Nusa Ceningan: A Complete Guide to the Smallest Nusa Island
Nusa Ceningan is the smallest of the three Nusa islands, located a 45 minute ferry ride away from Bali. We recently got back from spending another few amazing days on the Nusas and came back with a pretty shocking realisation: Nusa Ceningan is now our favorite of the three!
In this travel guide, we let you in on our favorite things to do on Nusa Ceningan!
How to get to Nusa Ceningan
The fastest and most effective way of getting to Nusa Ceningan is on a fast boat from Sanur or Serangan on Bali. Although it isn’t the cheapest option, Blue Water Express is the best and safest service we’ve used to get the the Nusa islands.
The boat we took was beautiful and the customer service was impeccable. The price includes pickup and drop off to your hotel in Bali.
You can often find discount codes on their Instagram account, we found a code for 50% off! At full price, the return journey costs around 800K IDR per person.
Blue Water will drop you off at the port on Nusa Lembongan. They will then drive you to the iconic Yellow bridge which connects the Lembongan with Ceningan islands. From the bridge, we requested a pickup in advance from our hotel on Ceningan.
Click here to travel to Nusa Ceningan and Bali with us in 2020!
Map of Nusa Ceningan
Things to do on Nusa Ceningan
Blue Lagoon Nusa Ceningan
The blue lagoon is the main attraction on the island and for good reason! This incredible lagoon has some of the most incredible blue water we’ve ever seen.
The cliffs around the lagoon make great vantage points to admire the water. If you’re on your scooter, turn off right before you get to Klyff Club.
Although the cove is rocky and it isn’t the best place for swimming, this Blue Lagoon isn’t just to look at. There are cliff jumps that are clearly identified from multiple different heights. Be sure to bring your water shoes as the rocks will be tough to get up barefoot. Don’t jump in if the swell is too big.
The Sand Restaurant and Bar
If you’re looking for a great spot to enjoy a drink, this is the perfect place to do it. The Sand is an open air restaurant that has beautiful, beachy decor along with some really cute swings down by the water. They have happy hour every day at 4 and for those that don’t drink, the coconuts are nice and cold! Make sure you come to The Sand when the tide is high, if not you won’t find any water around the swings.
Secret Beach Nusa Ceningan
The great thing about Nusa Ceningan is the main attractions are just a few minutes apart! Just a short walk from the Blue Lagoon you’ll find the stairs that lead down to beautiful Secret Beach. Again, do try to come here when the tide is high so you can enjoy the refreshing water. There’s several restaurants around Secret beach which can be a great option for lunch. Not only is the sand lovely, we also loved this beach because it’s free to enjoy!
Note: there are two beaches on Nusa Ceningan called secret beach (original, we know!). The one we visited is the one closest to Mahana point. Click here for the exact location.
Snorkelling Trip to Manta Point
On Nusa Ceningan you’ll see signs for Snorkelling trips everywhere! The main attraction here is swimming with the manta rays at Manta Point. Just make sure to ask around and make sure the Manta Rays are present in the area.
We didn’t book the trip because everyone who was doing it hadn’t seen a single one that week. The mantas are present most of the year though, we were just really unlucky!
You can easily book these tours through your accommodation or online here!
Le Pirate Beach Club
If you’re looking for where to stay, we highly recommend Le Pirate Beach Club. Although these cute beach huts are tiny, you probably won’t be spending much time in it anyways seeing as you’re on a beautiful tropical island.
Although it’s not the cheapest hotel you can find the island, the rates are very good for the amenities you get!
The pool is incredibly refreshing, the food from the restaurant was consistently good and the staff was super friendly. It also has a good atmosphere for sunset!
Where to eat on Nusa Ceningan
Be warned, you can’t expect the food on the Nusa islands to be as great as on Bali. However we do find that in general food and drink options on Nusa Ceningan compared with the other Nusa Islands. There’s fresh fish a plenty and some really nice breakfast options as well. Here’s some spots we recommend you try!
- Le Pirate Beach Club: you pay more for the vibe, but they have the most extensive menu we saw on the island.
- The Sand Restaurant and Bar
- Next Level Cafe: try their great smoothie bowls (pictured above)!
- Cookies Lembongan: A great option if you have a scooter rental. The staff are some of the friendliest people we’ve met. Great no nonsense food at a good price.
Nusa Ceningan vs Nusa Penida
We realize that it might be surprising to many that Nusa Ceningan is now our favorite Nusa island — especially since we’ve been raving about Nusa Penida since our first visit to Bali in 2017 — but hear us out. Remember most people that visit Bali are short on time and staying for only a few weeks tops.
If you want to make the most of your time, we now feel that Nusa Ceningan offers the best value. You can walk around the island in a day, there are beautiful viewpoints and the water is the clearest you’ll find around Bali.
Although Nusa Penida offers incredible and unique landscapes, the points of interest take much more time to get to. The standard for accommodation on Penida is also the poorest we’ve experienced on Bali and we’ve tried three different guesthouses so far.
Don’t get us wrong, we still feel that Penida is a must see destination. But staying on Nusa Ceningan and doing a day trip to Nusa Penida is what we now consider to be the best option for most people.
Our Travel Camera Gear
- Camera bag : Wandrd Prvke 31L Backpack + Camera Cube
- Mirrorless camera : Sony a7 III
- Extra camera batteries : RAV Power dual batteries and charger
- DSLR camera : Nikon d5600
- Favorite lens : Nikon 35mm f/1.8
- Drone : DJI Mavic Pro
- Tripod : Manfrotto Compact Action Tripod
- Flexible tripod : 5KG Gorilla pod
- Powerbank : Anker High Capacity
- Hard drive : La Cie Rugged Mini 2TB
We hoped you enjoyed this Nusa Ceningan travel guide! If you’d like more awesome travel information on Bali, be sure to check out our other free travel guides.
