Nusa Ceningan - The Ultimate Guide

Nusa Ceningan is a small island located between Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida, just off the southeast coast of Bali, Indonesia. Part of the Nusa Islands trio, Nusa Ceningan is the smallest of the three but offers its own unique charm and attractions.

Nusa Ceningan is known for its laid-back atmosphere, pristine beaches, and stunning natural landscapes. The island is accessible via a short bridge from Nusa Lembongan, making it a popular day trip destination for those staying on its larger neighbor. You can enjoy activities such as snorkeling, cliff jumping, zip-lining, exploring mangrove forests, visiting seaweed farms and relaxing on its beautiful beaches. Its Blue Lagoon, a famous cliff-jumping spot, is a highlight for adventure seekers, the Secret Beach is a gorgeous gem, never crowded, and the Yellow Bridge are the main highlights on this small island.

The whole area of Nusa Ceningan is only about 3 square kilometres, so it would only take you a few hours to walk around and explore several natural attractions here. Many things have changed in Nusa Ceningan within the last few years to cater to the needs of tourists. Several restaurants, villas, hotels and places to hang out have since been built rapidly throughout many prime locations on the island.

In comparison to the other two Nusa Islands – Nusa Ceningan provides a serene and intimate experience, Nusa Penida offers rugged adventure and natural wonders, and Nusa Lembongan combines the best of both worlds with its development and natural beauty. Each island has its own distinct appeal, making the Nusa Islands a diverse and exciting destination for travelers. You can read more about the comparison between the three islands (in text and picture) in this blog post.

In this post we’ll guide you through everything you need to know before you head out to exploration of Nusa Ceningan. Read on!

Quick Guide of Nusa Ceningan

First time on Nusa Ceningan? We summed up few of Nusa Ceningan’s bests:

How to get there: speedboat from Bali to Nusa Lembongan, then transfer to Ceningan
Best resort: Blue Lagoon Avia Villas
Best budget accommodation: Blue Lagoon Secret Villas or Ceningan Cliff Cottages
Best restaurant: Sea Breeze Cafe and Next Level Cafe
Best coffee: The Nomad Bali and Sea Breeze Cafe
Best beach: Secret Beach and Secret Point Beach
Best guided tours: Lembongan & Ceningan Highlight Tour

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Get a local SIM card. A great provider is BNESIM, where you can get a 20% discount on your first purchase with the code WANDERRESPONDER.
Airalo is also great. Note! Your mobile phone has to be eSIM compatible to use this option.

How Many Days Should I Spend on Nusa Ceningan?

Depending on what you want to see or do in Nusa Ceningan, how you want to see it and how fast you’ll be exploring it, you would need 1–2 days on the island.

But if you only have one day to spare, a day trip to Nusa Ceningan from Nusa Lembongan is very doable and common to do. You can get to Ceningan via the famous and picturesque Yellow Bridge in the morning and come back to Lembongan in the afternoon after practically seeing everything. We’ve done this on our first trip to Nusa Ceningan and we found the island so cute we decided to come back for a 4-day stay a few months later.

You wish to visit Nusa Ceningan and Nusa Lembongan, but you only have one day to spare and it’s way too much organisation by yourself.
Join a tour!
Discover the wonders of Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan islands. Spend the day visiting iconic locations and enjoy a delicious lunch of Indonesian food with a sea view.
*Everything is included, and you can tailor the trip depending on where you’re staying (Bali or any of the Nusa islands).

How To Get To Nusa Ceningan?

The easiest and most common (therefore less room for error) way to get to Nusa Ceningan is taking a speedboat from Bali to Mushroom Bay on Nusa Lembongan. Then you arrange yourself a transfer from Nusa Lembongan to Nusa Ceningan.

It’s best to reserve your boat/ferry ticket ahead of time, reasons being 1) chaos in Sanur Harbor, 2) multiple vendors selling different options for various prices, and 3) availability during peak season. You can book your speedboat tickets on 12Go for the best price.

Cool thing about 12Go is you can book multi-island tickets (for example we went Sanur – Lombok – Nusa Penida – Nusa Lembongan – Sanur).

HOW DOES 12GO WORK?
You find the desired transfers, all prices visible, and put them in the basket. Upon payout you pay one receipt only. You receive the final receipt on your email. You receive separate tickets on your email for each transfer, with all instructions and separate prices. Super easy to understand and their website is easy to navigate.

Morning is the best time to take the fast boat because the ocean is calmer. Nusa Lembongan is approximately 30 minutes by fast boat from Sanur. Arrival is to Mushroom Bay, which is actually a beach and doesn’t have any dock. That means you descend from the speedboat by small stairs into the water. Depth is usually between your knees and waist, so a friendly advice – wear shorts and flipflops.

Then, you’d arrange yourself a ride to Nusa Ceningan. You could rent a scooter on site (popular option). Most accommodations offer a transfer for a reasonable price, but you can also find locals on site who will offer you transfer either to the Yellow Bridge or to your accommodation. Read along as to why this either/or 🙂

Nusa Ceningan is connected to Nusa Lembongan by a famous Yellow Bridge. This yellow bridge is very narrow, appropriate for walking, cycling or scooters ONLY. It’s too narrow for cars, so cars or vans can not cross the only connection between Ceningan and Lembongan.

Where To Stay on Nusa Ceningan?

If you have a few days to spare, we recommend staying a night or two. Here are some accommodations you can consider:

Getting Around Nusa Ceningan

With Nusa Ceningan being so small your best option to seeing the most epic sites is either walking around the island or driving around with a rented scooter. Careful though, the main road on the Eastern part of Nusa Ceningan is… a wild combination of gravel, dirt, rocks and old concrete. But the island is so small you need only 14 minutes to drive from far end to the other side.

For a reliable and affordable scooter rental you can contact Agus, owner of Kelle Transport. We booked our scooter with him for Rp 80,000/day. He would deliver the scooter to Mushroom Bay too. Agus WhatsApp: +62 81238 627 206.

In Nusa Ceningan, it’s common for scooter riders not to wear helmets (as opposed to Bali), and consequently, they’re often not provided by rental services. Don’t worry, the roads are relatively quiet, and you won’t be going very fast.

What Apps Will Be Useful On Nusa Ceningan?

WhatsApp: most locals use WhatsApp either for calling or making appointments and bookings with tourists. WhatsApp is a free app.
Maps.me: if you aren’t planning on using local SIM card and data, we’d recommend you download Maps.me. It’s a pretty detailed app in Indonesia and we occasionally found it to have even better mapping of Nusa Ceningan than Google Maps. Maps.me is a free up for up to 10 downloaded maps.

What to bring to Nusa Ceningan?

Now that we know your options for getting to and around the island, here are things you should prepare for your trip there:

Local SIM Card – Having a local SIM card is always a good idea. We have tested BNESIM electronic SIMs many times so far and it works fantastic in Indonesia, so we are definitely recommending it. You literally have data transfer as soon as your flight lands in Indonesia. Comes handy with all the transfers too (for example, you can order yourself a Grab straight away and probably save on a taxi rip-off). Note! Your mobile phone has to be eSIM compatible to use this option. Get your eSIM here before-hand!
Cash (in Rupiah) – there are hardly any ATMs or places that take credit cards in Nusa Penida, so you need enough to last the entire time you’re on the island. I would set aside about Rp 100k – 150k per person per day.
Sun coverage – All the things you need to combat that strong sun in Bali – a hat, sunscreen (at least SPF50!), and sunglasses. If you are on a scooter, wear a thin layer with sleeves that can be removed.
A thin cotton scarf/sarong wrap – I love this because they are versatile! you can wear it around your neck and shoulder to protect yourself from the sun, but can also double up as something to sit on while you are at the beach.
Swimwear – once you see how clear the water is in this part of the world, you’d want to jump in. Trust me.

What to do on Nusa Ceningan?

Once you are on the island, it’s time to explore! Nusa Ceningan is a small island, so that should be easy. Check out the 12 Best Things to do on Nusa Ceningan.

The main things to see in Nusa Ceningan are: Yellow Bridge, Blue Lagoon, Secret Beach, seaweed farms, zip-line, cliff-jumps… You can also attend one of the fantastic tours on Nusa Ceningan.