If you don’t know already, there are 3 Gili islands: Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno and Gili Air. The bigger one is Gili T, and it’s the one I would highly suggest you go and stay at. In my opinion, Gili Meno and Gili Air are a day trip. I have spent 1 month in Bali and I can assure you that the best part of my trip was Gili Trawangan. I extended my stay 3 times! I just couldn’t take the boat to come back to Bali.
Why you should go to Gili Trawangan
It’s a completely different world from Bali! Here is why:
1 – It’s way smaller: Technically, you could go around the whole island on a bicycle in 45 minutes. You won’t do it because of the sand, but I said technically!
2 – A greener environment: On Gili, there are no engines. That means no cars and no motorbikes. You can only get around by walking, bicycle or horse-drawn carriage. You will be amazed by the difference it makes. So much quieter and more peaceful.
3 – You will be forced to “exercise”: every day I would walk and use the bicycle I had rented. It makes you feel so good and healthy.
4 – Peaceful: When you go to a beach in Bali, you will get disturbed by sellers. If you want to use any utilities on the beach like a lying chair you have to pay. Not on Gili T! No one is disturbing your peace, and there are free bean bags and chairs to use.
Best balance between relaxation and partying
The island is divided into two sides: the sunset side and the sunrise side.
The sunrise side: That is where you get all the action! The boutiques, the restaurants, the cafés, the activities stand, the bars and clubs, everything! If you want to party all day and all night, this is the place for you.
The sunset side: It is calmer and way less busy. You will see the best sunset and have an amazing peace.
Since the island is so small, it takes only about 15 minutes to get to the other side. You should choose your place to stay depending on what environment you want to wake up and go to sleep in. In my opinion, the sunset side is the best place to stay. It is less busy because the restaurants, bars and activities are on the other side. I prefer waking up in a calm environment and going to sleep in silence, but with the possibility of riding my bicycle for 15 minutes to have all that action.
A day in my life on Gili Trawangan was to wake up, go to a beach I likely had all for myself, then, once hungry, take my bike and go have breakfast on the sunrise side. Then all day I would be back and forth between the two sides depending on if I wanted to relax and do nothing on the beach or do something and stay busy.
How to get to Gili Trawangan
The quickest way to get to Gili T from Bali is to take a fast boat departing from Padang Bai. You could also depart from Sanur Beach Port.
Padang Bai will take between 1h15 and 3h00 depending on the boat and will cost around 325k Indonesian Rupiah for a one-way trip. It is simply double the price for a round trip.
If you depart from Sanur it will take all day to get there for the same price. I don’t recommend it.
What I recommend: Go to Padang Bai and negotiate with the selling companies. They will give you a deal. I paid 600k for a round trip. I could change my return date without a problem, and when I got back they took me to my hotel in Seminyak which was a 2 hours ride. My deal gave me the ride to my hotel for free, if you see what I mean.
