Why to Stop in Padangbai
Spending a night in Padangbai?
It is true that most visitors to willage of Padangbai only spend time in the place to catch a ferry or speed boat to Lombok and Gilis. Nevertheless, some of them can really appreciate the attractions of Padangbai and how it is different from many other tourism resorts areas in Bali. Besides its quietness and traditional atmosphere, Padangbai and Nusa Penida has great underwater treasures and their diving spots are one of the best in hole Bali and Lombok.
Traveling to Gilis
To figure out its beauty, you have to go dive and encounter a wide variety of marine life including the world’s popular sunfish, manta rays, sharks, turtles and much more. Being very quiet with traditional atmosphere and without merry night life, Padangbai offers a great base for trips around Bali. All the best Bali attractions like temples, volcanoes, rice fields, rafting, canyoning and scuba diving are just around our corner.
From Padangbai, you also have access to the wreck of Liberty in Tulamben, a U.S. Army Transport ship that was hit by a Japanese torpedo in 1942. Going across the water in southeast direction, you will arrive in Nusa Penida, a place where at least 20 great diving destinations exist including Crystal Bay, Blue Corner and Manta Point.
To the east of Padangbai, you will come across Lombok’s most popular tourist destinations, the Gili Islands which consists of:
- Gili Trawangan: despite being quite and almost isolated from anywhere, Gili Trawangan is known as the party island. In the past, tourists visited this island mainly to enjoy snorkelling and diving, but the place has grown into quite crowded resort where a wide spectrum of visitors including families and couples enjoy partying as well. Nowadays, an array of glamour is all over the island. Diving is really not so good around the island as most of the coral doesn’t exist anymore and it mostly serves like training place for open water courses and discover scuba diving for people tired from all the parties.
- Gili Air: this is the closest island to Lombok; it is home to a well-developed local community. It is actually a quieter island than Gili Trawangan.
- Gili Meno: it is located between those two islands, and it possibly has the most traditional and natural atmosphere.
Gili Islands are probably more popular tourist destinations, but Padangbai is somewhat better for travellers who yearn for exploring traditional life of Balinese their lifestyle and culture.
As a gateway to Lombok and Gili Islands, Padang Bai offers water transportation to reach those places. There are basically two options available including Public Ferry and Fast Boat. The former is a slow-moving boat and is usually found in larger pier in the harbour. Fast boat is also available and purchasing the ticket can be easier and very cheap with our special deal Cheaper ticket to Gili.
