How to Get to Nusa Penida - Step by Step 2023

How to Get to NUSA PENIDA - Step by Step Guide 2023 (+best tips)

4/27/2023

Bali, contrary to what many may think, is one of 6,000+ inhabited islands in the country of Indonesia. With incredible temples, beautiful rice fields, and plenty of "instagram worthy" spots - Bali has quickly become one of the most popular spots to visit in the entire world. Another nearby spot? Nusa Penida. Commonly known for it's "dinosaur head beach," Nusa Penida is in fact an entirely different island from Bali, and although we highly recommend visiting, figuring out how to get from Bali to Nusa Penida and vice versa on your own can be a bit intimidating. Below, we've outlined our best tips from our most recent trip, including cautionary tales and who we recommend booking through!

Our Essential Travel Resources :
There are a lot of travel companies out there, but some are better than others. These are our favorite websites and resources to help you plan an incredible trip.

For flights, we recommend using WayAway or Hopper to compare the cheapest dates to travel to your destination.

Car rentals comparisons are best through Discover Cars - just make sure to bring your international driver's permit with you if you're heading somewhere international!

We always use AGODA for hotels. They have an easy-to-use platform where you can compare the best rates.

To keep cell phone service if you're traveling internationally, we always use Airalo’s easy to purchase eSIM’s (no installation required).

For fun things to do, we always recommend Viator to find the best tours in the area, otherwise Klook also does the trick, especially for tours in Asia.

Just in case, Safetywing is the insurance I always use for travel insurance.

Lastly, my packing list for your international or domestic travels.

Where to Begin

When you initially begin your search on how to get from Bali to Nusa Penida, you'll quickly learn just how many different ferry companies there are, and most reviews will say the experience is complete chaos. If we're being honest, we would agree - from overcrowded waiting rooms to a parking lot that's so full the taxis can't enter, the entire process begins online.

The first step in getting to Nusa Penida is to book your ticket in advance, online. We booked something similar to this ferry and ended up getting roundtrip tickets with Angel Billabong. We also had the option to purchase round trip tickets for the same day or round trip tickets over multiple days, which was perfect for us as we wanted to stay on Nusa Penida for a few nights.

Once you book your ticket online, the second step is to get to the Sanur Beach Harbour in Denpasar. (There are multiple ports on Bali & Nusa Penida, but this is the port we departed from, with arrival into Penida Ferry Port.) The best way to do this is to either walk, grab a taxi, or our favorite and by far the most popular (and cheapest) option - get a Grab (Southeast Asia's equivalent to Uber). Once you get to the intersection of JI. Hang Tuah you'll realize this is where the chaos begins, depending on how many ferries are leaving at the same time as you, the drive up to the harbor could already be completely full, and therefore stopped. When we arrived the line wasn't even budging, so we opted to get out of the taxi on the main road and walk to the harbor.

Once we found the Angel Billabong building and checked in to get our badges to board, we walked over to the main, large building for all ferry passengers. (This is at the end of the road and to the left.) The building itself is nice, with an indoor/outdoor waiting area, bathrooms, and is slightly air conditioned - however, with multiple ferries leaving at the same time and everyone crowding the door to exit the building onto the boarding docks, we could barely hear which boat was being called out (there was no mic system) and the entire process felt very unorganized and chaotic. If this is still the case, we recommend waiting outside, with a nice breeze, and simply have one person go in and check which boat is boarding every so often.

When your boat is finally called, and you make it through the crowds of people, you'll head onto the boat ramp and into your ferry. Be warned, our boat was completely full, with luggage thrown upstairs, no AC, and windows that remained closed for a majority of the ride due to the spray of the ocean waves (except for the ones that were stuck open).

It's important to note that because luggage is put upstairs, and the waves are often quite intense in this area, there is a chance that it might get wet. It's even more important to note that on this route it is quite common for people to feel seasick, and even though the ferry ride is only 45 minutes we highly encourage you take dramamine to prevent a woozy tummy, as well as to do your best to claim a spot outside. On our boat there were only 4 seats outside near the back, so we recommend claiming one of these as soon as you get on the boat.

When you arrive at Nusa Penida, your bags will be unloaded and you'll be bombarded with a swarm of taxi drivers. We recommend walking out of the harbor area (you'll have to pay a tourist fee to exit onto the island of Nusa Penida - when we visited it was 25,000 IDR or $1.68 USD per person) and finding a taxi there, or just calling a Grab. When you're ready to make the journey back to Bali, the process is a bit different. Each boat checks in at a different location, and there's no main building to gather in. Although each company is a bit different, Angel Billabong had a small hut, with enough seating for about 20 people. We waited here until it was time for our boat to depart.

While in Nusa Penida we stayed at the Star Semabu Resort and it was incredible!

What You Should Know (+ best tips)

Book online & in advance. Tickets can sell out, so we recommend looking at least a few days before your trip.
Double check the ports you're departing/arriving from. Although we left from Denpasar, there are multiple ports on Bali and Nusa Penida, we recommend double checking these according to your plans.
Plan to get there early. Things at the port can get chaotic, so if you know Tyler at all you know he recommends going early. ;)
Chaotic and rough waters. The first things you need to know is how chaotic and rough the waters are. Just since the beginning of this year, multiple boats have capsized and there have been reports of windshields being broken in due to the waves. Although the probability of these actually happening is small, it's something to be aware of.
Take waterproof bags. If you're checking in any bags (not holding them on the boat) then there's a chance they might get wet.
Sit outside & take dramamine. The boats are quite cramped and crowded, so it's very easy to begin feeling seasick in the rough waters. In order to prevent this, we recommend taking dramamine beforehand and sitting outside if you're able to!