Thanks for the updated information about Padang Bai and the Gili’s!

Thanks for your reply. We’ve just returned from Padang Bai from where we went island hopping on the Lombok Gili’s for a few days.

Stayed at Bloo Lagoon eco resort above blue lagoon beach. Blue lagoon beach is a nice 150m alcove with, as you said, a couple of beach restaurants and some nice snorkelling.

I can’t help thinking that the beach would have been so much better if not for the junk and jetsam strewn up its length, and of how much more of an international reputation it might garner for the small effort of walking it’s length and cleaning it up once a day. In fact I’ll pass this idea to the resort in case they’re interested.

Unfortunately we did not make it to white beach as we were in Padang Bai for 24 hrs and figured we’d watch a sunrise from the islands anyway. But we saw the resort in construction phase from the opposing hill. Sorry I can’t tell you if it’s stalled or not.

Padang Bai is a cute fishing village where the pressure to buy is restricted to calls for “transport” or “taksi”, but the rest is pretty easy going.

I can also highly recommend taking a break from the usual Bali formula in Padang Bai and seeing the Gili islands even if you’re not into scuba diving. The three or four days you spend there will put a different spin on the Bali experience, and you get to see small island life up close and get carried around on a cidona (mini-horse drawn carriage). The complete lack of any motor transport was worth it in itself.

Now if they could just get rid of the phones….

The other beach in Padang Bai is also very nice, it’s called ‘Blue Lagoon’ and just a 5 minute walk from the harbor lagoon to the northeast. It’s better for snorkeling than bathing, as there are many stones and corals near the shore. Also it gets very shallow during low tide near the shore. The water here is more calm and less currents, so it’s ideal to just float with a mask on and watch corals and marine life there. On the left side of this bay is a small canal which leads through the corals towards the deeper water. They have also a restaurant there overlooking the bay, which serves decently priced local food with a western touch.

Have fun!

I am in Bali at the moment and am looking for that beautiful small beach near Padang Bai. I was taken there once for a sunrise and now want to take my new bride (honeymoon) back there for the experience. Google maps indicate two beaches nearby, one to the East and one kind of south west of the harbour. Please could you tell me which one yuou went to as this sounds like the same one we had fresh fish cooked for our breakfast in a hut on the beach.

Many thanks,

Damon James (& Kate!)

To the left of the harbor bay, there is a beach known as Blue Lagoon, which has shallower waters and offers great snorkelling, although there are plenty of sharp stones and the waves could make it difficult to get to the better spots. Further east of Padang Bai there are plenty of other beaches as well, all the way up to Amed or Tulanbem in the North East, with more yellow or even stony/pebble shores.

Better plan at least 2 days to explore the whole area. You could take Padang Bai as your base, as it offers cheap accommodation and explore from there. Have a great trip!

What was the name of the beach you went to in Padan Bei if you know it…was it a cove?

Thanks

Paul