Lombok Cultural Trips & Experiences

We had an amazing 2-week trip in Bali and Lombok! First, everyone loooooved Tejaprana Resort and Spa in Ubud. It was amazing in all ways -- the property, our rooms with pools overlooking the jungle, the spa, the food, the service, the passionfruit drinks! We stayed for 5 nights and could've stayed longer.
Mt Batur hike - It was exactly what we anticipated. Glad we had a beautiful sunrise as we knew that's not guaranteed. The hike was tough in parts but totally worth the 2am wake up call.
Bike ride from Kintamari -- This was in the top 3 activities for the group. Amazing day! The two guys from Infinity were wonderful. It was an exhilarating day cycling through the villages and countryside.
Cooking class -- Excellent. However, it lacked some "intimacy" because of its scale. There were 3 other classes happening at the same time. Good food in a beautiful home, though. [I'd skip the market tour next time.]
Overall food in Ubud -- We ate really well...from Compound Warung to Mozaic. Breakfast and snacks at Tejaprana were delicious!
The traffic in Ubud was NO JOKE. We were glad we hired Edi to get us around a couple of those nights. We did use Grab a few times and that worked out for us, as well.
Budi (tour guide)-- What a great guy! So full of life and an amazing sense of humor. We enjoyed our time with him which was only the one day (as we did Pasir Putih the following day instead of Lempuyang). We got to Besakih early before the crowds which was really nice. We had the place to ourselves. And Tirtagangga brought a smile to our faces. Who doesn't love feeding koi and eating ice cream? :)
Amed -- Stayed at the Griya which had pros and cons. I think we would have given it 5 stars had we not just stayed at Tejaprana. The coastal view from the pool made up for it, though. And good food in their restaurant.
We opted for a day at Pasir Putih beach instead of visiting Lempuyang due to the crowds. Edi (driver) took us. He seemed pleased that we wanted to go there. Wow what a beautiful beach. Quiet. Cheap, great warung food and beers. Perfect weather. Super relaxing. A memorable day for us.
Sunset boat ride and BBQ -- The boat ride was lovely and HOLY COW the BBQ was amazing. We didn't know what to expect but it exceeded our expectations! Quite a spread.
Our guide in Lombok-- Maliki! Too much to type but we will probably keep in touch with him. Really great guy. :)
Snorkeling was a good day. So many turtles which made it memorable...a really nice day on the Gilis and in the water.
The Mahagiri Villas in Sanur were great. We arrived and checked in and congregated at one villa, ordered a bunch of snacks and beer, sat in the pool. We were happy.
Then we pulled ourselves together and walked the backstreets of Sanur and wished we had had one more night there, fyi. Lovely town. Walkable. Hit the night market. Ate dinner on the promenade. It was an ideal final day.
And Edi (our driver).
EDI!
Loved him. He's great. We established so much trust with him. What a good guy.
Last but certainly not least -- Marc. Our travel specialist. We were so glad we took his advice on so many things...staying at Tejaprana (it wasn't our first choice), the bike ride he picked, hiring Edi for additional driving services. I could go on and on. Marc is a great communicator and we were tough customers. We highly recommend using Marc. We'd take this trip all over again.

We had an amazing 3 week trip to Indonesia, visiting 4 islands (Java, Kalimantan, Bali, Flores/Komodo). Myriam did an excellent job planning the trip, she was very responsive both during the planning and while traveling. Everything worked out as planned and on schedule. All the guides were knowledgeable, spoke good English, though sometimes they had some difficulty understanding it. The hotels were all good. The best experiences were the Komodo and Kalimantan boat trips and Prambanan and Borobudur temples near Yogyakarta.

Hotel Reviews

Ketapang Indah Hotel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Private cruise trip in Komodo National Park

Labuan Bajo, Indonesia

Food was ok, could have been better. Staff smokes a lot

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Golo Hill Top

Very basic

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Sri Ratih Cottages

Breakfast was not very good

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Taman Sari Bali Resort & Spa

Pemuteran

Authenticity & Character

Location

on beach

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Private Klotok Boat

Pangkalan Bun

Great food. Staff smokes a lot.

Authenticity & Character

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

No hot water, AC didn't always work

Lava View Lodge Hotel

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Tugu Malang

Malang

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

The Phoenix Hotel Yogyakarta - MGallery Collection

YOGYAKARTA

Authenticity & Character

Location

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

FM7 Resort Hotel Jakarta

Tangerang, Banten

Authenticity & Character

Location

near airport

Staff

Cleanliness & Comfort

Activity Reviews

Prambanan: Indonesia’s Largest Shivaite Temple Complex

Yogyakarta

Visiting Prambanan was one of my favorite experiences in Yogyakarta. This Hindu temple complex is truly magnificent and a must-see for its beautiful architecture and historic significance. The guide was knowledgeable and the tour was informative, showing the highlights of this ancient cultural landmark. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend it to anyone visiting the area.

2 nights Liveaboard Cruise: Discover Flores & Komodo

Komodo Island

The liveaboard cruise around Flores and Komodo was a fantastic highlight of the trip. The combination of on-land hikes with beautiful views and encounters with Komodo Dragons, along with snorkeling on great beaches, made it an exceptional experience. The boat and crew were nice, with the highlight being the knowledgeable team pointing out wildlife and ensuring we could take great pictures.

The trip was amazing. The hotels were excellent. The only constructive criticism was the guide in Lumbak was not very good. Asink was very pleasant but didn’t really guide us thru the area especially considering how wonderful the other guides were. Also the tasting lunch was not good and would not recommend using that restaurant in the future. Otherwise everything else was spectacular.