super long trip.
It took us just under two hours to cross Bali from Seminyak to Padang Bay, and had it not been for some religious festival that had traffic backed up for kilometres, we probably would have go there more quickly.
We arrived just shy of 1000 and were pretty much hearded straight onto the boat.
The boat was fairly small – I’d say it sat about 30 people but were were less than 20 on it. They gave us drinks, fresh washers and cakes.
After a couple of late nights we were struggling to keep our eyes open – and so before we knew it we were passing Gili T.
Yep. Going straight past it.
We’d already had plenty of experience of locals that were a little too eager to please and figured the boat was probably going to Lombok first.
This wasn’t going to be the end of the world but it would be annoying, all the same.
Thankfully when we asked the steward he told us the boat would first make a quick stop at Gili Air before returning to Gili T.
In the end we arrived around 1230 – clocking up a total journey time of five hours.
The boat rammed into the sand and we were there – ready to relax.
Our next mission was to find our accommodation.
Lauren had been to the Island earlier in the year and stayed in this small ecolodge on the other side of the island.
It had been recommended to and her friend and they loved it and so we booked into the same place.
So off to La Cocoteraie we went.
Well that’s what we were going to do when we got our shit together.
The boat pulls up right in the thick of it – next to a very busy stretch of the main street (if you can call it that).
This area of the island is teeming with tourists, bars, restaurants, cafes and dive shops and it’s not hard to feel overwhelmed at first.
We choose our horse and cart (literally – they don’t have cars on the island) and off we went.
It’s probably a 15 minute ride (trot) to the lodge and they take you through the muddy back streets which give you a pretty eye-opening glimpse into local life on the Island.
We dropped off our things and headed straight back out – making use of La Cocoteraie’s free bicycles.
First up we headed just around the corner to Le Pirate – a little hotel/beach club recommended by the French manager of our hotel.
The location and layout of the place was pretty cool. It was new and very clean, but the food and drinks were lackluster at best.
Nevertheless we refueled and got back on our bikes, ready to explore the rest of the Island.
We made our way clockwise around the ring road that circles the island, and eventually found ourselves back at the busy main stretch.
Paddle boarding had been on my bucket list for a long while so when we found a guy who rented out the equipment we decided to give it a go.
It’s not as easy as it looks but it’s pretty fun.
The water was clear and clean and warm as a bath and so we spent a great time flailing, carrying on and chasing turtles.
When we tired of paddle boarding we got back on our brooms and continued on our trip around the Island.
The bars were slowly starting to buzz and so we decided to head home to get freshened up so we could hit the town. Then we came across Hotel Ombak Sunset. I had remembered seeing the swings when i was researching the trip and so we went to investigate.
We decided to scrap getting washed up and instead sit down to watch the sunset (and the other people, watching the sunset).
We started off with cocktails which was probably a mistake (our pina coladas which tasted like shampoo) and so we didn’t waste any time in switching to beer.
We had asked what sort of beer the bar stocked and the server offered us either “large” or “small”. When we asked him to clarify, he assured us the bar stocked both small beers and large. No Corona. No Peroni. No Asahi. Just large or small. We figured we best give him the benefit of the doubt and just order two large.
After a couple of hours of guzzling beers, chewing the fat and watching the sun sink low below the horizon, we hopped back on our bikes and wobbled off into the darkness towards the hotel.
I vaguely remember there being a blackout when we got back to La Cocoteraie but we some how managed to get sorted out.
We got freshened up (in the dark?) and hopped back on our bikes in search of dinner.
We ended up at Wilson’s – which was just down the way – again, on the recommendation of the manager at our hotel.
After dinner we had every ambition of heading out for a night out on the town, but with half a dozen or so drinks already under our belts, and the prospect of riding a bike home in the dark, wasted – we rather wisely, decided to call it a night.
Early to bed means early to rise for this old soul and so at the crack of dawn I was up and at ’em: pottering around – zipping and unzipping suitcases and rustling plastic bags, in an effort to rise Anal.
We took our breakfast early and before we knew it, we were back on our bikes en route to see the paddle board rental guy again.
We were (mildly) shocked to find he wasn’t opened at such an early hour and so we found a quiet spot to have a swim to kill some time.
When we went back around 1000 he was just opening up and seemed pretty happy to see us again.
The day was much clear and the water was brilliant so we hopped straight on and, like ducks to water, headed out to flail among the boats and turtles.
Had we had more time on the Island, I probably would have done some snorkelling. There are both half and full day options that take you out to all three islands, dropping you off at various snorkelling spots. Lauren had dis this on her trip the the island and really enjoyed it.
Eventually our time was up and so we went back to the hotel, collected our bags, and hopped in our ‘taxi’ for the short journey back to the port.
We were on the boat and pulling out at 1145 – 15 minutes early – and had a very smooth transfer back to civilisation.
Apart from a bit of sluggish traffic in Kuta – the roads were pretty clear, meaning we made it to our new hotel by 1530.
We had a fantastic experience with Gili Gili Fastboat if you’re looking for a reliable service to the Islands. Check out the company’s site here.
We stayed at La Cocoteraie and enjoyed the experience. For more details – take a look at the Ecolodge’s official site.
Le Pirate is worth a look. It’s very chilled and has a nice pool. Skip the food/booze though.
A sunset is a sunset. There were plenty of cool beach front bars. We ended up at Ombak Sunset and weren’t disappointed.
For menus and directions for Wilson’s check out the resort’s official website.
I couldn’t track down the guy we rented the paddle boards from, but it cost us about $10 an hour.