How to get to the Nusas

Wondering how to get to the Nusas? This is a guide to help you get to Nusa Penida or Nusa Lembongan from Bali, Lombok, and the Gilis. Once you’ve arrived, you can take a look at my guide to Nusa Penida for things to do, what to eat and where to stay.

• There’s three ways!
• From Sanur (nearer to Canggu or Uluwatu), Kusamba (in Karangasem, nearer to Amed and Candidasa), or Padang Bai.

Sanur is a town on the east coast of Bali that is the gateway to the Nusas. It’s about 35 minutes from the airport, 55 minutes from Canggu, and about an hour from Uluwatu. 

To get to Nusa Penida from Sanur, I use Angel Billabong Fast Cruise, which costs 200k IDR [~ €14] one way for a foreigner. To get to Nusa Lembongan from Sanur, I use D’Camel Fast Boat, which costs 250k-350k IDR [~ €17-23] one way (don’t ask me why it’s more expensive to get to the closer destination of Lembongan…)

Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you navigate the boats: 

• Pre-book your ticket via Whatsapp or online booking 
• Check in at the counter an hour in advance (the Angel Billabong office is before the gates to the new harbour)
• Go into the harbour terminal, scan your ticket, wait in the waiting room 
• Wait for your boat name to be called out 
• Bring your luggage down to the dock, the boat crew will help to load it onto the boat
• In 45 minutes you will arrive in Nusa Penida (Banjur Nyuh harbour). Banjar Nyuh is a good place to arrive into because it is close to most of the restaurants and shops, and is in the area I would recommend staying. 
• In 35 minutes you will arrive to Nusa Lembongan – you will land on sand so be aware, you should wear shorts and flip flops to avoid your trousers getting wet!
  • You will arrive on to the beach that is quite close to the main area, so if you don’t have much luggage you could walk on to the beach towards the main strip with restaurants and shops. 
• There will be plenty of people there offering you taxi services, bikes etc. If you want to choose immediately opt for one of those (expect to pay 50k-80k per day for a bike) or else wait until you feel more settled 
• There is no direct boat to Ceningan from Bali, but once you arrive in Lembongan you can get a “taxi” or bike over the Yellow Bridge (which connects Lembongan and Ceningan)

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If you’re coming from Amed or Candidasa, or anywhere on the eastern part of Bali, Kusamba is the nearest port to get a fast boat to Nusa Penida: 

• You can prebook your ticket or not, it’s not usually as busy as Sanur but you never know. I usually book through Whatsapp.
• I use Angkal Fast Cruise to go to Penida from Kusamba. Tickets cost 100k for foreign tourists and 75k for locals or if you have KITAS (work visa).
• The journey is only 20-30 minutes to Sampalan (harbour in Nusa Penida)
• There will be people offering taxi services or bike rental 
• Sampalan is a little further away from where I would recommend staying, but it’s a great option to arrive into if you’re coming from Amed or Candidasa
• If you’re going to Lembongan from Kusamba, you can get the Sekar Jaya fast boat. It will take a little longer (around 45 minutes) to get to Lembongan and be aware that you will arrive on to the beach (no jetty) so wear shorts and flip flops. 

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You can also get the ferry from Padang Bai to Nusa Penida (arriving into Sampalan). If you need to bring your motorbike or car from Bali to Nusa Penida, the ferry is the best option.  You have to own your vehicle and have papers to prove it if you plan on bringing it to a different island, you can’t bring your rental bike.

The ferry is called Roro and goes twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, both from Padang Bai and from Nusa Penida. You can find the schedule on the website. Translate the page using the Google Translate option on Chrome if you need to.

The journey should take more or less 1 hour and costs 37k [~€2] for an adult without a vehicle. If you want to bring your bike it costs an extra 50k [~ €3].

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• I recommend using Eka Jaya as it is the biggest fast boat so feels the most secure if the sea is rough going between Bali / Nusas and Lombok / Gilis.
• Eka Jaya leave once a day from Lombok / Gilis to Nusa Penida / Lembongan. You can find the schedule here.
• The boat starts from Gili T, stops at Gili Meno, Gili Air, Bangsal (on Lombok), and then on to Penida (sometimes it will stop at Sengiggi too). The journey takes 3-4 hours depending on where you’re coming from and the sea condition. 
• It costs 535k [~ €30] one way, which is more expensive than some of the other boat companies, but again I would recommend going with a bigger boat because you never know what the sea conditions will be like! 
• This works both ways, so if you want to get from Nusa Penida to Gili T, Gili Meno, Gili Air, or Lombok, then just do this journey the other way around.
• Eka Jaya has indoor and outdoor seating, so if the weather is nice it’s so refreshing to sit outside, you might even spot some dolphins on the way! Just note that they play very loud (bad) music on deck, but if you sit away from the speaker, the sound of the sea and the engine should drown it out. 

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• Go to Toyapakeh harbour (near Orion cafe – and stop inside for a delicious cinnamon roll)
• Go to the little shack on the beach right in front of Orion
• Tickets are 50k one way to Lembongan
• It’s a public boat so you have to wait until the boat is full before it leaves (can be up to 30 minutes)
• Get on the boat from the beach (again, wear shorts and flip flops)
• The journey should take about 15 minutes and you will arrive into the bay at the Yellow Bridge 
• There are “taxis” or you can rent a bike there 
• It is quite far (15 minutes drive) from the main part of Lembongan so I would recommend getting a bike if you know how to ride

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Now that you’ve (hopefully) successfully made it on to the island, read my guide about where to go, eat, and stay in Nusa Penida!