Indonesia: Bali, Komodo & Lombok — Self-Launched

Land at Denpasar (DPS), pay the 150,000 IDR Bali tourist levy online in advance via Love Bali, and complete the All-Indonesia arrival card within 72 hours of landing. Grab a Grab/Gojek or metered Bluebird taxi to Seminyak (roughly £5–7, 30–45 mins). Settle into a hostel dorm or private room near Jalan Kayu Aya and walk down to Double Six or Seminyak Beach for sunset, then eat at a local warung (nasi campur ~£2–3). Book your onward transport tonight: a shared car or Perama shuttle toward Bedugul/Munduk for tomorrow morning.

🚌Airport taxi/Grab to Seminyak, ~£6

🛏Hostel or guesthouse in Seminyak (£12–18)

• →Beach sunset at Double Six
• →Warung dinner and orientation walk

Hire a scooter (£4–5/day) or take a private day-driver (negotiate ~£30–40 for the day, or share on Klook/GetYourGuide) and follow the classic highland loop north. Stop at the UNESCO-listed Jatiluwih rice terraces (entry ~£2.50), the Baturiti fruit market for rambutan and dragon fruit, and the lakeside Ulun Danu Beratan temple (entry ~£3). Finish with the Twin Lake viewpoint above Bedugul before rolling into Munduk for the evening. Alternatively, a public bemo/bus gets you toward Bedugul for pennies but takes far longer.

🚌Scooter hire ~£5 or shared day driver ~£35

🛏Munduk guesthouse with valley views (£12–20)

• →Jatiluwih Rice Terraces
• →Baturiti Fruit Market
• →Ulun Danu Beratan Temple
• →Twin Lake viewpoint

Head north to Banjar Hot Springs for a morning soak (entry ~£1.50). Then browse Pasar Anyar Singaraja, a proper working market of produce and handmade goods, and visit the historic Beji Temple complex (donation entry, sarong required). Continue west to Bulian and check into a family-run community homestay — book directly through a village tourism cooperative or a homestay aggregator rather than a group tour. Spend the afternoon on a village walk with your host and try making canang sari prayer offerings.

🚌Scooter or shared car between stops, ~£8

🛏Community homestay in Bulian (£10–14, often with dinner)

• →Banjar Hot Springs
• →Pasar Anyar Singaraja market
• →Beji Temple
• →Village walk and offering-making workshop

Drive east to Lemukih and walk the rice paddy, durian and coffee plantation trail with a local guide arranged at the trailhead or through your guesthouse (~£10–15). You'll pass a natural rock waterslide — bring swimmers — and end at two waterfalls where you can swim. Lunch at a local warung. In the afternoon continue to Kintamani, the volcanic highland rim above Lake Batur, and check in with views of Mt Batur for a sunset.

🚌Shared car/scooter, ~£10

🛏Kintamani guesthouse or homestay (£12–18)

• →Lemukih village trek with local guide
• →Natural waterslide and waterfall swims
• →Lake Batur sunset

Book a Mt Batur sunrise trek through GetYourGuide or Klook (~£30–40 including breakfast and hotel pickup, starting around 3:30am) — or take the jeep option if you'd rather not hike. After breakfast visit Penglipuran, one of Bali's best-preserved traditional villages (entry ~£2), and stop at Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu on the drive south. Arrive Ubud in the late afternoon; Ubud is walkable, so stay central around Jalan Hanoman or Jalan Gautama.

🚌Shared car or bemo from Kintamani, ~£8

🛏Ubud hostel or guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Mt Batur sunrise trek or jeep
• →Penglipuran Village
• →Pura Gunung Kawi Sebatu

Pick your own Ubud day. Option A: the Sacred Monkey Forest (£3), Campuhan Ridge Walk (free) and the Ubud art market. Option B: a Balinese cooking class booked via Klook/GetYourGuide (~£30–40, market visit plus five dishes). Option C: spiritual morning at a local ashram or an offering-making workshop (£10–15). Option D: the Medahan village walk with a local family (book via a responsible-tourism cooperative, ~£15–20). Eat at Warung Biah Biah or a babi guling stall for £3–4.

🚌Walking, or Grab within Ubud ~£2

🛏Ubud hostel or guesthouse (£12–20)

• →Monkey Forest and Campuhan Ridge Walk
• →Optional Balinese cooking class
• →Optional offering-making workshop

A slow morning in Ubud, then take a Perama shuttle or a shared car east to Candidasa (~£5–8, 2 hours). Check into a beachfront guesthouse and spend the afternoon swimming or snorkelling off the rocks and watching the fishing boats come in at nearby Bias Tugel beach.

🚌Perama shuttle or shared car, ~£7

🛏Candidasa beach guesthouse (£12–18)

• →Bias Tugel beach
• →Sunset by the lagoon

Join a Blue Lagoon or Bias Tugel snorkel trip with a local operator or via Klook (~£18–25 including gear and boat). Alternatively take a Balinese cooking class and learn chicken tum and gado-gado (~£25–30). Afternoon free to explore the Tirta Gangga water palace by scooter (~£3 entry) if you have energy left.

🚌Scooter hire ~£4

🛏Candidasa beach guesthouse (£12–18)

• →Blue Lagoon snorkelling
• →Optional Balinese cooking class
• →Optional Tirta Gangga water palace

Take a morning public ferry or fast boat from Padang Bai to Lembar, Lombok (~£5 slow ferry 4–5 hrs, ~£15–20 fast boat 2 hrs). From Lembar take a shared car or bemo north toward Bayan (2.5–3 hrs, ~£10–15). Base in Senaru or Sembalun and arrange a Rinjani foothill walk with the Rinjani Women Guide association or another women-led local guide group (~£15–20). The easy loop passes Sasak hamlets, traditional houses, and if you're lucky the rare ebony leaf monkey.

🚌Public ferry ~£6 + shared car ~£12

🛏Senaru or Sembalun guesthouse (£8–14)

• →Padang Bai–Lembar ferry crossing
• →Women-led Senaru village walk
• →Sasak hamlet visit

A half-day guided walk through the Rinjani foothills with views over rice fields and the volcano (~£15–20). Stop at a village weaving cooperative where you can see songket being made on backstrap looms, and buy directly from the weavers. In the afternoon head south to Pringgasela and join a cooking class with a local family making banana-root and bamboo-shoot dishes (~£15). Stay in a village homestay or guesthouse.

🚌Shared car, ~£10

🛏Pringgasela homestay (£8–12)

• →Rinjani foothill trek
• →Village weaving cooperative
• →Banana root and bamboo shoot cooking class

Morning walk through pineapple and cassava plantations with a local guide, down to a river for a swim and up to a hilltop viewpoint over the rice fields and Rinjani (~£10). Or just relax at your lodge. In the afternoon drive to Kuta Lombok (~£10–12 shared car), stopping at a traditional Sasak village for a short cultural visit and performance (donation ~£5). Kuta is the surf and beach base for the next days.

🚌Shared car, ~£12

🛏Kuta Lombok hostel or guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Plantation and river trek
• →Sasak village visit and performance

Do as you please. Hire a scooter (£4–5) and ride to Mawun, Selong Belanak or Tanjung Aan beaches — Tanjung Aan's pepper-white sand is the pick. A beginner surf lesson at Selong Belanak runs about £15–20 for two hours. Eat grilled fish at a beach warung for £3–4 and catch the sunset from Bukit Merese.

🚌Scooter hire ~£4

🛏Kuta Lombok hostel or guesthouse (£10–16)

• →Beach-hopping by scooter
• →Optional surf lesson
• →Bukit Merese sunset

Take a public fast boat or the local slow boat from Bangsal harbour to Gili Trawangan (~£8–12, 20–30 mins with a shuttle from Kuta, ~£5). Note the public boat only sails in reasonable weather; the fast boats are more reliable. Check into a hostel near the east side — no motorised vehicles on the Gilis, so you'll walk or cycle. Spend the afternoon snorkelling straight off the beach and watching the sunset from the west-side bars.

🚌Shuttle + boat ~£15

🛏Gili Trawangan hostel dorm or bungalow (£10–18)

• →Beach snorkelling
• →Sunset on the west shore

Options for the day: a drop-in yoga class at one of the island studios (~£8–10), a three-island snorkel trip by glass-bottom boat to see turtles (~£15–20), or a dive if you're certified. Cycle the island loop in under an hour on a rented bike (£3). Keep it slow — tomorrow is a travel day.

🚌Bicycle hire ~£3

🛏Gili Trawangan hostel dorm or bungalow (£10–18)

• →Yoga class
• →Three-island snorkel trip
• →Island cycle loop

Boat back to Bangsal and take a shared car or Kura-Kura bus to Lombok airport (~£10), then fly Lombok (LOP) to Labuan Bajo (LBJ) via Bali or direct depending on schedules — book early on Garuda, Wings Air or Batik Air, roughly £60–110 one way. Check into a guesthouse in town and spend the evening at the waterfront fish market where you pick your catch and pay to have it grilled. Book your Komodo boat trip tonight — pick a licensed operator and confirm national park fees are included.

🚌Boat + shuttle ~£15, domestic flight £60–110

🛏Labuan Bajo guesthouse or hostel (£10–18)

• →Waterfront fish market dinner
• →Book Komodo boat trip

Board a 2-night/3-day liveaboard out of Labuan Bajo (~£180–280 per person shared cabin including meals, guide and park fees). Day one typically covers Rinca Island for a ranger-led Komodo dragon trek, Padar Island's famous three-bay viewpoint hike, and Pink Beach for snorkelling and lunch. Most boats include simple fan or AC cabins and all meals.

🚌Komodo liveaboard boat

🛏Liveaboard boat, shared cabin

• →Rinca Island Komodo dragon trek
• →Padar Island viewpoint hike
• →Pink Beach snorkelling

Land on Komodo Island itself for another ranger-guided dragon trek through the island's dry forest. Then head to Manta Point at Makassar Reef, where manta rays glide over the cleaning stations — snorkellers usually see them between October and April. Stop at Taka Makassar's sandbar and snorkel Kanawa Island's reef before anchoring for the night.

🚌Komodo liveaboard boat

🛏Liveaboard boat, shared cabin

• →Komodo Island trek
• →Snorkel at Manta Point
• →Taka Makassar sandbar
• →Kanawa Island reef snorkel

Morning snorkel at Kelor and Manjerite islands, then sail back to Labuan Bajo by early afternoon. Shower, then head out to a viewpoint café for sunset over the harbour. Optional: the Batu Cermin cave and Cunca Wulang waterfall can be done by scooter or shared car tomorrow morning (~£15–20).

🚌Liveaboard boat, walking

🛏Labuan Bajo guesthouse or hostel (£10–18)

• →Kelor and Manjerite snorkelling
• →Sunset viewpoint

A day at your own pace. Take a scooter to Cunca Wulang waterfall and the Batu Cermin cave, visit the Mirror Stone Cave, or just laze by the pool at a budget hotel. In the evening catch a sunset cruise to Kalong Island to watch thousands of flying foxes leave the mangroves (~£20–25) — the classic Flores finale.

🚌Scooter hire ~£5

🛏Labuan Bajo guesthouse or hostel (£10–18)

• →Cunca Wulang waterfall
• →Batu Cermin cave
• →Kalong Island flying fox sunset cruise

Fly out of Labuan Bajo (LBJ) to Bali or Jakarta for your international connection, or extend into the Kelimutu three-coloured lakes and Bajawa if you have more time. Airport is 10 minutes from town; a Grab or bemo costs about £2–3.

🚌Grab to airport ~£3, onward flight

🛏N/A — departure day

• →Departure