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| SPOTLIGHT | | Sand,
surf, adventure and more - Asia is the place for beach fun and island atmosphere.
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| Gili Trawangan
Trawangan is the largest
of the Gili's and was the first Island to attract visitors. The accommodation
dotted along the Coast Ranges from very simple losmens to the newly built Vila
Ombak. Gili Trawangan offers great dive trips to some excellent sites in deeper
water. There are a number of good dive shops offering dives to experienced divers
and those wanting to learn. Gili Trawangan has the reputation as the party island
and at night there is always something happening at one of the many restaurants
or bars.
Gili Meno
This island has a beautiful white beach, excellent
coral including rare blue coral just offshore
A few good little hotels have
sprung up alongside the original losmens, most looking out over the water towards
the mainland, a couple of places with air-conditioning are now available but all
have only cold water private facilities.
Gili Air
The smallest
of the three islands, Gili Air is also the quietest and less developed than its
neighbors. The white beach around Gili Air is quiet and deserted , a stroll round
the island will lake less than 45 minutes. Gili Air is the only island offering
air-conditioned accommodation and hot water. Gili Nanggu
Dotted
around the south-west peninsula of Lombok are many small islands, Very peaceful
, serene and generally underdeveloped. One of these , Gili Nanggu is made for
travelers looking for something different- an island with few visitors, basic
bungalows . The island has white beaches and is a naturally paradise as yet untouched
by mainstream tourism. Mount Rinjani
Mount Rinjani, a 3,726 meter
high active volcano, is one of the tallest mountains of Indonesia. At the floor
of the volcano's huge caldera is the sickle shaped crater lake Segara Anakan,
surrounded by steep walls. The mountain is popular with hikers. Sembalun Bumbung
and Sembalun Lawang are two traditional Sasak villages on the slopes of Rinjani. Mount
Tambora, Sumbawa
Not active at present, the 2,820 meters tall volcano
Tambora is notorious for its savage eruption on April 5 - July 15, 1815.
Failing
debris, hot gases and lava streams killed more than 12,000 people. Some 44,000
more perished of hunger in the aftermath of the explosion.
The top, now
a big caldera, has two colored lakes. From the rim of the crater, the view on
the rest of the island, the sea, Mt. Rinjani, and the island of Lombok is breathtaking.
The mountain occupies almost the entire Sanggar peninsula. Lombok Lombok
has gotten more popular over the past few years. People who think Bali is to crowded
but are essentialy looking for the same things Bali offers, head for Lombok. The
island has tranquil countryside, one urban area ( Mataram), great beaches, a spectacular
volcano and one established holiday resort Senggigi. gunung Rinjani is great for
trekking, the Wadden islands offer some of the best snorkeling in Indonesia. Lobok's
Kuta beach has big waves and good surfing.
Add all of these elements
together and you have a pretty good holiday destination. Not as crowded as Bali
but with the same fun, sun and action.
Mataram is the capital of Lombok.
The town actually consists of four different towns Ampenan, Mataram, Cakranegara
(Cakra) and Sweta.
Ampenan has most of the towns sights, including the
Negeri Nusa Tenggara Barat museum, which gives a good overview of the culture
of Lombok. Cakra is the best place for eating, sleeping and shopping. It also
has the Water Palace, which is worth a visit and the largest temple of Lombok,
the Pura Meru. Mataram is the administrative centre and Sweta the transport hub
of the whole island
Cakranegaraor shorted as Cakra is the part city of
Mataram [the provincional city of Nusa Tenggara Barat] that got Balinese influences.
This condition can be tracking down since Cakra was the place where King of Karangasem
[from Bali] took rules in the past centuries.
Here can be found several
monasteries and monuments which reflecting the power of King Karangasem. Such
as <em>Pura Meru</em> [Meru monastery, built 1720], Mayura High Court
and Water Castleand Narmada Water Park as miniature of the sacred mountain Rinjani.
Said that .... once you take the water for drink or washing your face, you'll
be look forever young! | |
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Top Beaches |
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 Pasir
Putih beach |
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Pasir Putih beach is located
near to the Samudra Pulau Baii harbor. The distance is about 19 km away from the
center of Bengkulu city. The road condition in this area is good. This place could
be reached by any kind of four-wheel vehicles. The beach condition is clean with
its white sand and, spruce-fir grows along the coast. |
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| Bira
Beach |
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Shallow water off the beach
is safe for swimming, ending in a coral wall dropping into the depths about 150m
from shore. Snorkellers can see turtles and manta rays here, with exciting diving
deeper down featuring strong currents, cold water and big sharks. |
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| Bali Beach |
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With its fine beaches,
pounding surf, emerald-green rice terraces and exceptionally artistic culture,
the small volcanic island of Bali - the only Hindu society in Southeast Asia -
has long been Indonesia's premier tourist destination. |
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| Pantai Panjang Beach |
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Pantai Panjang
beach is only 3 km from the center of Bengkulu City. The Beach is seven kilimeters
in length with the width of 500 meters in hotmix street. Many public transportation
to and from the beach are available. There are spruce-fir grows along the beach.
The restaurants and hotel facilities are also available. |
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| Padang Bai Beach |
| Several places in
Padang Bai rent out snorkelling equipment: there's good snorkelling at Blue Lagoon,
just around the headland in Amuk Bay, but it's even better to charter a boat;
ask at Celagi restaurant or your guesthouse. The dive operation, Geko Dive, is
a large set-up on Jalan Silayukti with a lot of experience. |
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| Pulau Bintan Beach |
| - Situated less
than 10km from Batam at the closest point, Pulau Bintan is about two and a half
times the size of Singapore, which seems to have left plenty of room for traditional
culture to survive alongside the plush tourist development. Not only is it more
attractive than other nearby islands, but there's much more of an Indonesian feel
about the place and things are reasonably priced. |
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| Lovina Beach |
| Lovina stretches along
8km of black-sand beach, the largest resort in Bali outside the Kuta-Legian-Seminyak
conurbation. Beginning 6km west of Singaraja, the resort encompasses six villages:
Pemaron, Anturan, Tukad Mungga, Kalibukbuk, Kaliasem and Temukus. Kalibukbuk is
generally accepted as the centre of Lovina and it's here you'll find most tourist
facilities. |
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| Nusa Lembongan Beach |
The Perama office
serves as the tourist information service and is in Jungutbatu between Pondok
Baruna and Nusa Indah bungalows; you can book tickets here to destinations on
Bali, Lombok and Sumbawa. There are at least daily departures, but all destinations
apart from Ubud, Kuta and Sanur require a stop-over on the way.
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| Kuta and Legian Beach |
| The beach is
quite possibly the most beautiful in Bali, with its gentle curve of golden sand
stretching for 8km, lashed by huge breakers. These waves make Kuta a great beach
for surfers, but less pleasant for swimming, with a strong undertow: always swim
between the red- and yellow-striped flags. |
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| Lampu'uk Beach |
Lampu'uk beach is a
glorious sandy arc that's both a popular day-trip and a pleasant alternative base
for travellers, chiefly because of the excellent Aceh Bungalows on the beach here.
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| Grajagan Beach |
The beach, Pantai
Coko, is signed from the village: it's 300m to the gate and then another 2km through
the forest to the black-sand beach.
Due to the surf, take local advice from
the forestry office about safe swimming spots, and never swim near the rocks.
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| Candi Dasa Beach |
| The tourist developments
have spread 8km west around the bay, through the villages of Senkidu, Buitan and
Manggis, where the beach is still a respectable size.
To get to a decent
beach from Candi itself, follow the road past Bunga Putri at the end of Forest
Road up onto the headland and then down onto the black sand on the other side. |
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| Pulau Weh Beach |
| Pulau Weh is yet
another gorgeous Indonesian paradise, with excellent diving and snorkelling possibilities
and white sandy beaches. The main attraction here is the excellent snorkelling
- gear can be rented from Stingray's office in Ibioh. |
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| Rapang Beach |
| Rapang is an attractive,
horseshoe-shaped beach, 2km south of Ibioh, with its own family of five hawksbill
turtles. There is a small selection of bungalows here, with prices similar to
those at Ibioh. . |
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| Lhong
Angen Beach |
| Lhong Angen , lies on
the western side of the island. It's one of the best, although for six months
of the year it completely disappears - swept away by the sea in November, returning
again in May. |
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| Sumbawa |
| Sumbawa is often perceived
as an inconvenient but necessary bridge between Lombok and Komodo, but it does
hold some fine west-coast beaches, as well as spectacular coral just offshore
at Pulau Moyo. |
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| Sanur |
| Sanur is an appealing, more
peaceful alternative to Kuta, with a long, fairly decent white-sand beach, plenty
of attractive accommodation in all price brackets and a distinct village atmosphere. |
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| Ende Beach |
| Situated on a narrow peninsula
with flat-topped Gunung Meja and the active volcano Gunung Ipi at the sea end,
the port of Ende is the largest town on Flores and provides access for Keli Mutu
and Moni. |
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| Kuta Beach |
| The simply glorious beaches
of Seger and Tanjung Aan are easily accessible from Kuta and, at a push, walkable,
though bicycles are a good idea. Seger is closest to Kuta (1km east) and is now
the location of the luxury Novotel. To reach Tanjung Aan (5km), follow the road
east out of the resort and take the first sealed turning to the right. |
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