Lombok

Lombok's south coast, Rinjani and the Gilis over five to ten days

Lombok divides into four zones: the south coast around Kuta and Mandalika for beaches and surf, Senggigi on the west coast, Mount Rinjani in the north and interior, and the three Gili Islands offshore. Five days suit the south; a week adds Senaru's waterfalls and a Gili; ten days fit the Rinjani trek.

The island is roughly round, about 70 km across, with the Sekotong peninsula trailing off to the south-west. The north and the interior belong to Mount Rinjani, with Senaru and Sembalun as trailheads and Tetebatu on the park's southern edge.

• Five days: stay near Kuta. Tanjung Aan is about 4 km east of town and Gerupuk, the surf bay, another few kilometres beyond. Mawun lies 8 km west, Selong Belanak about 17 km over a steep hill. On the way back to the airport, stop at Sukarara to watch the weaving.
• A week: three nights in the south and one in Senaru for the Sendang Gile and Tiu Kelep waterfalls. Then spend three on a Gili. Pick Trawangan for nightlife, Meno for near-silence, or Air for a village feel.
• Ten days: fit in Rinjani. The standard trek to the crater rim takes two days and one night. Longer routes drop to the Segara Anak lake inside the 50 km² caldera.

Rinjani needs the most planning. Park rules require a certified guide, and porters carry the camping gear, so book through a licensed operator before you arrive. The park closes for its annual break from January to March. In the May to August peak, reserve Gili rooms plus boat transfers early. Many people combine the island with Bali, flying or sailing across the strait.

For Rinjani trailheads or a day touring Sasak villages, hire a driver; you can also rent a car.

Lombok's dry months, Bau Nyale and the fasting month

Visit Lombok from May to October for trekking and snorkelling, ideally in May, June or September to miss the school-holiday peak. It is drier than Bali, with about 290 mm of rain in January at Mataram against 54 mm in August, and Rinjani's climbing season runs from April to November, with summit nights near 4 °C.

Lombok is drier than its western neighbour, and wet-season rain tends to come as short bursts of an hour or two, seldom whole grey days. Even then, nights near the summit can drop to about 4 °C, so pack a warm layer for a trip that otherwise needs only shorts. July is the coolest month at sea level too, with lows of about 19 °C.

One date is pure Lombok. Bau Nyale falls on the 20th day of the tenth month of the Sasak calendar, which lands in February or March. Crowds gather on Seger Beach near Kuta, mainly before dawn, to scoop up sea worms that local legend says are the reincarnated Princess Mandalika. The festival can move when the Mandalika circuit is hosting a race weekend. Hotels in Kuta fill up then.

About nine in ten islanders are Muslim, and the fasting month changes the rhythm of daily life. Outside the tourist zones most warungs stay closed until the fast breaks at dusk. Dive shops on the Gilis cut back their schedules, although bars there still open at night. Eid al-Fitr, which closes the month, is a holiday of several days.

Ayam taliwang, plecing and Sasak manners

Sasak food on Lombok is chilli-led but rarely as fierce as you fear. Try ayam taliwang, chicken in a red paste of chilli, galangal, turmeric and tomato, plecing sauce sharpened with lengkare shrimp paste and vegetarian kelor soup, and eat nasi campur in warungs. Halal food is the norm, and alcohol is restricted in some towns.

Ayam taliwang is the island's best-known dish. Plecing is the spicy chilli and tomato sauce that dresses many plates, sharpened with a local shrimp paste called lengkare. Sares mixes chilli and coconut juice with the pith of the banana palm. Vegetarians can look for kelor (a hot vegetable soup), serebuk (vegetables tossed with coconut) and timun urap, a cucumber salad.

Everyday eating happens in warungs over nasi campur: rice with tofu, tempeh, vegetables and perhaps chicken or fish. Sambal sits at the edge of the plate; taste a speck before you take more.

Alcohol is easy to find in the tourist areas but restricted in some towns, notably Praya. The local drink is tuak, a palm wine of 2-5% strength.

Expect the dawn call to prayer if you sleep near a mosque. Sasak is the first language, and many older villagers understand little Indonesian. The island's name comes from the Sasak lomboq, meaning straight.