Senggigi guide: sunsets facing Bali and Lombok’s most beautiful coast road
Batu Bolong temple on its rock, the Malimbu viewpoint, grilled fish at Nipah and the gateway to the three Gilis.
Senggigi was Lombok’s first resort area — a strip of beaches on the west coast facing the Lombok Strait, where on clear evenings the sun sets behind the silhouette of Bali’s Mount Agung. Heading north, the coast road to Pemenang rises and falls over headlands and bays, one of the most beautiful drives in Indonesia.
What to do
- Sunset at Batu Bolong Temple — a small Hindu temple on a rock with a hole through it, where locals gather at dusk.
- Drive to Malimbu Hill — a coast-road viewpoint with bays below and the three Gilis lined up offshore.
- Pusuk Forest — the forested mountain road to the east, known for its troops of monkeys.
- Mayura & Narmada water gardens — royal water gardens left by Lombok’s Balinese kingdom, near Mataram.
- Day trip to the Gilis — boats from Teluk Nara or Bangsal, about 25 minutes from Senggigi.
What to eat
- Grilled fish at Nipah Beach — a row of beach warungs grilling fresh fish over charcoal — simple and excellent.
- Ayam taliwang in Mataram — the dish comes from Karang Taliwang in Mataram, about 25 minutes away.
- Sate rembiga — Mataram’s sweet-and-spicy beef satay.
- Coffee & banana fritters on the beach — the afternoon snack while waiting for sunset.
Arts & culture
- Lingsar Temple — a sacred complex where Hindus and Wetu Telu Sasaks worship side by side, known for the Perang Topat rice-cake festival.
- Mayura & Narmada gardens — water gardens left by Lombok’s 18th-century Balinese kingdom, with a pavilion in the middle of the pool.
- Banyumulek pottery village — potters shape clay by hand and fire it in traditional kilns — you can try it yourself.
- Sukarara weaving — a songket-weaving village in Central Lombok where cloth is made on backstrap looms.
Best time & tips
Senggigi is far quieter than in its 1990s heyday, which is exactly its appeal. The dry season (May–October) brings the clearest sunsets, and the coast road is best driven in the late afternoon when the light falls on the sea.
Getting there
Senggigi is about 1 hour–1 hour 15 minutes from Lombok International Airport. Some fast boats from Bali also stop at Senggigi or Teluk Kode.
