Beaches in Indonesia

Kelingking Beach on the southwest coast of Nusa Penida is the image most people picture when they think of Indonesia: a green headland shaped like a T-Rex curving around a strip of white sand, which is why it is also called T-Rex Beach. Most visitors only ever see it from the clifftop viewpoint. Getting down to the sand means a steep 400 metre descent on a narrow path with bamboo handrails, and strong undercurrents make swimming unsafe once you are there, so treat the climb as the activity and the view as the reward.

Kuta is where tourism in Bali began and it is still the busiest stretch of sand on the island. It sits about ten minutes from Ngurah Rai airport, which is why it ends up as the first or last night of most Bali itineraries. The waves are consistent but forgiving, so this is where almost every beginner surf school on the island runs its lessons, and the strip behind the beach has the cheapest concentration of hotels, warungs and beach clubs in southern Bali. Come for the surf lessons, the sunsets and the noise, not for quiet.

Padang Padang is a small cove on the west coast of Bali's Bukit peninsula, reached by a staircase that squeezes through a gap in the rock before opening out onto the sand. It is compact rather than sprawling, which is a large part of its appeal, and the reef break offshore is one of Bali's best known waves for experienced surfers. It also had a cameo in Eat, Pray, Love, which draws a crowd well beyond the surf community. Come at low tide, when there is far more sand to sit on.

Diamond Beach sits on the eastern tip of Nusa Penida, immediately next to Atuh, and is the most photographed beach on the island after Kelingking. White sand, turquoise water and a set of limestone pillars standing offshore give it its name. A stairway carved into the cliff face takes about fifteen minutes to descend and rather longer to climb back up. The water is beautiful but the surf breaks hard on the shore, so most people come for the view and the walk down rather than to swim.

Pink Beach, or Pantai Merah, lies inside Komodo National Park and gets its colour from fragments of red organ pipe coral mixed through the white sand. The pink is subtle in flat light and strongest in the late afternoon or where waves wet the sand. It is a day trip by boat from Labuan Bajo on Flores, usually combined with Padar Island and a Komodo dragon stop, and the snorkelling straight off the shore is some of the best in the park. There is nowhere to stay, so plan it as an excursion rather than a base.

Gili Trawangan is the largest of the three Gili Islands off the northwest coast of Lombok, and the only beach on this list you can base a whole trip on rather than visit for a day. There are no cars or motorbikes anywhere on the island, so everything moves by bicycle or pony cart, and the sand runs almost the full way around a coastline you can walk in a couple of hours. Green turtles feed on the reef close enough to shore to snorkel to, the east side faces sunrise over Lombok and the west side faces sunset over Bali's Mount Agung. Fast boats run from Bali in about two and a half hours.

Nusa Dua is a planned resort enclave on Bali's southeast coast rather than a natural beach town, and that is exactly why people choose it. The sand is raked, the water inside the reef is calm and shallow enough for young children, and almost everything behind the beach is a five star resort, a spa, a shopping complex or an 18 hole golf course. If you want Bali without the traffic and the scooters, this is the quietest and most family friendly of the southern beaches. If you want street food, surf and nightlife, stay in Kuta or Seminyak instead.

Atuh sits in a sheltered bay on the eastern coast of Nusa Penida, directly below Diamond Beach and reached by its own stairway down the cliff. Green headlands close it in on either side and a rock arch stands in the water offshore. Because the bay is protected, this is one of the few beaches on the island where the water is calm enough to actually swim. A handful of warungs on the sand sell drinks and coconuts, and it stays far quieter than the Kelingking viewpoint a short drive away.

Seminyak is the stretch immediately north of Kuta and the more polished version of it. The sand is the same wide grey gold, but the strip behind it trades cheap surf hostels for boutiques, restaurants and the beach clubs Bali is known for. Sunset is the main event, with rows of beanbags along the sand filling up from about five o'clock. The current here can be strong, so swim between the flags and keep the surf lessons for Kuta.

Jimbaran is a long, gently curving bay between the airport and the Bukit peninsula, and it is best known for what happens on it after dark. Dozens of seafood warungs set tables directly on the sand at sunset and grill the day's catch to order, which has made a Jimbaran dinner a fixture of most Bali itineraries. During the day the water is calm and shallow, with fishing boats pulled up at the northern end near the morning fish market, so it suits families and swimmers far better than the surf beaches further south.

Melasti is a white sand beach at the foot of the Bukit peninsula's limestone cliffs, reached by a road cut straight down through the rock, which is a large part of why people come. It only opened up properly in the last decade, so it feels newer and less built up than Kuta or Seminyak, with a beach club at one end and long stretches of empty sand at the other. The water is clear and calm at low tide, and it is close enough to Uluwatu Temple to combine the two in one afternoon.

Pandawa is a kilometre of white sand on the southern tip of the Bukit peninsula, hidden behind a limestone ridge until a road was cut through it. Five statues of the Pandava brothers are carved into the rock walls along the approach, which is how the beach got its name. The water is calm and good for swimming and kayaking, sun loungers line most of the sand, and it stays noticeably less crowded than the beaches on Bali's west coast.

Balangan sits about 20 km south of Kuta on the Bukit peninsula, below a clifftop viewpoint most people stop at before walking down the steps to the sand. The left hand reef break here is a serious wave and draws surfers year round, while the row of bamboo warungs along the back of the beach makes it an easy place to spend a whole afternoon. There are no lifeguards and the reef sits close to the surface at low tide, so casual swimmers are better off at Jimbaran or Nusa Dua.

Suluban, better known as Blue Point, is less a beach than a set of caves and rock pools at the base of the Uluwatu cliffs, reached through a narrow slot in the limestone. At low tide you can walk out through the cave mouth onto the sand and rocks. At high tide the sea fills the space entirely and there is no beach at all, so timing the tide matters more here than anywhere else in Bali. The Uluwatu surf break offshore is one of the most famous waves in the world, and the warungs stacked up the cliff face above are the best seats to watch it from.

Sanur was the first part of Bali to be developed for tourism and has aged into the island's most relaxed beach town. A reef sits offshore, which keeps the water flat and shallow and makes this the easiest beach in Bali to swim at with small children. A paved promenade runs about five kilometres along the sand past cafes, warungs and old resorts. Sanur faces east while most of Bali's beaches face west, so this is the island's sunrise beach, and the fast boats to Nusa Penida and Nusa Lembongan leave from here.

Bingin is a short strip of white sand at the bottom of the Uluwatu cliffs, about ten minutes from the temple. Getting down means a long flight of uneven steps past guesthouses built into the rock face, and the beach itself only really exists at low tide, when the sea pulls back to expose the sand and the reef pools. The wave here is a fast, shallow barrel that experienced surfers travel for, so most people come either to surf it or to watch it from one of the warungs on the cliff above.

Double Six is the southern end of Seminyak beach, named after the club that used to sit behind it. It is wide and open, lined with sun loungers by day, with a beach volleyball court and a reliable beginner to intermediate wave in the shallows. In the evening it fills up for sunset and the bars and restaurants behind the sand stay busy well after dark. It is the most sociable stretch of Seminyak and within walking distance of most of the area's hotels.

Nyang Nyang is a 1.5 km stretch of white sand below the cliffs near Uluwatu, and it stays empty because reaching it means a steep walk of roughly 500 steps down and back up again. The graffiti covered shipwreck stranded on the sand has become its landmark. There are almost no facilities, the surf is heavy and there are no lifeguards, so bring water and treat it as a walk and a photograph rather than a swimming beach.

Crystal Bay is the main swimming and snorkelling beach on Nusa Penida, on the west coast and the closest one to the harbour at Toyapakeh. A small rock island sits in the middle of the bay and the water is clear and calm enough to get straight in from the sand, which is unusual on an island of cliff beaches. It is also the launch point for the dive sites where manta rays and, between July and October, the mola mola sunfish are seen. Sunset here looks back across the strait towards Bali.

Lovina sits on Bali's north coast, about three hours from the airport, and the sand here is volcanic black rather than white. The pace is much slower than the south of the island and prices are lower to match. Its main draw is the pre-dawn boat trip to see wild dolphins offshore. Lovina is not one beach but a run of villages along roughly ten kilometres of coast, including Pemaron, Anturan, Kalibukbuk, Temukus and Kaliasem, with Kalibukbuk the busiest of them. Calm water and nearby Menjangan Island also make this Bali's quietest base for snorkelling and diving.

Amed is a string of fishing villages along Bali's northeast coast, with black volcanic sand, lines of traditional jukung outriggers pulled up on it and Mount Agung rising directly behind. It is the island's main base for diving and snorkelling: a Japanese shipwreck lies in shallow water just offshore and the USAT Liberty wreck at Tulamben is twenty minutes up the coast. There is very little nightlife and almost no crowd, which for most people who come here is the point.

Pasir Putih, also called Virgin Beach or Hidden Beach, lies about 4.5 km east of Candidasa in Karangasem, on the far side of a headland from the main road. It is one of the few white sand beaches in east Bali, set between two hills with the islet of Gili Biaha visible offshore. A row of simple warungs on the sand rent out loungers and cook fresh fish, the water is calm enough to swim and snorkel, and it stays quiet because it is a long drive from the southern resorts.

Selong Belanak is a wide crescent of white sand on Lombok's south coast, about an hour from Kuta Lombok. The bay is shallow and the waves roll in slow and small over a sandy bottom with no reef underneath, which makes it the best beginner surf beach in Lombok and the reason a row of board rental shacks and warungs lines the back of the sand. Water buffalo are often walked along the shore in the late afternoon. It faces west, so this is a sunset beach.

Tanjung Aan is a double horseshoe bay about fifteen minutes east of Kuta Lombok, which is not to be confused with Kuta in Bali. The sand changes texture across the bay, fine and white at one end and coarse pepper grain sand at the other. The water is shallow and calm enough for easy swimming, wooden swings stand out in the shallows, and Merese Hill at the eastern end is a ten minute climb to the best sunset view on this coast.

Plengkung, known to surfers worldwide as G-Land, sits inside Alas Purwo National Park on the southeastern tip of Java. Its long left hand barrel is rated among the best waves in the world, which is why the only accommodation here is a handful of surf camps reached by boat from Grajagan or by 4WD through the park. The season runs from roughly April to October. Non surfers come for the park itself, which has trekking trails, savannah grassland and resident banteng and macaques.

Mawun is a near perfect horseshoe bay on Lombok's south coast, closed in by a hill on each side. The sand is soft and white, the water is calm at both ends and stronger through the middle, and either headland can be climbed for a view over the whole bay. There is very little here beyond a few warungs and loungers, which is why it stays quiet even in season. The road in is steep in places but paved the whole way.

Senggigi was Lombok's first resort strip and sits on the west coast, about half an hour north of the ferry port. The sand is a mix of grey and gold, the bay is sheltered by a reef, and the view west across the strait to Bali's Mount Agung is the reason to be on this beach at sunset. It is the most convenient base on the island, with the widest choice of hotels and restaurants, and boats to the Gili Islands leave from just up the coast.

Mawi is a surf beach on Lombok's south coast, reached by a rough track that takes 30 to 45 minutes from Kuta Lombok by scooter or car. The reef break here is powerful and shallow and firmly for experienced surfers, while the bay itself is a wide sweep of sand backed by hills. There is nothing here beyond a parking area and a couple of stalls, so bring what you need. The sunsets over the bay are the reward for the drive in.

Belitung is a beautiful island off the eastern coast of Indonesia which is an untouched beauty with its white-sand beaches, clear waters, and blue skies to make for an amazing getaway from the hustle of the city life. As soon as one sets foot on the island make a quick trip to the exotic beaches which are truly one of a kind. Tanjung Kalayang or Tanjung Tinggi beach is an exotic beach location which is a must-visit!

An archipelago that consists of 27 islands that form a marine park, of which only 5 are inhabited by people, the Karimunjawa Islands are the archetypal castaway island paradise. A burgeoning tourism industry is beginning to take hold of these islands fringed by pearly white sandy beaches, and is quickly becoming a popular destination amongst those that are looking for pastures anew to escape the over-commercialized and over-populated tourist hotspots of Bali and increasingly, the GIli Islands too.

Flores is a beautiful and awe-inspiring island which had been overshadowed for a long period under its famous neighbour- Bali. Today, Flores Island is slowly emerging as a unique destination of its own. Flores is a beautiful place to take a swim in the pristine lakes, and waterfalls, or even dive into the depths of its amazing waters and explore the unrivalled beauty of the ocean.

Parangtritis is the closest beach to Yogyakarta, about 27 km south of the city on Java's Indian Ocean coast. It is a wide sweep of dark volcanic sand backed by limestone hills and a field of sand dunes, which is a rare landform in Indonesia. The beach matters more culturally than it does for swimming: in Javanese belief it is the domain of Nyai Roro Kidul, the Queen of the South Sea, and visitors are traditionally told not to wear green here. Strong rip currents make the water genuinely dangerous and swimming is prohibited along most of the beach, so come for the sunset, the horse carts and the dunes.

Klayar is on the south coast of Pacitan regency in East Java, about 35 km west of Pacitan town and a drive of three to four hours from Yogyakarta. Its two landmarks are a rock formation that looks like a sphinx and a natural blowhole locals call Seruling Samudra, the flute of the ocean, where water forced up through a gap in the rock shoots as high as ten metres with a whistling sound. The sand is white and the setting is dramatic, but the surf is powerful and swimming is not advised.

Pangandaran is West Java's main beach town, built on a narrow isthmus with sand on both the east and west sides, so you can watch sunrise and sunset from the same place. Fishing boats are drawn up along the shore and the day's catch is sold and grilled directly behind the beach. The Pangandaran nature reserve at the southern tip has short jungle trails, caves and resident macaques, and the calmer eastern side has snorkelling and body boarding. It is a domestic holiday town rather than an international one, which is a large part of its appeal.

Padang, an offbeat tourist destination is the provincial capital of West Sumatra and a prominent gateway to the home of the native tribe, Minangkabau tribe. A busy harbour, popular for its products such as rubber, cinnamon, coffee, tea and nutmeg, Padang is a perfect countryside where you can relax and enjoy the scenic beauty that the place has to offer. Previously a Dutch Colony, this urban Indonesian area offers an excellent dining scene to its guests.