A Biking Odyssey Amid Gili Trawangan

From a hearty tale of beach cruising through Gili Trawangan Island to its local villages, this story will spark your wanderlust!

No matter where we are in the world, every time we embark on a biking adventure, we feel the anticipation of a new story. One of the pleasures with indulging outdoor is not having to hop in a car and drive to do them. There are plenty of trails with great scenes, the majority of us would opt for a car drive just to participate in them.

Try, just attempt to let go of driving a car. It is, definitely more exciting to hop on a bike and go for adventures in exotic places. Each ride would bring new sensations dictated by the atmosphere, riding partners, trail conditions, intensity of the ride and of course, the whole experience would change the way we feel. Not giving a bother to your bike performance. When you’re on a bike, you can’t help but feel completely alive and immersed at the moment.

There is something mysteriously thrilling about riding a bike to explore a strange and new region, its native lifestyle pulsating with the local citizens. Instead of gazing impassively through the window glasses of your car, you interact with a whole new world in a unique way. Our biking odyssey amid Gili Trawangan was undoubtedly no exception.

An Enchanted Island

Situated just east of Bali and off the coast of Lombok in Indonesia, the Gilis are made up of three small islands: Gili Air, Gili Meno, and Gili Trawangan. Gili Trawangan is the largest and most visited of the three Gili Islands off Lombok. This tiny, Muslim island is overwhelmed by corals and surrounded by white sandy beaches, clear sparkling turquoise water, and a fascinating underwater life.

Every day, boats arrive from other Indonesian islands or harbour from Lombok with hundreds of visitors longing for a party or simply a place to relax and chill out. The jetty is often crowded, and when the ferry or fast boat are docked at the shores of Gili Trawangan, travelers will be guided by enthusiastic local guides to the entrance, then to the accommodations.

Upon arrival, your inner voice would absolutely urge you to jump into the crystal clear water, swim around alongside schools of fishes, or grab a bottle of Bintang beer or two to gulp. The scorching ray is calling you for all!

Welcome to the home of the largest Irish bar on the smallest island in the world, the authentic seafood restaurants, the turtle hatchery, ominous sounding dive sites, and incredibly expansive beaches. Welcome to the surprisingly idyllic atoll of Indonesia!

A Sight of Paradise

Going to the island, one must make full use of the implausible elements the Mother Nature offers. Diving, snorkelling, partying, watching the sunset and sunrise, or biking; whichever way you choose, you will be guaranteed to see Gili Trawangan’s breath-taking sceneries.

After having ourselves indulged in the sea, getting sufficient sun tan, the bicycles were calling. In this tiny island, we are not permitted to ride any type of motorized transports, and therefore, people in the island very much rely on bicycles or horse-drawn carts, locally known as “Cidomos”.

Aside from the water activities, horse riding, or nightlife entertainments which Gili Trawangan is famed for, however, we were amazed at how busy the street was with tourists riding bicycles on the island. Believe it or not, cycling through this small Gili Trawangan was a startling way to experience some of its unique and distinguished culture and way of life. Whether it’s a pasture land, neighbourhood, graffiti or sculpture along the street, these were the precious opportunities to feed our memory.

Getting to some of the indigenous residences could be done by bicycles, which also meant we

managed to get every corner more easily and efficiently. Riding from one area to another, while horse carts passed us; we could simply dismount and take a closer look.

Bicycles can be rented from any of the kiosks. Due to the size of the island, we understood that it would not take us long to tour around one by bike. Get our bike ready, pick some snacks, prepare some beach gears, and make our afternoon of it!

Reveal the Path

We started the long day from our hotel, and the occasional happenstances of horse-drawn carriages on the street, biking in Gili Trawangan needed us to take extra cautious to avoid any unnecessary accident. Imagine, biking through one of the most beautiful islands, then getting dropped off in another side of Gili Trawangan, the word astonishment was an understatement.

When we began to perceive a different side of the island, we continued to make our way up to a rather indecent community and discovered some eye-opening pieces along the way. To our surprise, we did not experience culture shock. Coming from Malaysia, the Indonesian culture is very similar to ours. Compared with Bahasa Melayu, Bahasa Indonesia is still understandable.

The area set behind the main street was where most of the locals live. There were lying hills, and people relishing in their laidback lives. Cows were also basking in sunbathes on the ground. The community was not as if what we had seen in the beginning – the effervescent Caucasians chilling while sipping their cocktails, high-spirited divers coming back from their diving sessions, lounge bars with buoyant faces, ambitious restaurants. Riding on our beach cruiser bikes, the trails were rugged and rocky. Local houses were made of woods. Horses were kept in stables.

Alongside the route, we came across a huge and spacious site where all of the rubbishes were kept and burned. It was somewhat like a barren land and parched. Cycling at 12 afternoon, our skins were also getting sun-baked, which added an inconceivable feeling to our rides. Construction workers have to bear with the sweltering weather, and be all around by dusty environment just to make a living, it was a spot that we would never forget.

Biking Experience

On a bike, we were aware of the slight bends and curves. We could bump into women feeding milk to their small children, hear the different languages that were spoken in the neighbourhood. This bike tour provided captivating sights of the island, and what better way to make these new discoveries than by bicycle?

A narrow track circumnavigated the whole island and various roads criss-cross leading us back to the coastal path. Ultimately, we rode to Ombak Sunset, parked our bikes, and caught the aroma of fresh seafood cooking on a grill, and the distinct smell of local beer. Inevitably, we initiated a conversation with fellow beach boys at one of the bars. One such random chat led us to smile at how friendly and welcoming these people were!

As we cycled through a new destination, we could not stop us from learning more. We spent the rest of the evening indulging in local cuisine, having refreshing coconut juice, listening to the gentle waves, while overlooking the magnificent Mountain Agung, Bali from the other end. When we travelled to a foreign country, these basics further heightened the voyage.

With our legs ended up at the pristine beachside where we ate, chilled and drank, we got our minds shut and just lost ourselves in this ecstasy.