Visiting Nusa Penida

Since the tour I had booked in Bali didn’t went to Nusa Penida, but I really wanted to go there, I decided not to fly straight to Australia after the tour but to stay a few more days on Nusa Penida.

In the morning after breakfast and after saying goodbye to everyone, I was picked up by the taxi at the hotel. This was to take me to Sanur, from where the ferry to Nusa Penida went.

Fortunately two others from my tour also traveled to Nusa Penida, so I didn’t have to take care of the ferry and everything else on my own. Luckily our tour guide had organised the taxi to the ferry for us and the taxi driver then organised the ferry for us.

However, I was quite nervous because I had read on the internet that the only way to explore the island was by scooter. But since I have never ridden a scooter in my life and the traffic in Indonesia can be very dangerous, I definitely did not want to rent a scooter. At first I thought I could just order a taxi with an app, but there are no taxi apps on Nusa Penida.

I then asked my tour guide for help, but he only said “You will figure it out when you arrive on the island”.

Welcome to Nusa Penida

At 1 pm I finally took the ferry to Nusa Penida with the others from my tour. Fortunately, the journey took only a little over 30 minutes. However, we did not get to the ferry over a jetty, but we were picked up right on the beach, so we had to get into the water to get to the ferry. With all the luggage, it’s not that easy, if you end up with sand everywhere.

As soon as I arrived on the island there were a few taxi drivers on the beach, who asked you on the ferry, if they can bring you to the accommodation. Of course, I accepted this offer directly.

My taxi driver then drove me to my accommodation, which was about 10 minutes away from the harbour. During the ride, the driver asked me if he could show me the island tomorrow. He had given me a map with two different tours to the most famous beaches on Nusa Penida. Since I had already read on the internet that a private driver is the only alternative, if you don’t want to rent a scooter, I accepted this offer.

I was able to choose the time myself, which is why I decided to go for 8 a.m. Although it was quite early, but since all the beaches are so crowded with tourists in the afternoon, I wanted to get there as soon as possible to escape the flow of tourists.

Some time for myself

The first afternoon on Nusa Penida I just spent relaxing in my accommodation. Through Airbnb I had booked a small hotel room in a quiet resort with a pool. Since the resort cost as much as a hostel, I thought, I could treat myself to a few more days of rest before heading back to hostellife in Australia.

In the afternoon I ate in a small Indonesian restaurant. The food there was very good and compared to the other restaurants in Bali very cheap. So I went to eat there again in the evening. When I was about to make dinner in the evening, an employee from the resort asked me if she should take me on her scooter. In Bali I was always amazed at how friendly the people there are.

The famous Kelingking Beach

The next morning I got my breakfast at the resort. At 8 a.m. my taxi driver was there and shortly after we went to the famous Kelingking Beach.

After half an hour drive over the island we arrived at Kelingking Beach. When we arrived at the parking lot there were only three more cars there. My taxi driver had explained to me on the way to Kelingking Beach that all the cars that would meet us are taxis that pick up the tourists at the port.
When we arrived at Kelingking Beach it was still very quiet there. My driver was with me the whole time and always took me around. So he was not only my driver but also my tour guide.

I found the Kelingking Beach really nice. The feeling of being in such world-famous places, which you have seen so often in pictures, is simply indescribable. However, I only enjoyed the view over Kelingking Beach from above, as my tour guide had advised me not to go down, as the climb back upwards would be very exhausting with the temperatures.

Since my tour guide is there almost every day, he knew the best spots for good pictures. Without asking him, he always took pictures of me there and also climbed trees for the pictures. I found it quite funny but also cute how much effort people in Indonesia go to for you.

When we finally left the Kelingking Beach, masses of tourists met us and also the parking lot was now full. So getting up early was worth it.

Angel Billabong and Broken Beach

From Kelingking Beach we drove on to Angel Billabong and Broken Beach. These two were right next to each other. I didn’t like the Angel Billabong so much, so I didn’t stay there that long.

The view over Broken Beach was already a lot nicer. This is where I stayed longer. From the cliffs above I could see a manta ray in the water.

From Broken Beach we drove on to the last beach for the day. This one was Crystal Bay. The beach was beautiful, but due to its name I had expected a little more. Nevertheless, I spent some time there and took some pictures with my camera.

From Crystal Bay my taxi driver drove me back to my resort. It was only 1 p.m. now. I had actually thought at the beginning that the tour to all the beaches would last the whole day.

So I had the whole day to myself. First I went to lunch in the same restaurant as I was the day before. The rest of the afternoon I spent at the pool in the sun. In the evening I went for dinner in the Indonesian restaurant again.

Spotting Mantarays

The next morning my taxi driver picked me up at my resort after breakfast. For the next day I had booked a snorkel tour.

I’ve been snorkeling a lot in the last few weeks, but since I really like to go snorkelling and I had the chance to see Manta rays, I decided to do the tour.

The first spot was Manta Bay, where we were supposed to see Manta rays. Already from the boat we could see five Manta rays. However, as soon as I was in the water, they were gone.

After a short time, however, a manta ray appeared in front of me in the water. I had always imagined Manta rays to be quite small, but since a few people had already told me that they were much bigger, I was not so surprised that the rays were so big.

Watching the manta rays in the water was really fascinating. Unfortunately, this was the only manta ray I saw in the water. Still, I think I’m lucky that I was able to see one at all.

After our stop at Mantabay we went to three more spots. But they all looked relatively similar and we couldn’t see more than a few fish. Among other things, we were also snorkeling at Crystal Bay. I liked it much better there underwater than on land.

It’s all about food

Shortly after eleven a.m. we were actually back at the harbour. There my taxi driver picked me up and drove me back to my resort. On the way there, I saw that there was a small café not far from my resort. The food in the Indonesian restaurant tasted very good, but after two days I needed a bit of variety again.

So I went there for lunch at noon. The café offered Italian food, Mexican food, Indonesian food and much more. I ordered a burger that was really good.

The afternoon I then spent again at the pool. I also started packing, because I had to check out the next morning.

In the evening I went back to the café, where I had lunch. This time I had ordered a pizza that I had been looking forward to since lunch (haha). I think in all my time in Bali this was the best restaurant I had eaten at. The food there was almost three times as expensive as in the Indonesian restaurant, but the food was really good.

Another Tour around the island

The next morning I checked out at 8 a.m. My flight did not leave from Denpasar until 11 pm, which is why I had booked the second tour with my taxi driver on that day. To check out of my room large single room hurt a bit, because from now on I would only sleep with many other people in a hostel room.

On that day, however, the father of my taxi driver took me across the island, as he was unable to do so himself.

During the one hour drive across the island to Diamond Beach, my tour guide for that day told me about the problems he had with his wife. Besides, he asked me for advice. The situation was a bit unpleasant for me (haha).

When we arrived at Diamond Beach and Atuh Beach, the parking lot was almost empty. From a lookout point at the parking lot we already had an incredible view over the blue water. To take pictures there I had to pay 20 000 rupees, but the money was worth it.

From there we went straight on to Diamond Beach. I stayed there for a long time, because I was just so fascinated by this place, I just couldn’t get enough of the view. I think this was really the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.

Right next to Diamond Beach was Atuh Beach. This was quite boring compared to the Diamond Beach, which is why I didn’t stay there long.

The famous Tree House

From Diamond Beach we drove to the famous Tree House and Thousand Island. These were just one kilometer away by car from Diamond Beach.

To get to the treehouse you had to walk down a long staircase. The way down was not a problem, but the way up was quite exhausting in the heat.

To take pictures at the Treehouse, you had to pay 75 000 rupees. I’ve been thinking for a moment if it’s really worth the money. But since I probably won’t come back to Nusa Penida so soon, I paid the money. Fortunately, I was able to take some good pictures.

In order to be able to take the pictures there, you had to draw a number and wait until it was your turn. This took a while, but with the breathtaking view I had, it was only half as bad.

Before it finally went up the stairs to the parking lot again, I bought another bottle of water. Without water in the heat, the path would have been impossible for me.

Back to Bali

Arrived at the top, my driver took me back to the harbour. From there I wanted to take the ferry to Sanur. The drive back to the harbour took an hour. Since there was still some time before my ferry arrived, my driver showed me an Indonesian restaurant, in which we had lunch together.

At 1:30 p.m., I took the ferry back to Sanur. But before that my driver came to me again, with whom I spent the first days on the island and said goodbye to me. I thought that was very sweet.

When I got back to Bali, I took a taxi to the airport. Although I had a lot of time until 11 pm, but with all my heavy luggage I couldn’t have done much anyway.

At the airport I had to wash myself first at the sink on the toilet, because I had sand all over my body from the ferry.

A stressful flight to Sydney

When I was finally able to check in, I was told at check-in that my flight would be delayed. Since I had to fly to Sydney via Melbourne and had only three hours layover, I got a bit nervous.

After all, the plane was even more delayed than originally planned, so I only had an hour to change over. Since I had to check in completely new for the flight to Sydney, it was then a bit nervous.

When we finally landed in Melbourne, we were not allowed to leave the plane for some quarantine reasons. We sat on the plane for an hour and were not allowed to leave.

In the meantime, I had missed my connecting flight to Sydney. Fortunately, the airline organized another flight for me, which left two hours later. Fortunately, I didn’t have to pay for the flight either.

The three days on Nusa Penida with all the tours were quite expensive. But for all the beautiful experiences it was worth a lot of money.