Gili Meno: a travelers guide

In all of my traveling I have relied heavily on travel websites and personal blogs, offering details and ideas for the places I will travel. Thanks to all those who offer up this helpful information to us travelers! In an effort to “give back” to those travelers out there, I’ll give my best account of Gili Meno, so that you can be a little oriented before arriving. 

For my regular readers: I do hope that you get a chance to go to Gili Meno, the tiny island in Indonesia, until then, this may be a little different of a blog post than what you are used to! 

Gili Meno (the word Gili here is a bit redundant, for it means “little island”) is the smallest and quietest of the three Gili’s off the northwest coast of Lombok, in the Bali Sea. These islands are a popular destination for backpackers. Gili Meno  is a nice relief from the somewhat seedy party scene on the more famous and popular Gili Trawangan. Meno is also a nice relief from the crowds of young travelers and the hordes of pushy touts. 

not my photo

The island is very quiet, not a lot going on here! If you are up for a really relaxing trip this might be the place for you. The island is small, it can be walked around in about two hours. There are no paved roads, no motorbikes, no cars, but there are small horse drawn carriages, called Cidomos, that you can hire for about 60,000 rupiah for a trip to just about anywhere on the island. I would recommend walking! It is beautiful here, and there's nothing but time when the commodities of the modern world are scarce. 

To get to Gili Meno you will need to take a boat from Bali. You can take a slow ferry (about 4 hours, unreliable if the weather is bad) from Padang Bai to Lombok, and from there a small Island Hopping boat to Meno, or a fast boat (300,000 IDR) from a few locations (Padang Bai, Sanur) to Gili Trawangan, and take the same Island Hopping boat to Meno (20,000 IDR, morning and afternoon). 

Either way the boat will arrive on the East side of Gili Meno, just south of the center.

For lodging I would recommend just booking something upon arrival. There are probably some websites offering bungalows on Meno, but the price you can negotiate while there will be better, as will your selection of places. Just south of the boat drop off point there are a few sets of bungalows reaching to the very south of the island. All these places are nice and have great views, prices start at about 300,000 for a bungalow, often breakfast is included at the little restaurants associated with each place. 

Along the whole west coast there are places to stay, and also there are several small roads that lead inland, each offering a small variety of humble accommodation for much cheaper (starting at 50,000). So to save a few bucks you can be a five minute walk to the beach, as opposed to right on the beach. 

I personally did both! It was really lovely to be in the village, just slightly inland. It is quiet and dark at night, and by day you can catch a glimpse into what life is really like for the locals on the island. Here is the lodging I first stayed at, just north of the middle and in about 100 meters. The place is called Tropicana, and I highly recommend it:

After several days in the village we wanted to be on the beach! So, after exploring the entire island and inquiring about prices we settled down at the place with the nicest beach, just south of the boat landing spot. Our bungalow was called Malias Child:

There is not much lodging on the west coast of the island, in fact there is not much at all, maybe a few little places to eat or have a fresh fruit drink, but they are rather spaced apart! 

There is no free wifi on the island, only a pay service, which I didn't use, so I'm not sure if it's reliable. There is one internet cafe just south of the boat drop off area, where you can use their PC's for a fee.

The view from this island is incredible, from the east coast you can see Lombok's Mount Rinjani and from the west coast you can see Bali's mountainous terrain. The sky is big here, and an occasional storm will roll in making dramatic dark clouds. My kind of entertainment! 

The beach is quiet, it is easy to find a spot with no one around, if that kind of peace and solitude it what you seek. There are a few restaurants, usually associated with each bungalow, with cheap local food and a few foreign food options. 

Their are a few dive shops on the island, and many places to rent a snorkel. The reef around Gili Meno is incredible, you can just swim off the shore and spend hours engrossed in the tropical water land. Or you can rent a boat trip from just about any local on the island, they can show you all the best spots.  Their are scores of different kinds of fish, big and small, as well as the beautiful large sea turtles. We were lucky to see many of these majestic creatures. 

not my photo

We got to meet lots of locals on the island, they are kind and hospitable. They love music, and well, so do we! This is my newest instrument, and I was lucky to be able to have a few jam sessions with the friendly people, who offered us their (strong) rice liquor and some good late night singin! 

If you have any questions, please ask away! I'd be happy to help. And as always:

love love love