Nusa Penida Island in Bali

Nusa Penida Island is the largest of three islands off the south eastern coast of Bali, the others being Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan. Lately, the island’s best known as the new sanctuary of the once endangered Bali Starling following a highly successful captive breeding program of the bird, which is originally an endemic species from the forested region of West Bali National Park.

Nusa Penida Island measures over 200 sq km – significantly larger than the popular Nusa Lembongan and its easily accessible sister island, Nusa Ceningan. Lesser-travelled by visitors compared to the other two, Penida Island also features a very limited number of hotels and tourist features. Nevertheless, what it lacks in infrastructure, it makes up for with its unspoiled natural beauty and rare cultural highlights.

Nusa Penida

Close to Penida’s white sand beach of Crystal Bay, divers enjoy one of Bali’s best dive sites, where pristine coral reefs and Mola-Mola fish (also known as oceanic sunfish), manta rays, and, if you're really lucky, even whale sharks are some of its seasonal sights. Besides diving in Nusa Penida, You can also find great visibility for snorkelling right near the shoreline. Some local shops selling refreshments right on the beach make for wonderful chill out spots with sunset views.

Among Penida’s most famous temples is Goa Giri Putri, a Balinese Hindu temple set within a limestone cave in the village of Karangsari, which sees a steady flow of pilgrims from the Bali mainland visiting to pay their respects and ask for holy water and blessings.

The grand temple complex of Pura Penataran Ped in the northern coastal village of Ped is another popular monument to visit. There are other temples dotted along the island’s coast, but be sure to visit the unique Pura Paluang temple in the village of Karangdawa on Penida’s southwestern cliffs – it has shrines resembling automobiles!

For some natural beauty, visit Atuh Beach, a remote beach on the south-eastern coast of Nusa Penida, bordered by magnificent green hills and peninsular formations, Pasih Uug o Broken Beach that was once a large cave that collapsed to reveal the crashing blue waves from the Indian Ocean beneath. Another popular beach is Kelingking, this unique formation is reminiscent of a Tyrannosaurus Rex head, hence its nickname ‘T-Rex Bay’. The secluded beach itself is down a rugged 400m cliffside hike.

Nearby, is Angel’s Billabong, with its vast lagoon revealed by waves after a high tide. Some visitors brave the descent for a dip and some out-of-this-world holiday photos, but mind you that it’s treacherous, and it’s claimed lives in the past.

One of the most interesting things about Nusa Penida Island is its deep sea fish, such as mackerel, sharks, manta rays, eagle rays and tunas. The rarest fish, however, are the giant Mola Mola (also called sunfish), that usually live in the depths of the ocean and can weigh up to 2,300 kilograms. Many divers travel to this island between June and September in an attempt to see the largest bony fish in the world swim to the surface to bask in the sun and let small schooling bannerfish nibble parasites off their bodies.

How to Go to Nusa Penida Island ?

To get to Nusa Penida you need to get to Denpasar, the capital of Bali province. The fastest and most popular way to reach Denpasar is by flight. Whether direct flight (many of them operate from Australia, Europe, Asia) or transit (the most popular ones are Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok) you will land in Ngurah Rai International airport.

From Denpasar is by getting to the Sanur beach and using some traditional public boat called 'Jukung'. Jukung will take around 90 minutes to reach Nusa Penida. There's another option you can take if you go from Sanur. You can also take some speed boat which is a lot more faster (45 minutes). Read More ...

Get Around Nusa Penida

Dive Sites in Nusa Penida

Nusa Penida covers a wide area of diving locations, there was about 1,419 hectares coral sites with 66 percent covered the sites in 3 meters depth and 74 percent covered the sites in 10 meters depth. Including Penida Bay, Batu Lumbung (Manta Point), Batu Meling, Batu Abah, Toya Pakeh and Malibu Point. The flow through the Lombok Strait is, overall, south-tending, although the strength and direction of the tidal streams are influenced by the monsoon seasons.

During the southeast monsoons, the tidal flow tends south; during the northeast monsoons, the tidal flow tends north. In the area of the strait north of Nusa Penida, the pattern is relatively simple, with a flow, at peaktide, of about three-and-one-half knots. Tidal streams in Badung Strait are semi-diurnal, but the character of the stream is very complicated because its direction runs obliquely to the general south to north direction of Lombok Strait, and the channel has a curved shape. Read More ...

Things to Do in Nusa Penida Island

Nusa Penida is slowly getting the attention it deserves, rugged and beautiful with many things to do. Surprisingly there is a lot to do on this remote island of Bali, and choosing the best of the best has not been easy, but we have come up with a list that is all rounded from exploring into the deep sea or on land around the island and also finding all the secret nooks and picturesque spots.. Read More ...

Nusa Penida Island Tours

Most travelers who do visit Nusa Penida do so on day trips to dive and snorkel the pristine coral reefs that fringe the island – but more often than not they never actually step foot on the island. Those who do allot a few days to exploring the island will be rewarded in spades. There are quite a few breathtaking natural attractions scattered around Nusa Penida – think azure beaches, natural pools and hidden waterfalls. Read More ...