Kelingking Beach Archives

I just spend 10 days traveling around Indonesia, my country number 125, and these are 7 reasons why I love Indonesia. A country I know I’ll return to sooner or later again!

1. The Friendly Locals

One of the biggest reasons why I love Indonesia is because they have such friendly locals, and I experienced that on all of the islands I visited in Indonesia, even in Bali, where I maybe thought it would be too overcrowded with tourists, so the locals maybe wouldn’t be that nice any longer. In fact, they were very friendly there too! I’ve traveled to over 125 countries, and I’ve only experienced very few countries, as friendly and welcoming as in Indonesia. The locals are genuine without wanting something in return. You feel welcomed wherever you go if you show respect towards the locals.

Even the staff at the border control were chatting with me and smiling. They were extremely helpful and always had a smile on their face, when I was entering Indonesia – something that’s very unusual at border controls.

Indonesia is definitely one of the friendliest and nicest countries I have visited in the world!

2- Nature

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Stunning view in Nusa Penida Island, Indonesia

The nature in Indonesia is incredible. The views are spectacular and the country is rich in both flora and fauna. Here live many species of animals and plants that are endemic – which is awesome!

Whether you’re looking for hiking among beautiful mountains, an amazing wildlife or just wants to relax on the beautiful, sandy beaches – Indonesia offers everything and much more, it’s so scenic, and one of my favorite places to visit was this picturesque beach in Nusa Penida Island, which was so visually perfect.

You can read My Awesome Way to Find the Kelingking Beach in Nusa Penida From Bali Here!

3. Prices Are Cheap

Buying a $1,5 dragon fruit in Bali, Indonesia

Whether it is buying a $1,5 dragon fruit in a market in Bali, renting a $5 scooter for the whole day in Nusa Penida island or shopping in Jakarta, prices are relatively cheap in Indonesia. Indonesia is a friendly, beautiful and affordable destination with good value for your money. It’s cheap to take a taxi, go on guided tours, eat food, accommodation and much more! Remember to download Grab, which is the perfect transportation app for all over Indonesia. If you compare the standard to other destinations in Asia, you’ll understand what I mean by saying that Indonesia offers good value for the money you pay!

4. Wildlife

With a Komodo dragon in Komodo island, Indonesia

The fascinating Komodo dragon, the Sumatran tigers, the Javan rhinoceros, the Borneo elephant, the Sumatran orangutan, the exotic babirusa or the Black Macaques.. The list goes on! The wildlife is on another level in Indonesia. Here sitting with a Komodo dragon, which only can be found on a few Indonesian islands in the World. There are only 5,000 komodo dragons left worldwide. Psychical features of a dinosaur, a deadly lethal venom and they can grow up to nearly 4 meter long with a top speed of 20 km/h. One of the craziest animals I’ve ever been close to!

5. Relaxed Muslim Country

One of the largest mosques in the World, Istiqlal *Mosqu*e, Jakarta

Islam is the most adhered to religion in Indonesia, with 87.2% of Indonesian population identifying themselves as Muslim. Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in the World, with approximately 225 million Muslims all over the country. In fact, Indonesia is a very relaxed Muslim country and as long as you don’t do totally stupid stuff, it’s a very open-minded place to be, where you can still drink alcohol and have a bit of fun if you feel in a party-mode. Indonesia is relaxed, not super strict and I kind of like that!

6. Thousands Of Islands

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Bali, Komodo, and Gili islands are some of the most famous ones, but the fact is that Indonesia is almost entirely made up of islands in various sizes. Each island has its own charm and their own experiences to offer. There are total number of 17,508 islands of which about 6000 are inhabited in Indonesia, so there are plenty of adventures to take. Padar island was memorable to me for the incredible sights!

7. Everyone Is Family

No matter who you are and where you’ve been, you’ll find yourself a new family in Indonesia. Whether it’s friendly neighbors, hospitable coworkers or happy kids, everyone belongs to a community that takes care of each other. Sure, the archipelago has countless attractions to entice tourists, but it’s the warmth and sense of belonging that invites people to stay.

Thank you for this time Indonesia and I’m already excited to come again back here soon.

Gustav

gus1thego.com

I just did an amazing trip to Nusa Penida from Bali and I want to share the best (and cheapest) way to do it with you guys!

The Breathtaking Kelingking Beach, Nusa Penida, Indonesia

How To Visit Nusa Penida From Bali

You’ll have two really good options. Head to Sanur Beach in DENPASAR first of all!

You can see that boats usually start early and finish early. Do not expect night boats.

TIMETABLE

Firms	Sanur-Nusa Penida	Nusa Penida-Sanur
Crown	08.15, 11.15, 15.15	09.45, 13.45, 16.45
Sugriwa	08.30, 13.30	11.30, 13.30
Merlin	09.30, 13.00	11.00, 15.00
Bali Eka Jaya	16.30	08.30
Gogun Express	08.15, 10.00	14,30, 17.00

Two Best Options To Reach Nusa Penida

1. The ultra-budget option or the 2. cheap timesaver option will make you go from A to B properly, and I chose the 2. option, because it wasn’t more than $10 difference in total. I was in a bit of a rush and I didn’t want to miss the incredible opportunity to go to Nusa Penida and explore the island, but at the same time I didn’t want to get wet in a speed boat, so I chose to go with Gogun Express from Sanur Beach in Denpasar. Super comfortable seats and the other providers all charged the double!

Perfect Travel Tip For Booking Your Ticket

With Gogun Express you can go for around to 150.000-200.000 Indonesian Rupiah ($10-15) with return ticket and it’s a fast boat. Secure your cheap ticket by getting a local person to book your ticket, because the ticket sellers usually put the price HIGHER for a tourist, so I just asked a random guy if he could book my ticket and he helped me without any problems. Most Indonesians are very friendly!

I used that trick a lot too when traveling in Africa: Read: How To Avoid Travel Scams In Africa here!

The option I took will take you 45 min to reach Nusa Penida with Gogun Express, or you can go ultra-budget with the public boat called ‘Jukung’. Jukung will cost you around IDR. 50.000 one-way and will take around 90 minutes. I wanted to maximize my day on the island, so I went with the fast option.

Keep In Mind’s

Jukung (Public) Boats: The ultra cheap tickets can be sold out if you’re not there early or are unlucky.

Fast Boat: Fast boat tickets to Nusa Penida sell out fast too. It’s very unlikely that you’ll find a ticket if you just show up 10 minutes before the morning boat.

Speed Boat: If you go with this super fast option, you can avoid being splashed on by sitting at the back.

Safety: If the weather is bad, don’t take the boat. The ocean can get vicious, and sunken fast boats aren’t unheard of.

With good weather, just go to Sanur Beach and get moving!

Getting a local to buy my ticket as usual. Or at least get them to ask the price first for you as a foreigner

Arriving in Nusa Penida – What To Do?

You can choose to go on a expensive tour with a Tour Company in a car, but the roads are narrow and bad for cars, so it’s not really enjoyable. My local friend in Denpasar told me it was some of the worst road he’d seen in Indonesia, so he wouldn’t recommend renting a scooter, but I don’t agree with him on this. He hasn’t traveled so much neither, haha.. You should definitely choose the cheaper, more adventurous, more fun, more free way to explore Nusa Penida – rent a scooter for a full day! Yes, the roads are not the best, but there’s not a lot of traffic, so if you have a little bit of experience on a scooter it won’t be a big problem, though the last part to the Kelingking Beach is a little challenging. You can do it though!

You can rent a scooter for a full day in Nusa Penida for IDR. 70.000 ($5) with fuel. Absolute bargain!

Car With A Driver

In Bali cars are too valuable to trust the tourists with so they will usually come with a driver. They are the slower and costlier way to travel in Nusa Penida but also safer. It costs around 500,000 IDR per day. You can ask your accommodation to fix you one or you will find drivers looking for costumers at the ports.

Scooter With A Driver

If you want a scooter’s affordability and practicality but you don’t trust your driving skills, you can ask the owner to drive you around. Prices are usually around 120,000-160,000 IDR per day, but you can’t be sure to find a driver always.

Beautiful driving around Nusa Penida island. Nice temples on the road

Best Things To Do In Nusa Penida

I drove around a lot of the island, and got lost several times, just finding myself ending up in cool places. I really enjoy driving out in the wild once in a while, without Google Maps set on a specific location, just see what happens, and Nusa Penida has so many hidden treasures. The best places to go in the island on the west are however Broken Beach, Angel’s Billabong (only 50 meter walk from Broken Beach) and the spectacular Kelingking Beach. If you have time take the stairs down and check out the beach from below.

Monkeys chilling on top of Kelingking Beach. Go down the stairs and see the beautiful beach from below too!

The Road To The Famous Kelingking Beach, Nusa Penida, Indonesia

You’ll have to drive for around 50 minutes on your scooter on the West Coast of Nusa Penida to reach this fairy tale alike beach. There will be a few signs on the way, but not many and you can easily get confused on the way. If you have an Indonesian SimCard, I recommend using Google Maps and use your Airpods while driving for the perfect guidance to reach the destination.

The locals were also very friendly and helped me reach some other stunning places on the island, though it can get quite remote at certain places with few people. You can always ask them too!

Most boats arrive at Jungutbatu in Nusa Penida, close to Lembongan island. Here is the location of the famous beach

Enjoy Your Trip To Nusa Penida

Landscapes are really cool and changes all the time in Nusa Penida. A lovely and adventurous place to drive a scooter and it’s honestly just a lot of fun exploring the beauty of the island on a scooter, because you can hit all the interesting corners and small villages. I was back 4.30 pm and had a power nap on the beach, before my comfy boat with Gogun Express went back to Bali. What a nice day.. Get ready for adventure!

Enjoying the beach in Nusa Penida.. Still haven’t met anyone with more white hairs on their legs than me

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” There are experiences that open up not just your heart but also your mind, and traveling to Nusa Penida does that. So many amazing views, so get ready for adventure!

Goodbye Nusa Penida! Doesn’t get much prettier than this spot

Guys, definitely do Nusa Penida when doing Indonesia. Stunning sights here, honestly couldn’t imagine a better start for my country number 125. I bet you’ll love it too, if you didn’t go already of course.. It’s slowly getting more popular, so JUST GO!

Have you been to Indonesia?