NUSA PENIDA Travel Guide: Expectations vs. Reality at T-Rex Bay + Manta Rays


Yesterday on Nusa Penida, we soared high. We explored the eastern tip of the island. Today we’re exploring the southwest and our first of many stops is Angels Billabong. We’ll also go for a swim with a squadron of manta rays. All this beauty and we’re just 30 minutes away from Bali.

I’m Kristina and this is John we’ve been travelling together since we were teenagers when we’re not working as a TV journalist and airline pilot, we’re exploring the globe. Subscribe and let’s get lost.

Thank you to all our Global Travel Guides subscribers. This adventure packed episode starts at Angel’s Billabong where entry is just 50 cents. It’s a busy spot but worth checking out, remembering you can only access the Billabong when it’s low tide.

Just a short walk away is Broken Beach. It can’t be accessed by foot but the arch makes for a great snap. Just off the coast here you walk past Manta Rays Viewpoint. So while we’re here I will show you what it looks like underwater.

As soon as you submerge your heart stops.

They’re literally centimeters away from you. The seas can get pretty rough out here plus we were demolished by sea lice. A tour like this takes most of the day. Not only did we get to swim alongside Manta Rays but you also check out a few reefs too Remember you’ll need an extra day if you want to do this snorkeling Manta Ray tour. Anyway, where were we?

Let’s rewind back to Broken Beach. Our next stop from here is T-Rex Bay which is what made this island famous on social media because of this view. Can you see the t-rex? It’s arguably the most Instagrammed spot on the island. People risk it all for the gram.

You can access the beach by walking down a steep staircase that descends along the ridge. There’s a lot of people here today. It’s currently holidays in Indonesia so that must explain it. The lines go on and on. “I wanted to ask you, how many people are usually here?

” The lines were were ridiculous so we kept moving.

We tried to find this secluded spot to escape the crowds. It’s called Tembeling Beach, Waterfalls and Forest but finding it was a mission. So we I just ran into some tourists and they said they’d just went to the waterfall and there was no one there. I guess that’s why they said that this was a best-kept secret, because no one would actually come down here because it’s so gnarly.

This is bush bashing for bikes. Oh my gosh….

“I think that was a shortcut.” “It’s pretty grueling to get to. From here, it’s about a five-minute walk. “I think we definitely found it.” We stumbled upon this cool cave.

NUSA PENIDA Travel Guide: Expectations vs. Reality at T-Rex Bay + Manta Rays

.. and just next to it was another natural pool. You can only get there by a scooter or motorbike. But we have noticed that some tourists are using local riders.

John and I don’t think that’s a bad idea. Google maps tricks you. Ill leave a map in the description. The roads just got so bad that I’ve just had to get off the bike. While riding around the island can be sketchy there are plenty of surprises along the way.

Our final stop before dinner near our accommodation was the Goa Giri Putri Temple. If you forget to cover up you can hire a sarong. You then walk up a steep staircase…

It’s a long way up. To enter the cave we offered a small donation before being blessed. It was then our turn to crawl through a tiny crack into the cave.

There are six praying spots at the temple. This cave is massive.

It can hold up to 5,000 people in here at a time. There are there crabs that live in here. It’s the only one of its kind in the world. There’s a conservation program that’s underway now, trying to protect them. “John you know that crab you found?

It was a cockroach!!” It took us about half an hour or so to check out the temple. We then decided to grab some dinner at the Night Markets nearby for the second night in a row, mostly because we wanted to eat these traditional pancakes.

If you want to give them a try I’ve pinpointed the location, as for all the places we visited in this guide, on maps in the description below.

“What was your favorite part about the island?” Our favourite spot by far was Diamond Beach… which we checked out on Day 1 so go back and check out that Travel Guide if you missed it.

Next on Global Travel Guides we Island hop to Nusa Lembongan. It’s just a 10-minute boat ride away. We go exploring and then scooter over the Yellow Bridge on Ceningan Island to check out a bar looking over the bluest lagoon we’ve ever seen. If you liked this video give it a thumbs up and if you want to continue watching our adventure over to Nusa Lembongan make sure you click on the next link.