Gili Trawangan, Lombok - Indonesia
admin January 11th, 2010
The largest of the Gilis and now by far the most popular to visit, accommodation choices start from backpacker and budget hotels, a large selection of mid range hotels, through to resort style hotels and luxury villas.
Many new international restaurants offering everything from Pizza, to Sushi to Indian food and Spanish Tapas, and of course the seafood BBQ’s all along the beach front.
There are 6 PADI dive centres, 12 artificial Bio Rock projects, a turtle sanctuary and snorkeling accesses from the beach all around the island.
Gili Trawangan information….
The largest of the three islands, Gili Trawangan attracts the majority of visitors, it is around thirty minutes boat ride from the northwest mainland of Lombok and regular daily fast boats depart Bali directly to Trawangan island and all boats stop off at Teluk Nare on mainland Lombok as part of the return journey.
The beaches of the Gilis are still powdery white, the water a beautiful clear blue and they are positioned perfectly for sunsets over Bali’s Mt Agung and sunrise over Lombok’s Mt Rinjani. Thirty years ago the Gili islands were uninhabited and only discovered by the seafaring Bugis people from Sulawesi. It was only a matter of time before the more adventurous backpacker types discovered the islands and developed Trawangan into a hippy party paradise destination.
Gili Trawangan now identifies itself as a great holiday destination suitable for families of all ages. Various new hotels, luxury villas, and boutique bungalows now cater to children and offer good value. Some have baby-sitting services, and with lots of activities on the islands families are sure to enjoy their beach holidays to the full.
Unique to the Gilis all forms of motorised transport are still not allowed - meaning the only way to get around is on foot, by bicycle and in pony carts known as Cidomos.
One sign of change is the recent introduction of the only ATM machine on the three Gili islands to be found at Hotel Vila Ombak.
It’s possible to follow the beach around the perimeter of the island in around two hours on foot. The most popular stretches of beaches are `Goodheart’ (the main stretch) and `North Beach’ where the best snorkelling is to be found.
All dive centers and many shack operations lining the beaches rent snorkelling equipment for around IDR 50,000 for half a day.
Hawkers are not so much of an issue on Gili Trawangan as in Bali; you’re likely to attract afriendly conversation from the locals rather than a hardcore sales pitch.
Beware of strong currents and do not attempt to swim between any of the islands.
With over twenty-five dive sites surrounding all three islands there are opportunities to dive any of the Gilis regardless of where you base yourself.
Most visitors stay on Gili Trawangan for the facilities and make the short hop out to the dive sites. Each dive school has its own fleet of traditional outrigger boats that ferry divers offshore to the walls and reefs where the best diving is to be found.
Aside from the obvious lure of snorkelling and diving, sunbathing and bar-hopping, Gili Trawangan has a fair amount of distractions to keep visitors both amused and entertained throughout the course of their stay.
Fishing trips and charters can be made with the local outrigger fishing boats who offer day trips with line fishing and trawling.
The Bio Rock is an environmental initiative set up by the Gili Eco Trust that over the last six years has hosted an annual Bio Rock workshop on Gili Trawangan. The artificial metal reef cages are fed a constant voltage of electricity to encourage coral regeneration and are a natural attraction for all forms of marine life. There are now thirty three individual projects in the Gilis and it’s possible to snorkel or dive around them and there’s even a PADI specialty course tailored to educate and involve a wider community.
THINGS TO DO -
Golf Trips to mainland Lombok and the very picturesque Lombok Kosaido Golf and Country Club are highly recommended. Suitable for all abilities this trip is a must as golfers arrive at hole four by speedboat where they are collected by a buggy and driven to the clubhouse prior to tee off. The course structure and landscaping makes for a relaxed golfing experience, neither too challenging nor too demanding.
Next door to the golf course is Hotel Tugu Lombok, perfect for a post-golf round of drinks before heading back to the islands by boat.
Horse Riding with the boys at the Stud Stables, is a great way to see the whole of the island. The perimeter of Gili Trawangan can be walked along the beach and Stud have experienced and professional guides. Even though the routes are very relaxed and not at all challenging the horse rides are best suited to more practiced riders.
Karma Kayak is the perfect way to combine sports with nature. Full training and a practice session with a qualified NKB/BCU instructor is given prior to embarking on a paddle across the channel to neighbouring Gili Meno for a picnic lunch.
A good way to round off a beach day is to catch sunset at `North Beach’ with jugs of Sangria and fresh Tapas and BBQs.
Two very successful events over the past few months have raised around Rp 65 million in funds, which Gili Trawangan businesses have pledged to be used to improve education facilities and conditions for local school children on this paradise island.
The Fun Day Sunday hosted by the Gili Trawangan Development Association on 18 July 2010 raised over Rp 25,000,000 in funds for the local school, while providing a fun day out for everyone involved. Over 300 children and adults took part in everything from traditional sack races, sand-castle building competitions, the very popular “sponge the boss” game, and a Tacro Tournament. Everyone was entertained by a live band playing on the white sand beach, a beverage bar and delicious food supplied by all the local restaurants.
All hands were on deck for the event with local businesses donating raffle prizes, refreshments, beach games and their time to host the Fun Day for everyone. Lucky participants won generous prizes such as luxury villa stays, fast boat tickets, complimentary meals at Gili Trawangan restaurants and free dives.
The SD-SMP Gili Trawangan (the local school on Gili T) has already presented the Gili Trawangan Development Association with a “wish list” for the school which includes fans, new desks for the students and playground equipment. Funds raised from this initial Fun Day are being used to purchase new fans for the classrooms and water coolers and dispensers for the students. Desks are being manufactured and will be supplied for teachers and students in the near future.
This wonderful event was followed by the Gili Trawangan Charity Triathlon when, for his birthday on Monday 11 October, Manta Dive instructor, Shaun Terry, wanted to compete in a friendly Triathlon. As the idea started to take shape and grow, Shaun decided to make the event a fundraiser for the local community. With the help of all the other dive centres and local businesses, a huge day was pulled together and over Rp 40,000,000 was raised.
The Triathlon started with an Olympic-level swim from the beach in front of Trawangan Dive, where over eighty people, including locals and tourists, tested their strength and fitness against some of the Gili island’s fittest and fastest. The second leg of the Triathlon comprised a bike ride from Trawangan Dive to The Beach House, followed by a very competitive run around the island.
Mike Board from Gili Free Dive & Yoga came in first in the Individual category with an amazing time of 53 minutes, just ahead of Shaun from Manta Dive.
In the Team category, the SMK Tourism High School Team came in first, ahead of the Blue Marlin Dive Team, winning the event in just 55 minutes.
Andy Whitecroft, from Manta Dive, won the Individual Handicap, ahead of Graham from Kelapa Villas; while the girls put on a magnificent performance with Delphine Robbe from the Gili Eco Trust clocking the fastest female time, just minutes ahead of Vanessa Lill from Blue Marlin Dive.
After the Triathlon, everyone joined in at a special charity BBQ and Buffet at The Beach House, before moving on to Blue Marlin Dive for a huge after-party where the raffle was drawn!
Funds raised by the Triathlon are being donated to the SMK Pariwisata (Tourism School), a special branch of the local school that was opened last year to allow the older children to stay on the island for higher education, specialising in training in the tourism industry. The generous sum raised by the community event will go a long way toward developing the new school, with the aim of bringing equipment and facilities up to national standards.
The Gili Trawangan community is committed to supporting the local environment and community and is really setting the standard in Lombok; working with local communities for effective and sustainable development on the island.
Lets see if the government can match the donation or help with the maintainence of the school and all the new projects started by the Gili Eco Trust and the Gili Trawangan Development Association.
This year’s Biorock Workshop was a great success for Gili Trawangan, thanks to the generous support of the Gili Eco Trust and the entire Gili Trawangan community.
The 7th Indonesian Biorock ® Coral Reef Restoration, Fisheries Habitat Restoration and Shore Protection Training Workshop was held on Gili Trawangan, Lombok, from 15-21 November 2010.
The Vice Governor of Lombok opened the workshop, along with Pak Agung Prana, Balinese ecotourism pioneer. The Governor sent the head of the Regional Planning Agency, (BAPEDA), to discuss future developments as well as the Bupati (Regent) from North Lombok.
More than 80 people participated in the Workshop, including a wide range of divers, students, conservationists, scientists, engineers, artists, doctors, and lawyers.
The majority of participants were from Indonesia and included more than 20 students in Marine Science, Biology, and Forestry from Mataram University in Lombok, all of whom were trained as divers for the workshop and are planning Biorock related research projects.
Indonesian people from Gili Trawangan came along to learn about the technology they have seen being installed around their island for the past 5 years: people from the Youth Association “Remaja Karang Taruna”, teachers from the local primary school, SATGAS (ocean security), students and teachers from the Gili Trawangan high school of tourism and the Kadus and Kades (Heads of the village and of the three Gili islands).
Besides Indonesia, participants came from many parts of Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Kuwait, State of Qatar, China, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America.
Students learned all aspects of Biorock® Technology theory and practice, including the fundamental physics, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemistry, and biology; along with hands-on training in design, construction, installation, monitoring, maintenance, and repair. They saw documentary films and heard lectures on the latest developments in marine ecosystem restoration.
More than 16 new Biorock ® reefs were designed, built, installed, and planted with corals by the students, bringing the total of Biorock reefs at Gili Trawangan up to nearly 60. These are located in front of every dive shop and many of the restaurants and hotels in Indonesia’s major dive attraction. The projects at Gili Trawangan now rival the Karang Lestari Biorock project in Pemuteran, Bali as the world’s largest and most spectacularly successful coral reef restoration project.
The Biorock® method was invented, developed and patented by the late Proffessor Wolf Hilbertz and Dr Thomas Goreau and uses low voltage electrical currents to grow solid limestone minerals on conductive surfaces.
The method being used in the Gilis involves welded steel frames submerged at varying depths in the ocean, through which a small electrical charge is run, generating mineral growth on the frames. These solid surfaces then become the framework, or artificial reefs, on which corals can anchor and grow into proper reefs.
Biorock ® is the only method that increases coral growth rate and resistance to environmental stress, so Biorock ® reef corals bleach less, recover faster, and have higher survival rates from global warming-caused by rising water temperatures. This course came at a very critical juncture, because 2010 has been the hottest year in history, and severe coral bleaching took place across the Indian Ocean, South East Asia, the West Pacific, the Persian Gulf, and the Caribbean this year, and including Lombok.
Water temperatures throughout Indonesia, and many of the most important coral reefs in the world now remain several degrees warmer than average, and will start to bleach in the next few months if this weather pattern continues. If it is as severe as is expected, only places with Biorock Coral Arks will have much coral, fish, and beaches left, afterwards.
Biorock ® graduates are now trained to restore coral reefs and fisheries, and reclaim severely eroding beaches. They can apply these skills as soon as local communities, government policy makers, and international funding agencies recognize the critically urgent need to restore rapidly vanishing coral reefs and the fisheries, create shore protection, and protect tourism, and the biodiversity services they provide to over 100 countries, before they vanish.
Only those with proper Biorock ® training have the knowledge and skills to implement new projects, and will receive full support with advice, advanced training, and the materials needed to start new projects designed to save marine ecosystems from the runaway effects of global warming, global rising sea levels, and unsustainable over-exploitation of the world’s coral reefs.
The Gili Eco Trust, with the support of the business community on Gili Trawangan and local government agencies, shows how westerners and local communities can work together to preserve and rehabilitate the coral reefs around the Gili islands; leading to a sustainable future for everyone.
For information on other Gili Eco Trust projects, or to make a donation, visit - www.giliecotrust.com.