Recently, TripAdvisor announced Gili Trawangan to rank sixth as the winner of Travellers’ Choice™ awards for islands based on the reviews given by the travelers all around the world. That must be an additional reason to why you have to visit Gili Trawangan. Moreover, Gili Trawangan is now more accessible for travelers who want to spend a holiday there.
So, how to get to Gili Trawangan?
There are many ways possible. If you happen to be in the islands nearby, like Bali or Sumbawa, you can cross Lombok Strait and Alas Strait to reach Lombok Island.
By plane from Denpasar Bali to Lombok
There are direct flights from Denpasar to Lombok International Airport for only 25-30 minutes. Once you land in Lombok Airport, you can continue the trip by car or shuttle bus to reach beach departure point at Bangsal Ferry Terminal. There is also public airport bus provided by DAMRI to transport you to Bangsal Harbor, Senggigi, and Teluk Nare.
From Bangsal Harbour, there are several types of transportation available. You can either take public boats to get to Gili Trawangan, take public fast boats which run several times a day, or charter a boat. Besides departing from Bangsal Harbour, you can also depart from Teluk Nare and Teluk Kodek around Senggigi Beach using speedboat charter.
Get to Gili Trawangan by direct fast boats from Serangan or Padang Bai to Gili Trawangan
There are many fast boats from Bali to Gili Trawangan, likeBlue Water Express, Gili Gili, and Marina Srikandi. The daily departure of fast boats from Serangan are at 8 am and from Padang Bai are at 12.15 pm. You can take a shuttle to get to Serangan or Padang Bai. The journey from Serangan directly to Gili Trawangan takes 2 hours, while from Padang Bai only takes one hour. The price for one way journey is around Rp600.000–Rp800.000.
By public ferry from Padang Bai to Lembar Harbour
If you are a low budget traveler, you can take a shuttle or a bus from Kuta or Seminyak to Padang Bai harbor on the west part of Bali Island. Then, continue the journey by crossingLombok Strait in a public ferry for Rp30.000–Rp40.000. The ferry departs at 10 am and arrives in Lembar at3 pm.
You can take a minibus for 90 minutes to Bangsal Harbor. Last, you can choose whether to take public boats, public fast boats or charter a boat to get to Gili Trawangan.
This whole package (with public boat option from Bangsal Harbor to Gili Trawangan) is provided by several agents in Kuta and other towns in Bali, like Seminyak, and priced around Rp250.000.
So, have you decided to take the cheaper but long journey route to get to Gili Trawangan or a more expensive one with shorter time?