The up-and-coming south — Kuta Lombok (not to be confused with Bali's Kuta), a laid-back surf town that's the gateway to some of Indonesia's most beautiful, empty beaches and bays, from powder-white Tanjung Aan to the surf breaks of Gerupuk and Selong Belanak. Cool, low-key and scenic, with a growing café-and-guesthouse scene; the base for travellers who want jaw-dropping beaches, surfing and Sasak culture without the crowds. Lombok's rising beach star. Beautiful and mellow.
A look around
What you’ll be living next to. Swipe through.
€45–110
typical per night in Indonesia
The sensible middle
Typical prices for Lombok — neither steal nor splurge.
Where it sits
The circle is Kuta Lombok and roughly a 10-minute walk around it.
How far is everything?
From the middle of this area to the city's headline sights — pick your own on the city page and these become your list.
- Ayam Taliwang & Sasak food116 min taxi38.7 km
- Tetebatu rice terraces & the interior116 min taxi38.8 km
- The Malimbu & Nipah coast viewpoints166 min taxi55.3 km
- Mount Rinjani & the crater rim168 min taxi56.0 km
- Snorkelling with turtles off the Gilis193 min taxi64.2 km
- The Gili Islands (beach)195 min taxi64.9 km
- The Gili Islands195 min taxi64.9 km
- Gili Trawangan sunset & nightlife196 min taxi65.4 km
- Sendang Gile & Tiu Kelep waterfalls199 min taxi66.2 km
On your doorstep
What you’re living next to if you stay here.
- 3.Tanjung Aan & the Kuta beaches — Some of the most beautiful beaches in Indonesia sit around Kuta in the south — and the loveliest is Tanjung Aan, a horseshoe bay of soft, pale sand (famously fine as peppercorns underfoot) and calm, glass-clear turquoise water, with a hilltop nearby (Bukit Merese) for a jaw-dropping view over the whole coast. Swim, laze and climb the headland at sunset; the string of nearby bays — Mawun, Mawi, Seger — are just as gorgeous and often empty. This is Lombok's south at its dreamiest. Simply stunning. A beach day to remember.
- 5.Selong Belanak & learning to surf — A glorious white crescent of a bay in the south-west, Selong Belanak is both one of Lombok's prettiest beaches and its friendliest place to learn to surf — gentle, rolling beginner waves break over a sandy bottom, with cheap board hire and easygoing surf schools right on the sand. Take a lesson and catch your first wave, or just laze on the wide beach with a coconut and watch the surfers. It's a stunning, relaxed spot, and the south coast's clutch of surf breaks (Gerupuk, Mawi) are close by for the more experienced. A brilliant beach-and-surf day. Wonderful for beginners.
- 7.A traditional Sasak village — Lombok's indigenous Sasak people give the island its distinct culture, and you can step into it at a traditional village like Sade or Ende near Kuta — clusters of thatched, bamboo-and-clay houses and rice barns with sweeping roofs, where villagers still live traditionally, weave gorgeous ikat textiles on backstrap looms, and demonstrate crafts and customs. A short guided visit (tip your guide) is a genuine, fascinating window into Sasak life, weaving and architecture, far from the beaches. A meaningful, cultural highlight and a good souvenir stop. Interesting and authentic. Buy a woven cloth.
- 9.Pink Beach (Pantai Tangsi) — Out on Lombok's remote south-east coast lies a genuine natural wonder — Pink Beach (Pantai Tangsi), one of only a handful of pink-sand beaches on earth, its sand blushed rosy by crushed red coral mixed into the white. Set in a wild, undeveloped bay of clear water good for snorkelling, it's a bumpy but rewarding trip (often combined with a boat to nearby islets and a viewpoint) far from anywhere. Come for the novelty and the raw, empty beauty; the pink is subtlest and prettiest in bright sun. A unique, off-the-beaten-track highlight. Wild and special.
When are you staying?
Booking.com & Airbnb open searched to Kuta Lombok; flights via Google Flights.