{"id":16684,"date":"2015-02-23T10:26:47","date_gmt":"2015-02-23T09:26:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tasteaway.pl\/en\/?p=16684"},"modified":"2018-06-06T10:25:23","modified_gmt":"2018-06-06T08:25:23","slug":"indonesia-heavenly-gili-archipelago-snorkelling-turtles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tasteaway.pl\/en\/2015\/02\/23\/indonesia-heavenly-gili-archipelago-snorkelling-turtles\/","title":{"rendered":"Indonesia: heavenly Gili archipelago and snorkelling with turtles"},"content":{"rendered":"

We wanted to see Gili Archipelago<\/strong> from the very beginning. Because the they say heavenly beaches are there, blue water, white sand and everything that pops up in your head when you’re thinking about the perfect beach. First I saw my friend’s honeymoon pictures, then one of our friends said that there are the most beautiful beaches in the world on one of the islands – Gili Trawagan<\/strong>! Being on Bali, all the more on Lombok, you just cannot not go there!<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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Gili archipelago<\/strong> (Gili Islands)<\/strong> is located a few kilometres west from Lombok and consists of three islands: Gili Trawangan, Gili Meno i Gili Air.<\/strong> Despite the magnificent views, the islands aren’t all that heavenly and virginal. On one hand it’s not cool – who wouldn’t like to find themselves on a heavenly beautiful and uninhabited island for a moment? On the other it has its advantages – it’s easy to find a hotel or a restaurant there which makes it a great spot to relax far from cars, honking horns, crowded roads and loud cities. Because there’s no vehicular movement on Gili – driving any vehicle with a motor is forbidden. You can move around on your feet, on a bike or using local horse carriages. The islands are tiny, you can easily walk them along and across – Gili Trawangan, the biggest one – is 3 km long and 2 km wide. see for yourselves how they look on the map compared to Bali and Lombok – they don’t look at all – they’re just barely visible dots on the map. A perfect place for all of you tired of crowded Java and traffic jam on Bali.:) Perfect place for us!<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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Even though we’re travelling through Indonesia in the rain season which around here lasts from November to April, we can enjoy sun and cloudless sky on Gili. Due to their location, the climate here is better than on Bali or Lombok. The average annual temperature is 28 degrees. Now you know where to go if you ever feel the need to live in a beach hut, far from the world! \ud83d\ude42 Gili islands became popular in the 80s and nowadays it’s an absolute must on a trip to Indonesia! Gili are known for heavenly views, white beaches and turquoise water. Also, for great diving and snorkelling conditions. Gili Trawangan also used to be known for parties and easy access to drugs, especially with no local police force \ud83d\ude09 Nowadays Indonesia got a grip of it but Trawangan remains the loudest and most party island. If you’re looking for peace and quiet, choose Gili Meno or Gili Air.<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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Initially we planned to spend 2-3 nights on GIli, but after we found a perfect hotel on Lombok (more about it to come) we decided to stay there and only have a short trip to Gili. And go snorkelling!<\/strong> \ud83d\ude42 That’s one thing we’re looking forward to the most – it’s been a while since we had the occasion to go snorkelling in some good conditions and they say that on Gili you can not only see beautiful and colourful little fish, but also huge TURTLES which are the biggest underwater attraction! Wow!! I have to say that I didn’t believe that in the first place… ‘Just a trick to attract tourists, sometimes they’re here, sometimes they’re not’ I thought to myself. I did not anticipate meeting a turtle in person, but the idea of swimming with a tube was good enough.<\/p>\n

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There’s a few ways of getting to Gili<\/strong>: if you’re coming from Lombok, you can take the ferry that leaves from Bangasal, you can also hire a private boat. Or take a trip to Gili from Bali – tourist offices in resorts organise such trips, you can also look for the ferry on your own. A ship cruise from Padangabai (on Bali) to Trawangan takes about 5 hours.<\/p>\n

Since we stayed close to the archipelago, we decided to take a private boat because we wanted to reach the best snorkelling spot in no more than a few hours. This way, we could adjust the plan of the trip to what we wanted to do the most and Maks could wait for his snorkelling parents in nice conditions. Perfect!<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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We started with Gili Trawangan<\/strong> area – beautiful surroundings, just like we imagined: palms, white beaches, blue water… I expected more virginal vibe and instead saw plenty of folding beds, little huts and restaurants but it still looked beautiful! Best snorkelling conditions can be found on south-east coast of Trawangan and that’s exactly where we start<\/strong>. There’s plenty of boats moored close to the beach along with some people wearing masks and flippers. We put ours on and off we go! At first we swim one by one since somebody needs to take care of Maks, but over time Maks finds understanding with the staff and we’re no longer needed! Indonesia gets extra points for the approach to children!! We enter the water..<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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The reef is not as colourful and amazing as in Egypt but you can still see plenty of colourful fish, small and big ones, whole schools. And indeed, there are turtles!<\/strong> First I see them lying on the bottom, then we meet more and more of them swimming right next to us! You can caress them and even hold he smaller ones in your hands like \u0141ukasz did! Amazing and unforgettable experience! \ud83d\ude42 Definitely one of the best days of our whole trip! If you ever find yourself nearby, don’t hesitate a moment – it’s worth it!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

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After snorkelling by Gili Trawangan, we sail closer to Gili Meno and Gili Air which is located the nearest to Lombok. We see another turtle by Meno, but the place is far less attractive and the water gets a bit wavy which makes me feel like it’s not me who’s choosing the swimming direction. We get back on our boat, sunbathe, enjoy the view and think about turtles! You can also go beaching on Gili, but after our own paradise beach (I’ll write about it later!) we give it a pass and spend more time in the water. A beautiful day! When I look at the pictures now, I stil l cannot believe that we’ve been to PARADISE just a few days ago! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

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\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

\"Indonesia,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We wanted to see Gili Archipelago from the very beginning. Because the they say heavenly beaches are there, blue water, white sand and everything that pops up in your head when you’re thinking about the perfect beach. First I saw my friend’s honeymoon pictures, then one of our friends said that there are the most […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":16685,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2990,3037,2981],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nHeavenly Gili archipelago and snorkelling with turtles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Heavenly beaches, blue water, palm trees, no cars and snorkelling with turtles. 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