THE SOUTHWEST

Floating in the sparkling turquoise waters just off the southwest coast are twelve small island called the southwest Gilis. Unlike the famous Gili island in the northwest of Lombok, the southwest Gilis are largely uninhabited and have yet to be discovers by most travelers thus they are often called “ the secret Island “.

The Sekotong region start just south of Lembar Harbour and feature stunning beaches and bays set again a backdrop of rolling hills. The drive itself is a a worthwhile trip, meandering through villages where life is largely untouched by tourism and where the people are involved in their day to day activities farming, fish cultivation, boating, and fishing, brick making and other traditional pastimes.

Along the roadsides you will see people building and repairing boat, laying out hand made bricks to dry in the sun, working in the fields and sometimes guiding primitive wooden ploughs harnessed to huge water buffalo as they prepare the fields for planting.

The peaceful villages of Taun ( or Tawun ) is situate on a wide, placid bay in Sekotong. The ocean is sparkling turquoise and the dazzling white sands stretches in a wide sweep around the bay, while the hills behind form a perfect backdrop to this idyllic setting.

Just out in the calm bay are the three lovely islands of Gili Nanggu, Gili Tangkong and Gili Sudat- all easily accessible by local outrigger boats. A small sign in the nearby village will direct you to the local boat hire area, where you can arrange boats trips out to Gili Nanggu and other small island offshore.

Of the three, only Gili Nanggu has accomodation for visitors, with Gili Nanggu cottages providing simple cottage on the beach and a restaurant, as well as deluxe rooms further back from the beach. The island is small and the beach here has soft white sand and a good reef just off the beach for snorkling.

Travelling a little further south before the marine culture complex ( Balai Budaya laut ), there is a small dirt road leading out on to  a white penninsula of sands that just into beautiful clear waters. Drive to the end for superb views and a close up look at Gili Genting.

Gili Genting sits off just the trip of the penninsula and at low tide you can walk across the sandbar and explore this unhabited island. Old volcanic rocks and stone carved from centuries of tides create small caves alcoves, providing shelter for picnics and interesting nooks and crannies to explore.

Back on the main road and slightly further south is Sundancer Resort, with its distinctive blue roofs dotted on the hillside overlooking another white sands beach. The hotel development is still under construction.

Across the road from Sundancer, on the beachfront, is Dive Zone-Currently the only diving facility in this part of Lombok and the experts on diving around the southwest island, having of previously unknown dive site in this area.

Dive zone offer dive trips around Sekotong and the islands, as well as in three locations in south Lombok including challenging world class diving off southeast Lombok.

Past dive Zone another few kilometres is Cocotinos Boutique Beach Resort on the secluded beach at Tanjung Empat. With 28 rooms, including beachfront villas with private swimming Pools, Cocotinos is the only luxury  accomodation in the area.

In the next intersection there is a signpost to the right for Labuhan Poh and Pelangan, the site of  Bola paradise. This is a small hotel, situated right on the beachfront with comfortable and clean rooms at reasonable prices. The hotel also organises snorkelling tours and is a popular choice for those surfing at Bangko-Bangko.

The largest of this island is Gili Gede, appropriately meaning “Big island”. The island lay just offshore and is so large visitors often mistake it for part of the mainland. Gili Gede is easily reached by boat from the village of  Tembowong and is only minutes across the water.

Gili Gede is one of the few islands in the area that has accomodation, at Secret Island  Resort on the south. Via Vaccaare on the northwest and Madak Belo on the east.

Gili Gede is large enough to provide a range activities such as hiking to the hills in the entre for fantastic views across the other islands, exploring deserted beaches and hidden coves and meeting the people living on the island, who are very friendly and, as yet unspoilt by tourism.

Secret island has comfortable budget accommodation, including a unique bungalow perched on a pier over the reef  the only one in the either Lombok or Bali. The Resort offers a host of activities that all the family will enjoy, while also being a place where you can get away from it all.

Secret island can also organize fishing trips and island hopping excursions to the other beautiful island in the area, most of which are deserted about their comfortable 9m custom built boat “Scorpio”.

To the south of Gili Gede, the islands of Gili Ringgit, Layar and Asahan are lined up like secret treasures in the calm sea.

Bounty Cruises, a Bali based company, own much of the land on Gili Ringgit and have constructed a boat mooring and pier on the island. There is good snorkeling on the west side of Gili Ringgit, accesed by boat. Large gardens of hard and soft corals lay just beneath the surface and the reef extends along most of the island’s coast.

 The other side of the island, where the pier is located, has a fantastic white sand beach and is a favourite for guests from Secret Island Resort and Dive Zone, as the scenery and beach here are so lovely.

This easy to snorkle offshore, just north of the pier and, although the reef isn’t as large as on the other side of the island, there is plenty to see. Bright Blue starfish drape themselves across patches of coral, and bright  yellow and black Moorish Idols dart through the water. Schools of Hundreds of small iridescent fish swim past and weirdly shaped squid drift by in the deeper areas.

We met a boat load of happy tourists on Gili Ringgiit, out for the day with Dive Zone, who described the diving as some of the best they’ve ever experienced. Most  couldn’t stop gushing about the huge school of turtles they had just seen near Gili Layar.

All around these southwest Gilis, abundant coral reefs lay just below the surface waiting to be explored, filled with thousands of brightly coloured tropical fish, huge sprawling blue starfish and magical turtles gently gliding through the water.

Lightly south of Gili Gede, beautiful Gili Asahan attract visitors with deserted white sand  beaches, clear calm waters and swaying palm tress.

Pearl beach Resort, the only accommodation on the island, is a lovely boutique hotel charming and well designed bungalows here looking out over a breath taking beach. Of a much higher standard than most of the southwest accommodation, each bungalow has a private terrace and western standard bathrooms with hot water.

There is also beachfront bar and restaurant serving western and Indonesian meals, and good snorkeling directly from the beach.

The Resort is popular with divers and can arrange diving and snorkeling trips, as well as islands hopping tours.

Deserted white sand beaches call visitors from the sea  to picnic on the beaches and swim in the clear turquoise waters. Pearl beach is perfect for romantic escapes and for those seeking the transquillity of a private island resort.

Leaving Gili asahan and back on the mainland there are a small home stays and private accommodations spaced out along the road to Bangko Bangko – the surfing Mecca for those in the know, located on the far southwest tip of  Lombok. The wide white sand bay is lined with fisherman’s huts and draws hundreds of surfers every year from as far away as Hawaii and Brazil to challenge the huge waves of  Desert point, just offshore.

Although the road deteriorates after Labuhan Poh, it is still passable for most vehicles in the dry season. During the surfing season, from mid-May to September and again  in December, the beach is buzzing with surfers, but otherwise it is a remote and peaceful area. Bali is clearly visible, with the island of Nusa Penida only about an hour’s sail away.

The drive to the point is dotted with bucolic scenery and tiny villages, making it a worthwhile trip even for non-surfers. There is basic surfer accommodation in the area and plans for development in the near future.

The southwest is slated for tourism development and it’s easy to imagine hotels and resorts on all these beaches and islands in the future, as well as yachts, fishing boats, windsurfers, dive boats and the lake. But for now, the Southwest is unspoilt and the Gilis remain the secret island... stunningly beautiful, pristine and unique ; and known only