To be honest, I didn’t really know too much about Bali when I decided to spend my 30th birthday out there. Truly, I tagged along on Robyns trip and sort of did a “go with the flow” adventure.  She really wanted to explore Nusa Penida, but by the time we started to get everything organize, it was almost impossible to find rooms for more than 4 nights. So we decided to check out Nusa Lembongan and I’m so thankful we did.  We spent a few night on this island at Lembongan Beach Club & Resort to relax and do a little exploring. There were really only a few things we wanted to do while on this island:  sit on the beach and check out the Mangroves.  Bali really isn’t know for its beaches, but it seemed like Nusa Lmbongan had all the white sand beaches with bright teal colored water.

Lembongan Beach Club & Resort

Lembongan Beach Club & Resort was the perfect place to kick up our feet for a few nights and swim in the ocean. This hotels location was prime, sitting right on the beach and in an area that was walking distance to a lot of restaurants. You really didn’t need to leave your villa at LBCR, because each had it’s own private pool. There are 2 other main pools on the property, one at the front end of the resort and the other that overlooks the ocean. The hotel offered free breakfast for all of their guests, so at night we would walk the streets or the beaches and stumble upon a fun restaurant to try. If you do plan on visiting Nusa Lembongan, I highly recommend staying at LBCR, but don’t get a room too close to the pool or too far but the lobby. This hotel is build on two properties, where you have to cross an ally way to get to the next lot. If you stay by the lobby, you are too far from the beach, but if you stay right by the beach, it gets really loud at night. Ask for a villa in the middle and you’ll be happy!

Nano Nano & The Mangroves

Like I had mentioned, we were on a go with the flow mindset and didn’t have an agenda for this island. A friend of mine had recommended a restaurant called Nano Nano, and when I looked it up you were able to snorkel right outside of the restaurant in the Mangroves. If you plan on checking out the Mangroves, you need to research the tides ahead of time. Robyn and I were foolish not to research more about this place because when we went, it was a desert. The tide was out so far that there was no water to snorkel in or cruise through the forest. When we arrived, we nearly died laughing and decided to just shove our face with food and beers. I’m not joking, but Nano Nano was THE BEST meal we had on this entire trip throughout Indonesia. I was a little nervous to eat at places away from the hotel because of the water and bugs, but this place had amazing reviews on TripAdvisor and came highly recommend by my friend. You need to order the Chicken Lembongan and the Mie Goreng… you’re welcome ahead of time! This place was so fun and colorful, with a gorgeous view of the ocean and mangrove forest. This ended up being one of my favorite days, since we already had a go with the flow mentality, we were trying to figure out what to do next. The only other guy at the restaurant chimed in and recommended a few things for us to do. By the end of the conversation, we became friends with him and decided to go cliff diving with him!

Blue Lagoon

I’m sure my parents will kill me as they read this, but getting on the back on a strangers scooter ended up being one of the best days of my life. Terance, our new friend, told us about this gorgeous blue lagoon that only locals knew of that is known for its magical color water that people can cliff dive into. Again, you need to research the tide for this place too because you want to make sure there is enough water to jump into AND you need to make sure that the current isn’t too strong. I rode with Terance, and Robyn hired a local to drive her – yes you can hire locals to drive you around for a flat rate. We crossed the famous Yellow Bridge from Nusa Lembongan to Nusa Ceningan and had the chance to explore another island. Words cannot describe how majestic this place was. My photos truly will not do it justice, it’s one of those places you need to see it to believe it. When Terence jumped in, I thought about going in after until I saw how hard he had to swim to get to shore. You really need to research the tide before going in head first. Thankfully he made it to shore safely so we could all enjoy a beer or two before catching the sunset at Dream Beach on Nusa Ceningan.

100% you need to explore more than just the island of Bali in Indonesia. Don’t get me wrong, Bali was beautiful, but there are far more things to see on the other islands. I almost wish I spent more time exploring the other islands than being n the island of Bali. Don’t plan to visit Bali in July because its peak season and everything is really dried out. Spring would probably be the best time to explore, even if it does rain!